Long-term watershed and field nitrogen (N) balances were used in this study to quantify the surface (baseflow) and ground water lag times and effects of BMPs on N discharge from a Virginia Coastal Plain watershed. Ten-year water quantity/quality data (1986-1996) collected at the Nomini Creek (NC) watershed were used. Field (Field-N) and watershed (Watershed-N) scale N models were developed for computing the N balances. BMPs evaluated in this study included no-till corn and split N application. The role of atmospheric N (atm-N) deposition (dry+wet) in masking the effects of BMPs on watershed N loading was also investigated. Nitrogen retention and discharge from the forest areas in the NC watershed were simulated using the 5-year water and N input and output data from forested subwatersheds. Field and watershed N balances (WNBAL) were used to evaluate the effects of BMPs on measured surface and ground water N in the NC watershed. A 6-month laboratory study was conducted to develop N mineralization (Nmin) models for agricultural, forest, and fallow soils in the NC watershed. Mineralization potential (N0) and rate constants (k) for surface and subsurface soils from agricultural, forest, and fallow soils were estimated by fitting the laboratory measured data to a first-order model, using the nonlinear regression procedure. A large variability (300%, 163 - 471 kg/ha) in N0 of agricultural surface soils was observed. On average, forest soils had much higher potentially mineralizable N than agricultural soils. The first-order model was incorporated into the Field-N model to predict daily Nmin using the measured N0 and k and daily values of soil water and temperature. Atmospheric deposition was a major source of N in the NC watershed, accounting for 23% of the total N input. Variation in atm-N deposition during the 10-year period was from 10 to 42 kg/ha (average = 25 kg/ha); much larger than the variation in fertilizer N (37 to 51 kg/ha). Atm-N deposition was found to be a controlling factor affecting surface water DIN (dissolved inorganic N) and TDN (total dissolved N) loading in the NC watershed; an indication that atm-N deposition is a masking factor in the BMP impact evaluation. Large uncertainty in atm-N deposition existed due to uncertainty involved in quantifying dry N deposition. Forested areas of the NC watershed retained 77% of the atm-N deposition. Forest area N discharge was simulated using the 77% retention and annual atmospheric deposition. Comparison of Field-N predicted N balance and leaching (steady-state and transient conditions) with observed ground water NO3 concentration revealed that the ground water lag time ranged from 2 to 8 months. Unusually rapid transport of solute in the watershed was facilitated by the network of discontinuous clay lenses. Based on the lag time, the pre-BMP (1986-1990) and post-BMP (1991-1995) periods were defined. Results from Field-N indicated that implementation of split fertilizer N on corn reduced the post-BMP ground water NO3 concentration by 10-12% at two of the four ground water monitoring sites. The split N application reduced the frequency of detection of high NO3 (> 9 mg/l) concentration by 44% during the post-BMP period. Considerably large uncertainty existed in evaluating the effects of BMPs on ground water NO3 due to N contributions from neighboring agricultural and forest areas. Effects of no-till corn could not be evaluated since this BMP was already implemented at the sites prior to the beginning of the study. Results of statistical trend analysis of the ground water N supported the modeling results. Watershed-N model was able to accurately predict the effects of land use activities on watershed N balances (WNBAL) and baseflow and ground water N. A one-to-one relationship between the WNBAL and observed N loading and concentration time series was observed. Comparison of WNBAL and measured baseflow N revealed that the baseflow lag time or residence time was between 4-11 months. Multivariate regression models were developed to predict baseflow N using Watershed-N results. The multivariate model predicted the N loading and concentration exceptionally well (R2 > 90%). Corn N input and output and acreage was an important predictor of ground water N and baseflow N loading and concentration. Post-BMP WNBAL was considerably less than the WNBAL for the pre-BMP period. However, these reductions were mainly due to the 43% reductions in atm-N deposition and 31% increase in the plant uptake during the post-BMP period. Reductions in WNBAL caused by BMPs were only 5%. Reductions in N loading caused by BMPs were 10%. Statistical trend analysis of monitoring and modeling results indicated significant post-BMP reductions in WNBAL and DIN and TDN loading. However, poor to moderate evidence was available to suggest that BMPs caused a significant reductions in WNBAL and N loading. Marginal effects of BMPs could mainly be attributed to insufficient BMP implementation. Watershed-N was used to evaluate N reduction scenarios and to design BMPs. Irrigating corn was one of the best BMPs, as it could reduce N loading from NC watershed by 50%. Quantification of lag time and long-term watershed N balances from this study provide crucial information for understanding N cycling and factors controlling N discharges which is essential for designing programs for controlling N discharges from Mid-Atlantic Coastal Plain watersheds. / Ph. D.

Mountain Lake in Giles County, Virginia, has a documented history of severe natural lake-level changes involving groundwater seepage [Jansons, 2004] that extend over the past 4200 years [Cawley, 1999], and as of December 2010 the lake was about 2% full by volume. Situated in the Valley and Ridge physiographic province on the axis of a plunging anticline and straddling contacts between three upper Ordovician and lower Silurian formations, the lake is one of two natural lakes in Virginia. A daily water balance, geophysical surveying with dipole-dipole electrical resistivity, and chemical sampling have shed light on the nature of flow to and from the lake, including: 1) the steady nature of net groundwater outflow, 2) the seasonal response to precipitation of a forested first-order drainage system in fractured rock, 3) the influence of a fault not previously discussed in literature regarding the lake, and 4) the possibility of flow pathways through karst features. Results from a water balance indicate steady lake drainage and significant recharge when vegetation is dormant, particularly during rain-on-snow melt events. The resistivity profiles display a highly heterogeneous subsurface and reveal low-resistivity areas that suggest flow pathways to and from the lake. Well logs, satellite images, and outcrop observations appear to confirm the presence of a fault to the east of the lake. Chemical evidence suggests that karst features may be present in the upper Reedsville-Trenton formation underlying the lakebed. / Master of Science

Urbanization has been associated with the degradation of streams, and a consequence of forest to urban land transition is a change in streamflow. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis is to examine the impacts of land-cover change in ten different watersheds in the rapidly urbanizing Atlanta, GA USA metropolitan area. Streamflow and precipitation data for a 30-year period (1986-2016) were analyzed in conjunction with land cover data from 1992, 2001, and 2011. Big Creek and Suwanee Creek experienced the most urbanization and increases (20%) in streamflow and runoff, and high flow (>95th percentile of flow) days doubled and increased 85%, respectively. Precipitation-adjusted streamflow for Peachtree Creek and Flint River decreased about 17%. Runoff ratios for South River were the highest among all watersheds, even the Etowah River, which remained moderately forested and had the most precipitation and slope.

Icings, also known as aufeis, are groundwater fed sheet-layered ice bodies that normally forms in local depression or more often in low angled, shallow river beds. Understanding their distribution in the Mackenzie Valley corridor (N.W.T.) and adjacent Yukon (618,430 km2) provided important insights to groundwater discharge and recharge. This study aimed at; i) creating the first extensive map of icings in Northwestern Canada, using over 500 late-winter scene Landsat 5 and 7; and ii) assessing hydrographic parameters (streamflow, baseflow and winter contribution) and terrain factors (slope, permafrost, geology) on icing distribution at the watershed level. Results show that; 1) icings are likely to develop close to geological faults on carbonate foothills and mountainous terrain, where continuous permafrost is present and on slopes of less than 5 degrees; 2) in the continuous permafrost zone, the cumulative surface area of icings, winter discharge and winter contribution to total annual discharge have significant positive relations with watershed extents. Icings located at the southern boundary of continuous permafrost are more sensitive to degrading permafrost and the predicted increase in groundwater discharge which may lead to a later icing accretion and earlier ablation during the year.

Baseflow water chemistry between different septic system density groups was analyzed to understand how septic system usage impacts the water quality of the Yellow River Watershed located in Gwinnett County, Georgia. Seventy water samples were collected at baseflow conditions in the summer of 2006. The samples were analyzed for the abundance and distribution of chlorides, sulfates, nitrates, and specific conductance. Geographic Information Systems were used to determine sample collection sites, assign samples into density groups, and spatially analyze and display the results. Statistical methods were used to compare the results of each density group with all others,and to find any correlation of the anions with respect to specific conductance. Regression coefficient values between nitrate and specific conductance in all groups average 0.77 and the elevated nitrate concentrations in group four suggest a limited relationship between septic system density and baseflow water quality.

This study examines the relationship between baseflow and urbanization over time with the help of spatial analysis using Geographic Information Systems. The urbanization parameters used were population and urban land use. Five urban and three non-urban streams were chosen for analysis in the state of Georgia. Four percentile baseflows for each stream were identified and analyzed for trends over time. A correlation analysis was also run to determine how baseflow varies as a function of urbanization. According to the trend analysis, the baseflows over time were considered stable or had no statistically significant trend. The correlation analysis between baseflow and urbanization revealed some scattered relationships though a general conclusion cannot be drawn. The simplicity of the study may have contributed to not capturing all of the baseflow changes with the urbanization parameters.

This research had two main objectives: quantify surface-water and groundwater interactions along a stream reach, and determine the hydraulic conductivity at the site where two reservoirs are proposed. The objectives of this research aim to help maintain stream ecology and increase surface water storage for recreational and industrial purposes. The stream reach, located in the Pascagoula River Basin of southeast Mississippi, begins at Lake Okatibbee and terminates at Pascagoula into the Gulf of Mexico. Four USGS continuous gauging stations provided more than forty years of stream discharge data for a hydrograph baselow-recession analysis, which determined the baseflow component within the stream. The analysis showed that baseflow decreases along the stream reach and increases again before reaching the Gulf of Mexico. Thirteen borehole samples were collected at the sites of the proposed reservoirs in George County, Mississippi to determine the hydraulic conductivity of the sediments, which showed high a hydraulic conductivity.

Turfgrass management activities on golf courses have been identified as a possible source of Chesapeake Bay nutrient pollution. Total Maximum Daily Load goals are in place to reduce nutrient amounts entering the Bay. Dissertation investigations include (1) the role of golf course turfgrass management in nutrient deposition or attenuation in local streams, (2) estimations of total nitrogen (N) discharging to the watershed from stream outlet points as a function of land use and watershed area, and (3) other factors potentially affecting water quality on golf courses, including soil characteristics and use of best management practices (BMPs). Total N, nitrate-N, ammonium-N, phosphate-phosphorus (P), streamwater temperature, specific conductance (SpC), pH and dissolved oxygen (DO) were sampled at 12-14 golf course stream sites in the James River and Roanoke River watersheds during baseflow conditions. Discharge was determined at outflow locations. Unit-area loads (UALs) were calculated from monitoring data. These UALs were then compared to UALs from Chesapeake Bay Watershed Model land use acreages and simulated loads for corresponding watershed segments. Virginia golf course superintendents were also surveyed to determine BMP use. No consistent impairment trends were detected for streamwater temperature, SpC, pH, or DO at any of the sites. Outflow NO3-N was below the 10 mg L-1 EPA drinking water standard. However, some sites may be at increased risk for benthic impairment with total N concentrations >2 mg L-1, as suggested by VADEQ. Significant increases in nitrate-N at OUT locations were measured at four sites, whereas decreases were measured at two sites. Ammonium-N significantly decreased at two sites. Golf course N UALs calculated from baseflow monitoring were lower than or similar to UALs estimated for forested areas in the associated watershed segment at seven out of the 12 sites. Golf course UALs ranged from 1.3-87 kg N ha-1 yr-1. Twenty-one of 32 surveyed BMPs had an adoption rate ≥50% among survey respondents. In most cases, presence of golf courses generally does not appear to significantly degrade baseflow water quality of streams in this study. Management level appears to be an influencing factor on water quality and concerns may be heightened in urban areas. / Ph. D.

Analytical baseflow separation techniques such as those used in the automated hydrograph separation program HYSEP rely on a single input parameter that defines the period of time after which surface runoff ceases and all streamflow is considered baseflow. In HYSEP, this input parameter is solely a function of drainage basin contributing area. This method cannot be applied universally since in most regions the time of surface runoff cessation is a function of a number of different hydrologic and hydrogeologic basin characteristics, not just contributing drainage area. This study demonstrates that streamflow conductivity can be used as a natural tracer that integrates the different hydrologic and hydrogeologic basin characteristics that influence baseflow response. Used as an indicator of baseflow as a component of total flow, streamflow conductivity allows for an empirical approach to hydrograph separation using a simple mass balance algorithm. Although conductivity values for surface-water runoff and ground-water baseflow must be identified to apply this mass balance algorithm, field studies show that assumptions based on streamflow at low flow and high flow conditions are valid for estimating these end member conductivities. The only data required to apply the mass balance algorithm are streamflow conductivity and discharge measurements. Using minimal data requirements, empirical hydrograph separation techniques can be applied that yield reasonable estimates of baseflow. This procedure was performed on data from 10 USGS gaging stations for which reliable, real-time conductivity data are available. Comparison of empirical hydrograph separations using streamflow conductivity data with analytical hydrograph separations demonstrates that uncalibrated, graphical estimation of baseflow can lead to substantial errors in baseflow estimates. Results from empirical separations can be used to calibrate the runoff cessation input parameter used in analytical separation for each gaging station. In general, collection of stream conductivity data at gaging stations is relatively recent, while discharge measurements may extend many decades into the past. Results demonstrate that conductivity data available for a relatively short period of record can be used to calibrate the runoff cessation input parameter used for analytical separation. The calibrated analytical method can then be applied over a much longer period record since discharge data are the only requirement.

The interconnections between groundwater and river systems remain poorly understood in many catchments throughout the world, and yet they are fundamental to effectively managing water resources. Groundwater extraction from aquifers that are connected to river systems will reduce river flows, and this has implications for riverine ecosystem health, water security, aesthetic and cultural values, as well as water allocation and water management policies more generally. The decline in river flows as a consequence of groundwater extractions has the potential to threaten river basin industries and communities reliant on water resources. ¶ In this thesis the connectivity between groundwater and river systems and the impact that groundwater extractions have on river flows were studied in one of Australia’s most developed irrigation areas, the Namoi River catchment in New South Wales. ¶ Gauged river reaches in the Namoi River catchment were characterised according to three levels of information: 1) presence of hydraulic connection between aquifer-river systems; 2) dominant direction of aquifer-river flux; and 3) the potential for groundwater extraction to impact on river flows. The methods used to characterise the river reaches included the following analyses: 1) a comparison of groundwater and river channel base elevations using a GIS/Database; 2) stream hydrographs and the application of a baseflow separation filter; 3) flow duration curves and the percentage of time a river flows; 4) vertical aquifer connectivity from nested piezometer sites; and 5) paired stream and groundwater hydrographs. ¶ The theoretical responses for gaining, losing and variably gaining-losing river reaches were conceptualised along with the processes that operate in these systems. Subsequently, a map was prepared for the Namoi River catchment river reaches indicating aquifer-river connectivity and dominant direction of flux. Large areas of the Upper Namoi River catchment were found to have connected aquifer-river systems, with groundwater extraction bores located in close proximity to the rivers. Accordingly, the potential for groundwater extraction to impact on river flows in these areas was considered significant. The Lower Namoi was assessed as having mostly disconnected aquifer-river systems. ¶ In order to investigate the impacts of groundwater extraction on river flows in connected aquifer-river systems, a simple integrated aquifer-river model entitled IHACRES_GW was developed for use at the catchment scale. The IHACRES_GW model includes a dynamic, spatially-lumped rainfall-runoff model, IHACRES, combined with a simple groundwater bucket model that maintains a continuous water balance account of groundwater storage volumes for the upstream catchment area relative to the base of the stream, assumed to be the stream gauging station. The IHACRES_GW model was developed primarily: 1) to improve upon existing water allocation models by incorporating aquifer-river interactions; 2) to quantify the impacts of groundwater extraction on river flows within unregulated, connected aquifer-river systems; 3) to inform water policy on groundwater extraction; and 4) to be able to utilise the model in future integrated assessment of water allocations options at the catchment scale. ¶ The IHACRES_GW model was applied within the Cox’s Creek subcatchment in order to test its validity. The model was used to simulate a range of extraction scenarios which enabled the impacts of groundwater extractions on river flows to be assessed. In particular, the historical impacts of groundwater extraction on the timing, magnitude and frequency of baseflow events were quantified over a 15-year (1988-2003) simulation period. The IHACRES_GW model was also used to evaluate the implications of water sharing plans for the Cox’s Creek subcatchment. ¶ A spatially-lumped modelling approach in the management of water resources has a number of limitations, including those arising from the lack of spatial considerations. However, it offers a number of advantages including facilitating a better understanding of large-scale water management issues, assessing the impacts of water allocation and groundwater extraction on river flows at the catchment scale, and informing water sharing plans. In particular, this type of modelling approach lends itself to integrated assessments of water allocation options in which hydrological, ecological and socioeconomic data sets are combined, and where data is commonly aggregated to a larger scale of interest in response to the requirements of policy makers. The research findings from this thesis provide some insights into how to better manage the impacts of groundwater extraction in connected aquifer-river systems.