Browsing by Author "Green, Mark B."

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    Mineral weathering and podzolization control acid neutralization and streamwater chemistry gradients in upland glaciated catchments, Northeastern United States
    Bailey, Scott W.; McGuire, Kevin J.; Ross, Donald S.; Green, Mark B.; Fraser, Olivia L. (2019-02-26)
    Headwater streams in the White Mountains, NH, United States have been shown to have downstream gradients of increasing pH and concentrations of base cations coupled with decreasing concentrations of aluminum. A two-stage acid neutralization model involving shallow soil exchange processes in headwaters coupled with deeper mineral weathering downstream had been proposed to explain these gradients. We conducted synoptic sampling of three headwater catchments in this region that showed variations in this longitudinal pattern, ranging from streams that remain acidic throughout their length to streams with circumneutral pH beginning at their source. To explain these differences, we mapped soils using a hydropedologic approach that emphasizes the influence of groundwater saturation frequency and water table regime on soil formation processes. Stream segments with lower pH and base cation concentrations, coupled with higher concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), aluminum, and in one case iron, were in subcatchments mapped with shallow to bedrock soils where eluvial soil forming processes dominated. In contrast, stream segments with higher pH and base cation concentrations coupled with low concentrations of DOC and aluminum were associated with subcatchments with deeper soils where illuvial processes were more dominant. Concentrations of sodium and silicon were relatively uniform across these gradients. Coupled with the higher concentrations of dissolved aluminum and small pools of exchangeable aluminum in the areas of bedrock outcrops and shallow soils, these data suggest that primary mineral dissolution is an important process influencing upper stream reaches, not just along longer, deeper flowpaths in downslope areas. In contrast, some stream reaches with obvious groundwater springs show a more abrupt transition in pH and base cation concentrations higher along the stream, suggesting that neutralization along deeper flowpaths may play a role in upslope areas as well. These data suggest a new three stage model of stream chemistry evolution. First, organic acids are introduced by frequent flushing of organic soils on shallow bedrock along ridge areas. Second, upper acidic reaches are controlled by mineral dissolution coupled with eluvial soil development. Third, downstream reaches are influenced by illuviation as organometallic complexes precipitate in spodic soil horizons, removing organic acids, and acid-mobile metals from drainage waters. This new model highlights differences in critical zone evolution along hillslopes in glaciated catchments with implications for understanding gradients in water quality, soil fertility, and response and recovery from disturbances.
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    Stream Runoff and Nitrate Recovery Times After Forest Disturbance in the USA and Japan
    Oda, Tomoki; Green, Mark B.; Urakawa, Rieko; Scanlon, Todd M.; Sebestyen, Stephen D.; McGuire, Kevin J.; Katsuyama, Masanori; Fukuzawa, Karibu; Adams, Mary Beth; Ohte, Nobuhito (American Geophysical Union, 2018-09-01)
    To understand mechanisms of long-term hydrological and biogeochemical recovery after forest disturbance, it is important to evaluate recovery times (i.e., time scales associated with the return to baseline or predisturbance conditions) of stream runoff and nitrate concentration. Previous studies have focused on either the response of runoff or nitrate concentration, and some have specifically addressed recovery times following disturbance. However, controlling factors have not yet been elucidated. Knowing these relationships will advance our understanding of each recovery process. The objectives of this study were to explore the relationship between runoff and nitrate recovery times and identify potential factors controlling each. We acquired long-term runoff and stream water nitrate concentration data from 20 sites in the USA and Japan. We then examined the relationship between runoff and nitrate recovery times at these multiple sites and use these relationships to discuss the ecosystem dynamics following forest disturbance. Nitrate response was detected at all study sites, while runoff responses were detected at all sites with disturbance intensities greater than 75% of the catchment area. The runoff recovery time was significantly correlated with the nitrate recovery time for catchments that had a runoff response. For these catchments, hydrological recovery times were slower than nitrate recovery times. The relationship between these two recovery times suggests that forest regeneration was a common control on both recovery times. However, the faster recovery time for nitrate suggests that nitrogen was less available or less mobile in these catchments than water.
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    Watershed studies at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest: Building on a long legacy of research with new approaches and sources of data
    Campbell, John L.; Rustad, Lindsey E.; Bailey, Scott W.; Bernhardt, Emily S.; Driscoll, Charles T.; Green, Mark B.; Groffman, Peter M.; Lovett, Gary M.; McDowell, William H.; McGuire, Kevin J.; Rosi, Emma J. (2021-01)
    The Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF) was established in 1955 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service out of concerns about the effects of logging increasing flooding and erosion. To address this issue, within the HBEF hydrological and micrometeorological monitoring was initiated in small watersheds designated for harvesting experiments. The Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study (HBES) originated in 1963, with the idea of using the small watershed approach to study element fluxes and cycling and the response of forest ecosystems to disturbances, such as forest management practices and air pollution. Early evidence of acid rain was documented at the HBEF and research by scientists at the site helped shape acid rain mitigation policies. New lines of investigation at the HBEF have built on the long legacy of watershed research resulting in a shift from comparing inputs and outputs and quantifying pools and fluxes to a more mechanistic understanding of ecosystem processes within watersheds. For example, hydropedological studies have shed light on linkages between hydrologic flow paths and soil development that provide valuable perspective for managing forests and understanding stream water quality. New high frequency in situ stream chemistry sensors are providing insights about extreme events and diurnal patterns that were indiscernible with traditional weekly sampling. Additionally, tools are being developed for visual and auditory data exploration and discovery by a broad audience. Given the unprecedented environmental change that is occurring, data from the small watersheds at the HBEF are more relevant now than ever and will continue to serve as a basis for sound environmental decision-making.