In the path of the Hurricane: impact of Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee on watershed hydrology and biogeochemistry from North Carolina to Maine, USA

2018 ◽  
Vol 141 (3) ◽  
pp. 351-364 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philippe Vidon ◽  
Diana L. Karwan ◽  
A. Scott Andres ◽  
Shreeram Inamdar ◽  
Sujay Kaushal ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
Tropical Storm ◽  
Watershed Hydrology ◽  
Hurricane Irene ◽  
Hurricane Impact

IMPACT OF HURRICANE IRENE AND TROPICAL STORM LEE ON RIPARIAN ZONE HYDROLOGY AND BIOGEOCHEMISTRY

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philippe Vidon ◽  
◽  
Sara Marchese ◽  
Stephen Rook
Keyword(s):  
Riparian Zone ◽  
Tropical Storm ◽  
Hurricane Irene

scholarly journals Can the Stream Quantification Tool (SQT) Protocol Predict the Biotic Condition of Streams in the Southeast Piedmont (USA)?

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 1485 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Donatich ◽  
Barbara Doll ◽  
Jonathan Page ◽  
Natalie Nelson
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
Cross Validation ◽  
Biological Function ◽  
Functional Change ◽  
Biotic Index ◽  
Watershed Hydrology ◽  
Community Metrics ◽  
Stream Functions ◽  
Watershed Condition ◽  
Ept Richness

In some states, the Stream Quantification Tool (SQT) has been adopted to quantify functional change of stream mitigation efforts. However, the ability of the SQT protocol to predict biological function and uphold the premise of the Stream Functions Pyramid (Pyramid) remains untested. Macroinvertebrate community metrics in 34 headwater streams in Piedmont, North Carolina (NC, USA) were related to NC SQT protocol (version 3.0) factors and other variables relevant to ecological function. Three statistical models, including stepwise, lasso, and ridge regression were used to predict the NC Biotic Index (NCBI) and Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera (EPT) richness using two datasets: 21 SQT variables and the SQT variables plus 13 additional watershed, hydraulic, geomorphic, and physicochemical variables. Cross-validation revealed that stepwise and ridge outperformed lasso, and that the SQT variables can reasonably predict biology metrics (R2 0.53–0.64). Additional variables improved prediction (R2 0.70–0.88), suggesting that the SQT protocol is lacking metrics important to macroinvertebrates. Results moderately support the Pyramid: highly predictive ridge models included metrics from all levels, while highly predictive stepwise models included metrics from higher levels, and not watershed hydrology. Reach-scale metrics were more important than watershed hydrology, providing encouragement for projects limited by watershed condition.

scholarly journals Hurricane impacts on a pair of coastal forested watersheds: implications of selective hurricane damage to forest structure and streamflow dynamics

2014 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 1151-1164 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. D. Jayakaran ◽  
T. M. Williams ◽  
H. Ssegane ◽  
D. M. Amatya ◽  
B. Song ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Carolina ◽  
Forest Structure ◽  
Forested Wetland ◽  
Potential Contribution ◽  
Watershed Hydrology ◽  
Hurricane Damage ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Hurricane Impact ◽  
Paired Watersheds ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Hurricanes are infrequent but influential disruptors of ecosystem processes in the southeastern Atlantic and Gulf coasts. Every southeastern forested wetland has the potential to be struck by a tropical cyclone. We examined the impact of Hurricane Hugo on two paired coastal South Carolina watersheds in terms of streamflow and vegetation dynamics, both before and after the hurricane's passage in 1989. The study objectives were to quantify the magnitude and timing of changes including a reversal in relative streamflow difference between two paired watersheds, and to examine the selective impacts of a hurricane on the vegetative composition of the forest. We related these impacts to their potential contribution to change watershed hydrology through altered evapotranspiration processes. Using over 30 years of monthly rainfall and streamflow data we showed that there was a significant transformation in the hydrologic character of the two watersheds – a transformation that occurred soon after the hurricane's passage. We linked the change in the rainfall–runoff relationship to a catastrophic change in forest vegetation due to selective hurricane damage. While both watersheds were located in the path of the hurricane, extant forest structure varied between the two watersheds as a function of experimental forest management techniques on the treatment watershed. We showed that the primary damage was to older pines, and to some extent larger hardwood trees. We believe that lowered vegetative water use impacted both watersheds with increased outflows on both watersheds due to loss of trees following hurricane impact. However, one watershed was able to recover to pre hurricane levels of evapotranspiration at a quicker rate due to the greater abundance of pine seedlings and saplings in that watershed.

scholarly journals Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee: How Unusual Were They in the Catskill Mountains?

2017 ◽  
Vol 04 (02) ◽  
pp. 1750009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allan Frei ◽  
Petra Kelly-Voicu
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
New York State ◽  
Historical Context ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
Careful Analysis ◽  
Tropical Storm ◽  
Catskill Mountains ◽  
South Central ◽  
Hurricane Irene ◽  
History Of

During the late summer and early autumn of 2011, the Catskill Mountains in south-central New York State experienced devastating flooding associated with former Hurricane Irene and former Tropical Storm Lee. Even in this particularly flood-prone region, the events of fall 2011 are perceived to be unique in the known history of the region and marked a turning point in the perceptions of residents about climate change. Here, precipitation and stream gage records are analyzed to determine just how unusual this season was. The historical precipitation gage record requires careful analysis due to the changing availability of stations. After a set of stations is developed that is appropriate for this analysis, events of lengths 1 day, 5 days, and 60 days are analyzed to identify regionally significant events (as opposed to events localized to one basin) since the early 20th century and to evaluate Irene and Lee in that historical context. Gage record results corroborate the perceptions of local residents that the period between 1996 and 2011, and in particular the events of fall 2011, were unprecedented in the last 100 years and as inferred from analyses of regional tree rings, probably in the last 500 years.

The effects of Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee on the bed sediment geochemistry of U.S. Atlantic coastal rivers

2013 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 1250-1259 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arthur J. Horowitz ◽  
Kent A. Elrick ◽  
James J. Smith ◽  
Verlin C. Stephens
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Storm ◽  
Sediment Geochemistry ◽  
Bed Sediment ◽  
Hurricane Irene ◽  
Coastal Rivers ◽  
Atlantic Coastal

Oyster mortality in Delaware Bay: Impacts and recovery from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee

2013 ◽  
Vol 135 ◽  
pp. 209-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Munroe ◽  
A. Tabatabai ◽  
I. Burt ◽  
D. Bushek ◽  
E.N. Powell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Delaware Bay ◽  
Tropical Storm ◽  
Hurricane Irene ◽  
Oyster Mortality

Urbanization alters watershed hydrology in the Piedmont of North Carolina

Ecohydrology ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 256-264 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. L. Boggs ◽  
G. Sun
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
Watershed Hydrology

scholarly journals Hurricane impacts on a pair of coastal forested watersheds: implications of selective hurricane damage to forest structure and streamflow dynamics

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 11519-11557 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. D. Jayakaran ◽  
T. M. Williams ◽  
H. Ssegane ◽  
D. M. Amatya ◽  
B. Song ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Carolina ◽  
Forest Structure ◽  
Forested Wetland ◽  
Potential Contribution ◽  
Watershed Hydrology ◽  
Hurricane Damage ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Hurricane Impact ◽  
Paired Watersheds ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Hurricanes are infrequent but influential disruptors of ecosystem processes in the southeastern Atlantic and Gulf coasts. Every southeastern forested wetland has the potential to be struck by a tropical cyclone. We examined the impact of Hurricane Hugo on two paired coastal watersheds in South Carolina in terms of stream flow and vegetation dynamics, both before and after the hurricane's passage in 1989. The study objectives were to quantify the magnitude and timing of changes including a reversal in relative streamflow-difference between two paired watersheds, and to examine the selective impacts of a hurricane on the vegetative composition of the forest. We related these impacts to their potential contribution to change watershed hydrology through altered evapotranspiration processes. Using over thirty years of monthly rainfall and streamflow data we showed that there was a significant transformation in the hydrologic character of the two watersheds – a transformation that occurred soon after the hurricane's passage. We linked the change in the rainfall-runoff relationship to a catastrophic shift in forest vegetation due to selective hurricane damage. While both watersheds were located in the path of the hurricane, extant forest structure varied between the two watersheds as a function of experimental forest management techniques on the treatment watershed. We showed that the primary damage was to older pines, and to some extent larger hardwood trees. We believe that lowered vegetative water use impacted both watersheds with increased outflows on both watersheds due to loss of trees following hurricane impact. However, one watershed was able to recover to pre hurricane levels of canopy transpiration at a quicker rate due to the greater abundance of pine seedlings and saplings in that watershed.

scholarly journals Spatiotemporal Patterns and Return Periods of Tropical Storm and Hurricane Strikes from Texas to Maine

2007 ◽  
Vol 20 (14) ◽  
pp. 3498-3509 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barry D. Keim ◽  
Robert A. Muller ◽  
Gregory W. Stone
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
New England ◽  
Gulf Coast ◽  
Tropical Storm ◽  
South Florida ◽  
Return Periods ◽  
North Central ◽  
Outer Banks ◽  
The North ◽  
Southern Florida

Abstract The authors analyze 105 yr (1901–2005) of tropical cyclone strikes at 45 coastal locations from Brownsville, Texas, to Eastport, Maine, with the primary objective of examining spatiotemporal patterns of storm activity. Interpretation of the data suggests that geographically, three focal points for activity are evident: south Florida, the Outer Banks of North Carolina, and the north-central Gulf Coast. Temporally, clusters of hyperactivity are evident in south Florida from the 1920s through the 1950s and then again during the most recent years. North Carolina was a region of enhanced activity in the 1950s and again in the 1990s. A more consistent rate of occurrence was found along the north-central Gulf Coast; the last two years, however, were active in this region. Return periods of tropical storm strength systems or greater range from a frequency of once every 2 yr along the Outer Banks of North Carolina, every three years on average in southeast Texas, southeastern Louisiana, and southern Florida, and about once every 10–15 yr in northern New England. Hurricane return periods range from 5 yr in southern Florida to 105+ years at several sheltered portions of the coastline (e.g., near Cedar Key, Florida, Georgia, and the northeastern seaboard), where some locations experienced only one strike, or no strikes through the entire period of record. Severe hurricane (category 3–5) return periods range from once every 15 yr in South Florida to 105+ in New England.

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