Exploring a Climate Gradient of Midwestern USA Agricultural Landscape Runoff Using Deuterium (δD) and Oxygen-18 (δ<sup>18</sup>O)
Intensive agricultural activities have altered the hydrology of many Midwestern USA landscapes. Drain tiles (subsurface corrugated and perforated flexible tubing) has changed how and when water is discharged into the streams. Stable isotopes of oxygen (oxygen-18) and hydrogen (deuterium) were used t...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-05-01
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| Series: | Water |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/14/10/1629 |
| _version_ | 1797494472012988416 |
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| author | Lu Zhang Joe Magner Jeffrey Strock |
| author_facet | Lu Zhang Joe Magner Jeffrey Strock |
| author_sort | Lu Zhang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Intensive agricultural activities have altered the hydrology of many Midwestern USA landscapes. Drain tiles (subsurface corrugated and perforated flexible tubing) has changed how and when water is discharged into the streams. Stable isotopes of oxygen (oxygen-18) and hydrogen (deuterium) were used to investigate hydrologic characteristics of three intensively managed agricultural landscapes in southern Minnesota (MN) and South Dakota (SD). Monthly δD and δ<sup>18</sup>O samples were collected across a climatic gradient from March 2016 to March 2018. Local meteoric water lines were established for the comparison of precipitation and evaporation magnitude from different sources at each location. These included vadose zone, phreatic zone, deep groundwater, tile drain, and river source waters. Two end-member hydrograph separation was performed at each site on selected dates to partition the shallow groundwater tile drainage contribution to streamflow. A lumped parameter modeling approach was applied to each dataset to investigate the mean transit time of water through different zones. Local meteoric water lines demonstrated differences in isotopic signatures due to the climate gradient to show the impact of low humidity and less rainfall. The hydrograph separation results showed that, from west South Dakota to eastern Minnesota, tile drains contributed about 49%, 64%, and 50% of the watershed streamflow. Precipitation took an average of 9 months to move through different pathways to end up in groundwater and an average of 4 months to end up in tile drains. This study confirms the important role tile drains play in the intensively managed fields and watersheds of Midwestern agriculture. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T01:34:47Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ab59fbf0f95d40eda670f1eba48b33d0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4441 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T01:34:47Z |
| publishDate | 2022-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Water |
| spelling | doaj.art-ab59fbf0f95d40eda670f1eba48b33d02023-11-23T13:35:25ZengMDPI AGWater2073-44412022-05-011410162910.3390/w14101629Exploring a Climate Gradient of Midwestern USA Agricultural Landscape Runoff Using Deuterium (δD) and Oxygen-18 (δ<sup>18</sup>O)Lu Zhang0Joe Magner1Jeffrey Strock2Stantec Engineering, Austin, TX 78723, USADepartment of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108, USADepartment of Soil Water and Climate, Southwest Research and Outreach Center, University of Minnesota, Lamberton, MN 56152, USAIntensive agricultural activities have altered the hydrology of many Midwestern USA landscapes. Drain tiles (subsurface corrugated and perforated flexible tubing) has changed how and when water is discharged into the streams. Stable isotopes of oxygen (oxygen-18) and hydrogen (deuterium) were used to investigate hydrologic characteristics of three intensively managed agricultural landscapes in southern Minnesota (MN) and South Dakota (SD). Monthly δD and δ<sup>18</sup>O samples were collected across a climatic gradient from March 2016 to March 2018. Local meteoric water lines were established for the comparison of precipitation and evaporation magnitude from different sources at each location. These included vadose zone, phreatic zone, deep groundwater, tile drain, and river source waters. Two end-member hydrograph separation was performed at each site on selected dates to partition the shallow groundwater tile drainage contribution to streamflow. A lumped parameter modeling approach was applied to each dataset to investigate the mean transit time of water through different zones. Local meteoric water lines demonstrated differences in isotopic signatures due to the climate gradient to show the impact of low humidity and less rainfall. The hydrograph separation results showed that, from west South Dakota to eastern Minnesota, tile drains contributed about 49%, 64%, and 50% of the watershed streamflow. Precipitation took an average of 9 months to move through different pathways to end up in groundwater and an average of 4 months to end up in tile drains. This study confirms the important role tile drains play in the intensively managed fields and watersheds of Midwestern agriculture.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/14/10/1629isotopestile drainshydrological pathways |
| spellingShingle | Lu Zhang Joe Magner Jeffrey Strock Exploring a Climate Gradient of Midwestern USA Agricultural Landscape Runoff Using Deuterium (δD) and Oxygen-18 (δ<sup>18</sup>O) Water isotopes tile drains hydrological pathways |
| title | Exploring a Climate Gradient of Midwestern USA Agricultural Landscape Runoff Using Deuterium (δD) and Oxygen-18 (δ<sup>18</sup>O) |
| title_full | Exploring a Climate Gradient of Midwestern USA Agricultural Landscape Runoff Using Deuterium (δD) and Oxygen-18 (δ<sup>18</sup>O) |
| title_fullStr | Exploring a Climate Gradient of Midwestern USA Agricultural Landscape Runoff Using Deuterium (δD) and Oxygen-18 (δ<sup>18</sup>O) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exploring a Climate Gradient of Midwestern USA Agricultural Landscape Runoff Using Deuterium (δD) and Oxygen-18 (δ<sup>18</sup>O) |
| title_short | Exploring a Climate Gradient of Midwestern USA Agricultural Landscape Runoff Using Deuterium (δD) and Oxygen-18 (δ<sup>18</sup>O) |
| title_sort | exploring a climate gradient of midwestern usa agricultural landscape runoff using deuterium δd and oxygen 18 δ sup 18 sup o |
| topic | isotopes tile drains hydrological pathways |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/14/10/1629 |
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