Thomas A. Fontaine

South Dakota School of Mines and Technology

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Rollin H. Hotchkiss

Brigham Young University

Mark Stone

University of Nebraska–Lincoln

Tyler Cruickshank

Oregon Department of Environmental Quality

Kenneth W. Potter

Virginia Tech

Steven F. Jorgensen

Washington State University

James Klassen

University of Minnesota

Jeffrey G. Arnold

Grassland, Soil and Water Research Laboratory

Adel E. Haj

United States Geological Survey

Vanusa Maria Feliciano Jacomino

Centro de Desenvolvimento da Tecnologia Nuclear

Dol Raj Chalise

North Carolina State University

Cooperative Institutions

South Dakota School of Mines and Technology

Washington State University

Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Grassland, Soil and Water Research Laboratory

Agricultural Research Service

NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research

United States Department of Agriculture

Desert Research Institute

University of Iowa

University of Tennessee at Knoxville

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Development of a snowfall–snowmelt routine for mountainous terrain for the soil water assessment tool (SWAT)

Journal of Hydrology (2002)

Thomas A. Fontaine Tyler Cruickshank Jeffrey G. Arnold Rollin H. Hotchkiss

Snowmelt

Snowpack

Meltwater

Elevation (ballistics)

SWAT model

Hydrological modelling

10.1016/s0022-1694(02)00029-x

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Citations (350)

Hydrological response to climate change in the Black Hills of South Dakota, USA

Hydrological Sciences Journal (2001)

Thomas A. Fontaine James Klassen Tyler Cruickshank Rollin H. Hotchkiss

Abstract The hydrological response due to potential CO− 2 forced climate change in the Black Hills of South Dakota was investigated using modelling techniques that include variations to atmospheric CO2, temperature, and precipitation. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) was used to model the 427 km2 Spring Creek basin hydrology and simulate the impact of potential climate change. As expected, modelling results of precipitation and temperature change demonstrated that increased temperature caused a decrease in water yield while increased precipitation caused an increase in water yield. Increased CO2 and precipitation caused the largest increase in yield. Modelling results of increased atmospheric CO2 indicate that average annual water yield increased by 16%. This increase is attributed to a suppression of transpiration processes due to increased levels of atmospheric CO2. Simulation results demonstrate that increased concentrations of atmospheric CO2 act to dampen water yield loss due to the effects of increased temperature or decreased precipitation alone.

10.1080/02626660109492798

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Citations (65)

PREDICTING TEMPORAL AND SPATIAL FLOOD DYNAMICS USING A PRECALIBRATED MODEL¹

JAWRA Journal of the American Water Resources Association (1994)

Michael A. Huston Thomas A. Fontaine

ABSTRACT: A large storm in December 1990 allowed the evaluation of flood predictions from a hydrologic model (TOPMODEL) that had been previously calibrated on the West Fork of Walker Branch Watershed, a gauged 37.5 ha catchment near Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The model predicts both hydrograph dynamics and the spatial distribution of overland flow using an index based on topography. Maximum extent of overland flow during the storm was determined from patterns of leaf litter removal from valley bottoms. Both the flood hydrograph and the extent of overland flow were accurately predicted using model parameters obtained from a three‐month period of normal flow conditions during 1983.

10.1111/j.1752-1688.1994.tb03320.x

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Citations (2)

PREDICTING MEASUREMENT ERROR OF AREAL MEAN PRECIPITATION DURING EXTREME EVENTS¹

JAWRA Journal of the American Water Resources Association (1991)

Thomas A. Fontaine

ABSTRACT: The areal mean precipitation (AMP) over a catchment is normally calculated using point measurements at rainfall gages. Error in AMP estimates occurs when an insufficient number of gages are used to sample precipitation which is highly variable in space. AMP error is investigated using historic, severe rainfalls with a set of hypothetical catchments and raingage networks. The potential magnitude of error is estimated for typical gage network densities and arrangements. Possible sources of error are evaluated, and a method is proposed for predicting the magnitude of error using data that are commonly available for severe, historic rainfall.

Data set

Sample (material)

10.1111/j.1752-1688.1991.tb01451.x

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Citations (12)

IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON MISSOURI RWER BASIN WATER YIELD¹

JAWRA Journal of the American Water Resources Association (2001)

Mark Stone Rollin H. Hotchkiss Carter M. Hubbard Thomas A. Fontaine Linda O. Mearns

ABSTRACT: Water from the Missouri River Basin is used for multiple purposes. The climatic change of doubling the atmospheric carbon dioxide may produce dramatic water yield changes across the basin. Estimated changes in basin water yield from doubled CO 2 climate were simulated using a Regional Climate Model (RegCM) and a physically based rainfall‐runoff model. RegCM output from a five‐year, equilibrium climate simulation at twice present CO 2 levels was compared to a similar present‐day climate run to extract monthly changes in meteorologic variables needed by the hydrologic model. These changes, simulated on a 50‐km grid, were matched at a commensurate scale to the 310 subbasin in the rainfall‐runoff model climate change impact analysis. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) rainfall‐runoff model was used in this study. The climate changes were applied to the 1965 to 1989 historic period. Overall water yield at the mouth of the Basin decreased by 10 to 20 percent during spring and summer months, but increased during fall and winter. Yields generally decreased in the southern portions of the basin but increased in the northern reaches. Northern subbasin yields increased up to 80 percent: equivalent to 1.3 cm of runoff on an annual basis.

SWAT model

10.1111/j.1752-1688.2001.tb03626.x

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Citations (105)

Implementing Legally Mandated Science and Peer Review in Support of the Everglades Restoration Program

Journal of Contemporary Water Research & Education (2002)

Thomas A. Fontaine Garth W. Redfield Keith W. Rizzardi

The Everglades Forever Act set in motion an aggressive program to provide information to support development of a water quality criterion for the nutrient phosphorus (P) in the Everglades Protection Area, the 9000 km of remnant Everglades marshes. A P criterion is an essential regulatory tool needed to begin the process of reversing Everglades P enrichment. The South Florida Water Management District, in close cooperation with other agencies and organizations, undertook laboratory and field experiments, field mesocosm studies, and transect sampling to provide definitive information upon which a P criterion could be rationally based. Water quality and ecological models were also developed to identify P loads that would achieve a P criterion. Peer review was an integral part of this scientific endeavor and served to ensure the quality and comparability of data used to develop the P criterion. Interdisciplinary studies and collaboration were cornerstones of this effort and an open research process improved the flow of high quality information. Definitive data from multiple lines of evidence have been summarized in support of a P criterion of about 10 ug/L and, at the same time, publications from these research efforts are contributing greatly to our predictive understanding of subtropical wetland ecology. The case study of P criterion research in the Everglades provides an excellent example of scientific excellence and open publication in the context of litigation, urgent need, and application to decision support.

Clean Water Act

Mesocosm

Source

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Citations (0)

IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON WATER YIELD IN THE UPPER WIND RIVER BASIN¹

JAWRA Journal of the American Water Resources Association (2000)

Michael D. Stonefelt Thomas A. Fontaine Rollin H. Hotchkiss

ABSTRACT: The potential impacts of climate change on water yield are examined in the Upper Wind River Basin. This is a high‐elevation, mountain basin with a snowfall/snowmelt dominated stream‐flow hydrograph. A variety of physiographic conditions are represented in the rangeland, coniferous forests, and high‐elevation alpine regions. The Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) is used to model the baseline input time series data and climate change scenarios. Five hydroclimatic variables (temperature, precipitation, CO 2 , radiation, and humidity) are examined using sensitivity tests of individual and coupled variables with a constant change and coupled variables with a monthly change. Results indicate that the most influential variable on annual water yield is precipitation; and, the most influential variable on the timing of streamflow is temperature. Carbon dioxide, radiation, and humidity each noticeably impact water yield, but less significantly. The coupled variable analyses represent a more realistic climate change regime and reflect the combined response of the basin to each variable; for example, increased temperature offsets the effects of increased precipitation and magnifies the effects of decreased precipitation. This paper shows that the hydrologic response to climate change depends largely on the hydroclimatic variables examined and that each variable has a unique effect (e.g., magnitude, timing) on water yield.

Snowmelt

10.1111/j.1752-1688.2000.tb04271.x

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Citations (82)

Closure to “ Estimating Probabilities of Extreme Rainfalls ” by Thomas A. Fontaine and Kenneth W. Potter (November, 1989, Vol. 115, No. 1)

Journal of Hydraulic Engineering (1991)

Thomas A. Fontaine Kenneth W. Potter

Closure (psychology)

10.1061/(asce)0733-9429(1991)117:8(1094.2)

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Citations (0)

Distributions of contaminant concentration and particle size in fluvial sediment

Water Research (2000)

Thomas A. Fontaine T.D. Moore B.B. Burgoa

Settling

Silt

Pipette

Particle (ecology)

10.1016/s0043-1354(00)00034-8

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Citations (19)

REGULATED RIVER MODELING FOR CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACT ASSESSMENT: THE MISSOURI RIVER¹

JAWRA Journal of the American Water Resources Association (2000)

Rollin H. Hotchkiss Steven F. Jorgensen Mark Stone Thomas A. Fontaine

ABSTRACT: The Great Plains of the United States, drained primanly by the Missouri River, are very sensitive to shifts in climate. The six main stem dams on the Missouri River control more than one‐half of the nearly 1.5 million square kilometer basin and can store three times the annual inflow from upstream. The dams are operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers using a Master Manual that describes system priorities and benefits. The complex operational rules were incorporated into the Soil and Water Assessment Tool computer model (SWAT). SWAT is a distributed parameter rainfall‐runoff model capable of simulating the transpiration suppression effects of CO 2 enrichment. The new reservoir algorithms were calibrated using a 25‐year long historic record of basin climate and discharge records. Results demonstrate that it is possible to incorporate the operation of a highly regulated river system into a complex rainfall‐runoff model. The algorithms were then tested using extreme climate scenarios indicative of a prolonged drought, a short drought, and a ten percent increase in basin‐wide precipitation. It is apparent that the rules for operating the reservoirs will likely require modification if, for example, upper‐basin precipitation were to increase only ten percent under changed climate conditions.

Hydrological modelling

SWAT model

10.1111/j.1752-1688.2000.tb04275.x

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Citations (36)