Relationship of Weather Types on the Seasonal and Spatial Variability of Rainfall, Runoff, and Sediment Yield in the Western Mediterranean Basin

Rainfall is the key factor to understand soil erosion processes, mechanisms, and rates. Most research was conducted to determine rainfall characteristics and their relationship with soil erosion (erosivity) but there is little information about how atmospheric patterns control soil losses, and this is important to enable sustainable environmental planning and risk prevention. We investigated the temporal and spatial variability of the relationships of rainfall, runoff, and sediment yield with atmospheric patterns (weather types, WTs) in the western Mediterranean basin. For this purpose, we analyzed a large database of rainfall events collected between 1985 and 2015 in 46 experimental plots and catchments with the aim to: (i) evaluate seasonal differences in the contribution of rainfall, runoff, and sediment yield produced by the WTs; and (ii) to analyze the seasonal efficiency of the different WTs (relation frequency and magnitude) related to rainfall, runoff, and sediment yield. The results indicate two different temporal patterns: the first weather type exhibits (during the cold period: autumn and winter) westerly flows that produce the highest rainfall, runoff, and sediment yield values throughout the territory; the second weather type exhibits easterly flows that predominate during the warm period (spring and summer) and it is located on the Mediterranean coast of the Iberian Peninsula. However, the cyclonic situations present high frequency throughout the whole year with a large influence extended around the western Mediterranean basin. Contrary, the anticyclonic situations, despite of its high frequency, do not contribute significantly to the total rainfall, runoff, and sediment (showing the lowest efficiency) because of atmospheric stability that currently characterize this atmospheric pattern. Our approach helps to better understand the relationship of WTs on the seasonal and spatial variability of rainfall, runoff and sediment yield with a regional scale based on the large dataset and number of soil erosion experimental stations.Spanish Government (Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, MINECO) and FEDER Projects: CGL2014 52135-C3-3-R, ESP2017-89463-C3-3-R, CGL2014-59946-R, CGL2015-65569-R, CGL2015-64284-C2-2-R, CGL2015-64284-C2-1-R, CGL2016-78075-P, GL2008-02879/BTE, LEDDRA 243857, RECARE-FP7, CGL2017-83866-C3-1-R, and PCIN-2017-061/AEI. Dhais Peña-Angulo received a “Juan de la Cierva” postdoctoral contract (FJCI-2017-33652 Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, MEC). Ana Lucia acknowledge the "Brigitte-Schlieben-Lange-Programm". The “Geoenvironmental Processes and Global Change” (E02_17R) was financed by the Aragón Government and the European Social Fund. José Andrés López-Tarazón acknowledges the Secretariat for Universities and Research of the Department of the Economy and Knowledge of the Autonomous Government of Catalonia for supporting the Consolidated Research Group 2014 SGR 645 (RIUS- Fluvial Dynamics Research Group). Artemi Cerdà thank the funding of the OCDE TAD/CRP JA00088807. José Martínez-Fernandez acknowledges the project Unidad de Excelencia CLU-2018-04 co-funded by FEDER and Castilla y León Government. Ane Zabaleta is supported by the Hydro-Environmental Processes consolidated research group (IT1029-16, Basque Government). This paper has the benefit of the Lab and Field Data Pool created within the framework of the COST action CONNECTEUR (ES1306)

Relationship of Weather Types on the Seasonal and Spatial Variability of Rainfall, Runoff, and Sediment Yield in the Western Mediterranean Basin

Rainfall is the key factor to understand soil erosion processes, mechanisms, and rates. Most research was conducted to determine rainfall characteristics and their relationship with soil erosion (erosivity) but there is little information about how atmospheric patterns control soil losses, and this is important to enable sustainable environmental planning and risk prevention. We investigated the temporal and spatial variability of the relationships of rainfall, runoff, and sediment yield with atmospheric patterns (weather types, WTs) in the western Mediterranean basin. For this purpose, we analyzed a large database of rainfall events collected between 1985 and 2015 in 46 experimental plots and catchments with the aim to: (i) evaluate seasonal differences in the contribution of rainfall, runoff, and sediment yield produced by the WTs; and (ii) to analyze the seasonal efficiency of the different WTs (relation frequency and magnitude) related to rainfall, runoff, and sediment yield. The results indicate two different temporal patterns: the first weather type exhibits (during the cold period: autumn and winter) westerly flows that produce the highest rainfall, runoff, and sediment yield values throughout the territory; the second weather type exhibits easterly flows that predominate during the warm period (spring and summer) and it is located on the Mediterranean coast of the Iberian Peninsula. However, the cyclonic situations present high frequency throughout the whole year with a large influence extended around the western Mediterranean basin. Contrary, the anticyclonic situations, despite of its high frequency, do not contribute significantly to the total rainfall, runoff, and sediment (showing the lowest efficiency) because of atmospheric stability that currently characterize this atmospheric pattern. Our approach helps to better understand the relationship of WTs on the seasonal and spatial variability of rainfall, runoff and sediment yield with a regional scale based on the large dataset and number of soil erosion experimental stations

Rainfall-runoff relationship at different time scales in a mid-mountainous Mediterranean catchment

(1) Mediterranean Ecogeomorphological and Hydrological Connectivity Research Team (http://medhycon.uib.cat), Department of Geography, University of the Balearic Islands, Carretera de Valldemossa Km 7.5 07122, Palma, Spain, (2) Institute of Agro-Environmental and Water Economy Research –INAGEA, University of the Balearic Islands, (3) Institute of Earth and Environmental Science, University of Potsdam, Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 24/25, 14476 Potsdam-Golm, Germany, (4) Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDAEA), Spanish Research Council (CSIC), Jordi Girona 18, 08034 Barcelona, Spain Mediterranean catchments are characterized by high inter-intra annual precipitation variability and summer drought. The hydrological regime is characterized by ephemeral behaviour due to the direct rainfall-runoff relationship. Furthermore, extreme precipitations can generate an amount of rainfall higher than 200 mm in 24 hours with short response time. These events occurred normally under wet soil moisture conditions. The Mediterranean catchment morphology is a favourable factor for flash floods: short catchments with a high gradient slope. Others factor that condition the hydrological regime are the presence of limestone lithology and the impact of human activities on fluvial systems as geomorphological changes in channels and flood plains. The aim of this study is analyse the hydrological response of five hydrological years (2012-17) in an agricultural headwater catchment (i.e. < 4 km2) at different time scales. Rainfall-runoff relationship was carried out at annual and seasonal scale through the flow duration computation, the variability index, 30/70 ratio, quick flow response ratio and base flow index. The rainfall-runoff relationship at event scale was carried out through a Pearson correlation matrix using different variables extracted from the hyetograph and hydrograph. These variables were placed into two groups: a) antecedent conditions and b) event conditions. The correlation results determined the involved factors in the hydrological response. At annual scale total flow was present for 42.8% of the time and quick flow was 1.4%. The Variability index value (0.64) was higher than catchments with high dynamics storage (Vi < 0.5). At season scale, winter with 90.6%, showed the highest discharge presence. This highest discharge percentage duration generated a sustained water storage (Vi: 0.55) and increased the soil moisture from autumn getting favourable conditions for runoff generation. Because of that, winter had the highest quick flow duration (3.1%) and also the 30/70 denotes an increase of the flow variability. Autumn and spring had lower percentage of discharge duration than winter, 53% and 41% respectively. Autumn is the season after the dry season when starts again the wet period getting favourable conditions for runoff generation. Spring denotes the importance of the accumulated precipitation contribution of the wet seasons, also indicated for the highest seasonal BFI (0.7). Summer presented flow and quick flow the 0.93% and 0.21% of time respectively. At event scale, peak discharge, mean discharge, runoff and quick flow showed significant correlations (p<0.01) with the total precipitation and correlated with antecedent precipitation of one and three days (p<0.05). Baseflow variables correlated with antecedent precipitation until 15 days before flood date. Peak discharge was the unique hydrological variable that correlated with maximum rainfall intensity 30’. That indicated that a shorter period of rainfall intensity (15min) is not enough to generate a response. So, for peak discharge a combination of two mechanisms is needed to generate runoff: a) surface runoff occur when rainfall intensity exceeds infiltration capacity and b) surface runoff is produced by precipitation over the area where water table is at the surface.Peer reviewe

Modelling the impact of climate change on sediment yield in a highly erodible Mediterranean catchment

The assessment of climate change impacts on the sediment cycle is currently a primary concern for environmental policy analysts in Mediterranean areas. Nevertheless, quantitative assessment of climate change impacts is still a complex task. The aim of this study was to implement a sediment model by taking advantage of sediment proxy information provided by reservoir bottom deposits and to use it for climate change assessment in a Mediterranean catchment. The sediment model was utilised in a catchment that drains into a large reservoir. The depositional history of the reservoir was reconstructed and used for sediment sub-model implementation. The model results were compared with gauged suspended sediment data in order to verify model robustness. Then, the model was coupled with future precipitation and temperature scenarios obtained from climate models. Climatological model outputs for two emission scenarios (A2 and B2) were simulated and the results compared with a reference scenario. Model results showed a general decrease in soil moisture and water discharge. Large floods, which are responsible for the majority of sediment mobilisation, also showed a general decrease. Sediment yield showed a clear reduction under the A2 scenario but increased under the B2 scenario. The computed specific sediment yield for the control period was 6.33 Mg ha(-1) year(-1), while for the A2 and B2 scenarios, it was 3.62 and 7.04 Mg ha(-1) year(-1), respectively. Furthermore, sediment transport showed an increase in its time compression, i.e. a stronger dependence of total sediment yield from the largest event contributions. This study shows a methodology for implementing a distributed sediment model by exploiting reservoir sedimentation volumes. This methodology can be applied to a wide range of catchments, given the high availability of reservoir sedimentation data. Moreover, this study showed how such a model can be used in the framework of a climate change study, providing a measure of the impact of climate change on soil erosion and sediment yields.This study was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness through the research projects SCARCE-CONSOLIDER (ref. CSD2009-00065) and ECOTETIS (ref. CGL2011-28776-C02-01). Suspended sediment records of the Isabena river and bathymetrical surveys were carried out within the framework of the project "Sediment export from large semi-arid catchments: measurements and modelling (SESAM), funded by the German Science Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG). The authors wish to thank the EbroWater Authorities for permission to install the measuring equipment at the Capella gauging station and or providing hydrological data. Both observed and modelled precipitation and temperature data were provided by the Spanish Meteorological Agency (AEMET). 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