The UK Benchmark Network - Designation, Evolution and Application

The UK has one of the densest gauging station networks in the world – a necessary response to its diversity in terms of climate, geology, land use and patterns of water utilisation. This diversity and, particularly, the compelling impact of artificial influences on natural flow regimes across most of the country, implies a considerable challenge in identifying, interpreting and indexing changes in river flow regimes. Quantifying and interpreting trends in river flows – in particular separating climate-driven changes from those resulting from other driving mechanisms – is a necessary pre-requisite to the development of improved river and water management strategies. It is also a primary strategic objective of many national and international river flow monitoring programmes. This paper charts the development of the UK Benchmark Network through its initial promotion phase – involving key institutional partners in both the hydrometric data acquisition and user communities – through to its exploitation across a wide a range of policy, scientific and engineering design applications. Particular consideration is given to the criteria used to appraise and select candidate catchments and gauging stations. Spatial characterisations (particularly physiographic, geological and land use) are used to determine the representativeness of individual candidate catchments and hydrometric performance (in the extreme flow ranges especially), together with record length, is of primary importance in relation to gauging station selection. Indexing the degree to which artificial influences disturb the natural flow regime is also a necessary pre-requisite for selection across much of the UK. Descriptions are given of a number of network and data review mechanisms developed to maximize the utility of the Benchmark Network and the burgeoning range of applications which have capitalized on it – embracing both national and international monitoring programmes. The review finishes with an overview of the strategic benefits deriving from the operation of the Benchmark Network and examines some of the enduring issues which require further work – including the continuing focus on operationally driven gauging activities; meeting the more stringent data demands of the Benchmark Network, and the need for further integration of catchment monitoring activities – embracing a wider range of hydrometeorogical variables

Hydrological Summary for the UK: April 2010

The monthly summary of hydrological conditions in the United Kingdom is compiled as part of the National Hydrological Monitoring Programme (a joint CEH and BGS enterprise). The report features contemporary data for rainfall, river flow, reservoir and groundwater levels in the form of maps and graphs. A commentary is provided on the status of the nation's water resources and any notable hydrological events during the month. The National River Flow and National Groundwater Level Archives help provide an historical context for these contemporary assessments. Financial support for the production of the Hydrological Summaries is provided by Defra, the Environment Agency, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, the Rivers Agency in Northern Ireland and the Office of Water Services

Hydrological summary for the United Kingdom: March 2002

The monthly summary of hydrological conditions in the United Kingdom is compiled as part of the National Hydrological Monitoring Programme (a joint CEH and BGS enterprise). The report features contemporary data for rainfall, river flow, reservoir and groundwater levels in the form of maps and graphs. A commentary is provided on the status of the nation's water resources and any notable hydrological events during the month. The National River Flow and National Groundwater Level Archives help provide an historical context for these contemporary assessments. Financial support for the production of the Hydrological Summaries is provided by Defra, the Environment Agency, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, the Rivers Agency in Northern Ireland and the Office of Water Services

Asset Pricing Model Specification and the Term Structure Evidence

In this paper, a set of tests of models of relative capital asset pricesis developed. The tests are used to examine how well the models explain maturity premiums on Government bonds, though they are perfectly general and hence could be applied to stocks or other assets. Allowance is made in the tests for the nonobservability of investors' optimal per capita consumption (or expected marginal utility). It is found that the returns on Government bonds bear a systematic risk which is better measured by their covariability with aggregate per capita consumption than with the returns on the NYSE stock market index, the latter being the surrogate-wealth portfolio typically used to measure risk in the traditional Sharpe-Lintner-Mossin CAPM.

Hydrological Summary for the UK: July 2010

The monthly summary of hydrological conditions in the United Kingdom is compiled as part of the National Hydrological Monitoring Programme (a joint CEH and BGS enterprise). The report features contemporary data for rainfall, river flow, reservoir and groundwater levels in the form of maps and graphs. A commentary is provided on the status of the nation's water resources and any notable hydrological events during the month. The National River Flow and National Groundwater Level Archives help provide an historical context for these contemporary assessments. Financial support for the production of the Hydrological Summaries is provided by Defra, the Environment Agency, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, the Rivers Agency in Northern Ireland and the Office of Water Services

Hydrological Summary for the UK: October 2010

The monthly summary of hydrological conditions in the United Kingdom is compiled as part of the National Hydrological Monitoring Programme (a joint CEH and BGS enterprise). The report features contemporary data for rainfall, river flow, reservoir and groundwater levels in the form of maps and graphs. A commentary is provided on the status of the nation's water resources and any notable hydrological events during the month. The National River Flow and National Groundwater Level Archives help provide an historical context for these contemporary assessments. Financial support for the production of the Hydrological Summaries is provided by Defra, the Environment Agency, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, the Rivers Agency in Northern Ireland and the Office of Water Services

Hydrological Summary for the UK: January 2011

The monthly summary of hydrological conditions in the United Kingdom is compiled as part of the National Hydrological Monitoring Programme (a joint CEH and BGS enterprise). The report features contemporary data for rainfall, river flow, reservoir and groundwater levels in the form of maps and graphs. A commentary is provided on the status of the nation's water resources and any notable hydrological events during the month. The National River Flow and National Groundwater Level Archives help provide an historical context for these contemporary assessments. Financial support for the production of the Hydrological Summaries is provided by Defra, the Environment Agency, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, the Rivers Agency in Northern Ireland and the Office of Water Services

Hydrological summary for the United Kingdom: February 2012

The monthly summary of hydrological conditions in the United Kingdom is compiled as part of the National Hydrological Monitoring Programme (a joint CEH and BGS enterprise). The report features contemporary data for rainfall, river flow, reservoir and groundwater levels in the form of maps and graphs. A commentary is provided on the status of the nation's water resources and any notable hydrological events during the month. The National River Flow and National Groundwater Level Archives help provide an historical context for these contemporary assessments. Financial support for the production of the Hydrological Summaries is provided by Defra, the Environment Agency, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, the Rivers Agency in Northern Ireland and the Office of Water Services

Hydrological Summary for the UK: August 2010

The monthly summary of hydrological conditions in the United Kingdom is compiled as part of the National Hydrological Monitoring Programme (a joint CEH and BGS enterprise). The report features contemporary data for rainfall, river flow, reservoir and groundwater levels in the form of maps and graphs. A commentary is provided on the status of the nation's water resources and any notable hydrological events during the month. The National River Flow and National Groundwater Level Archives help provide an historical context for these contemporary assessments. Financial support for the production of the Hydrological Summaries is provided by Defra, the Environment Agency, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, the Rivers Agency in Northern Ireland and the Office of Water Services

Hydrological summary for the United Kingdom: February 2002

The monthly summary of hydrological conditions in the United Kingdom is compiled as part of the National Hydrological Monitoring Programme (a joint CEH and BGS enterprise). The report features contemporary data for rainfall, river flow, reservoir and groundwater levels in the form of maps and graphs. A commentary is provided on the status of the nation's water resources and any notable hydrological events during the month. The National River Flow and National Groundwater Level Archives help provide an historical context for these contemporary assessments. Financial support for the production of the Hydrological Summaries is provided by Defra, the Environment Agency, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, the Rivers Agency in Northern Ireland and the Office of Water Services