Tag: Hydrology

How Sustainable are Eucalyptus Plantations?

by Ying Ouyang and Theodor D. Leininger, SRS Center for Bottomland Hardwoods Research  • 
Eucalypts – woody plants originally found in Australia — have been identified as one of the best feedstocks for bioenergy production due to their fast-growth rate and coppicing ability, but there are concerns about adverse environmental effects, some related to water consumption, and their water use efficiency is still poorly understood. U.S. Forest Service research…  More 

How Drought Affects Forests and Streams

by Zoё Hoyle, SRS Science Communications  • 
Across the U.S., forested watersheds filter surface water that drains into the rivers that supply drinking water for many of the nation’s cities. Besides providing high quality water for humans needs, forest trees regulate streamflow, mitigate flooding, and help create and maintain the water conditions that support healthy aquatic ecosystems. Drought affects the ability of…  More 

The Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory

by Zoe Hoyle, SRS Science Communications  • 
Much of what we know today about the hydrology of forested watersheds was learned through early research at the U.S. Forest Service Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory (Coweeta). Established in 1933 as the Coweeta Experimental Forest, the laboratory represents the longest continuous environmental study on any landscape in North America, as well as one of the oldest…  More 

Open or Shut: How Trees Respond to Drought at the Leaf Level

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications  • 
Trees pull water into their roots, where some of it moves up the trunk against the pull of gravity. This upward movement, which is described by the cohesion-tension theory, is possible because of the chemical nature of water. Water molecules are attracted to each other (cohesion), so just before a water molecule evaporates from the…  More 

The Santee Experimental Forest

by Zoe Hoyle, SRS Science Communications  • 
In 1934, the U.S. Forest Service allocated 6,100 acres (2,470 ha) of the Francis Marion National Forest (Francis Marion) near Charleston, South Carolina, for the Santee Experimental Forest (the Santee). By the 1930s, much of the site had been heavily used for centuries, the upland cleared to raise livestock and produce naval stores (tar, pitch, turpentine, and…  More 

Santee Experimental Forest Chosen for U.S.-China Climate Change and Forests Initiative

by Zoё Hoyle, SRS Science Communications  • 
U.S. Forest Service Southern Research Station scientists and the Santee Experimental Forest (Santee) located in the Francis Marion National Forest near Charleston, South Carolina, have been chosen to participate in the U.S,-China Climate Change and Forests Initiative, a new program  of the U.S.-China Climate Change Working Group sponsored by the U.S. Department of State. The U.S.-China…  More 

Ephemeral Wetlands and Climate Change: Implications for Frogs and Toads

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Delivery  • 
Many frog and toad species live on land as adults, but their lives always begin in water. Depending on the species, dozens or hundreds of eggs, bound together into a gelatinous glob or string, are laid in a pond, puddle, or marsh. When frogs and toads spawn in waters inhabited by fish, many of the…  More 

A Conversation About Fire and Water

by Stephanie Worley Firley  • 
For hydrologist Dennis Hallema, a recent conference presentation in Kelowna, British Columbia, turned into an opportunity to speak about an urgent research issue in front of an even larger audience. Following his talk at the 4th International Conference on Forests and Water in a Changing Environment, Hallema (an Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education…  More 

From Fan to Fellow: Research Hydrologist Honored by Organization that Inspired his Career

by Stephanie Worley Firley, EFETAC  • 
Long before Ge Sun became an associate editor of forest hydrology for the Journal of the American Water Resources Association (AWRA), he was a big fan. “The publications by AWRA with a strong focus on the comprehensive nature of waters inspired my early interest in forest hydrology and watershed management even before I moved to the United…  More 

Shifting Rainfall Patterns May Change Southern Appalachian Forest Structure

by Zoё Hoyle, SRS Science Delivery  • 
A new research study by U.S. Forest Service scientists finds that changes in rainfall patterns in the southern Appalachians due to climate change could reduce growth in six hardwood tree species common to the region. The findings have implications for forest managers in the Southeast, where climate variability (more extreme events or changes in precipitation…  More