Hydrology of a natural hardwood forested wetland

George M. Chescheir; Devendra M. Amatya; R. Wayne Skaggs

Hydrology of a natural hardwood forested wetland

Informally Refereed

Authors:

George M. Chescheir, Devendra M. Amatya, R. Wayne Skaggs

Year:

2008

Type:

Scientific Journal

Station:

Southern Research Station

Source:

Proceedings of the 13th International Peat Congress. After Wise Use – The Future of Peatlands Volume 1 Oral Presentations. Tullamore, Ireland. 8 – 13 June 2008. 468-471.

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Abstract

This paper documents the hydrology of a natural forested wetland near Plymouth, NC, USA. The research site was located on one of the few remaining, undrained non-riverine, palustrine forested hardwood wetlands on the lower coastal plain of North Carolina. A 137 ha watershed within the 350ha wetland was selected for intensive field study. Water balance components including surface runoff, lateral seepage, soil air volume, rainfall, and evapotranspiration were monitored for a three year period. Water balance closure error over the 36 month period was 5%. The hydrology model DRAINMOD predicted that average annual outflow from the wetland would have been 23.3% of the average annual rainfall (1288 mm) during the 68 year period from 1933 to 2000.

Keywords

water balance, DRAINMOD, flow duration curve

Citation

Chescheir, George M.; Amatya, Devendra M.; Skaggs, R. Wayne. 2008. Hydrology of a natural hardwood forested wetland. Proceedings of the 13th International Peat Congress. After Wise Use – The Future of Peatlands Volume 1 Oral Presentations. Tullamore, Ireland. 8 – 13 June 2008. 468-471.