The transmissive critical zone: understanding the karst hydrology-biogeochemical interface for sustainable management
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Aberdeen
Department Name: Geography and Environment
Abstract
Abstracts are not currently available in GtR for all funded research. This is normally because the abstract was not required at the time of proposal submission, but may be because it included sensitive information such as personal details.
Planned Impact
The following will benefit from this joint research:
1. Those living in and managing the 'research' catchment (and wider karst systems) will benefit from a better understanding of the critical zone system resilience, and threats to, its ecosystem services. This knowledge will allow them to think about how best to manage their environment and will lead to improvements in their quality of life, ensuring the fundamental needs (access to water of appropriate quality) and how to manage water resources (to also ensure sustainable soils for food provisioning), are underpinned by a useful knowledge-base.
2. The catchment managers, and those responsible for innovation, that will visit comparable UK organisations will benefit from a deeper understanding of best practise.
3. This joint research will be of benefit to NSFC, raising their profile in the UK and amongst other critical zone scientists. The skill and information exchange that will occur during this research with Chinese colleagues, ultimately demonstrating to the international scientific community, that we value sensitive environments internationally, and particularly international co-operation in research, will help consolidate each country's position as a future key research partner and particularly the Chinese National Science Foundation as a partner of choice for future co-funded research.
4. Through publication and conference activity, the SUERC AMS (NERC-recognised Facility) will receive publicity in China for excellence in novel 14C-dating approaches. They will benefit through enhanced international standing and resultant funded research collaboration.
5. The wider public, and local communities hosting the research, will benefit during the research activity through research team communication activity that meets their passion for and excites them to understand the natural world more deeply. In turn if this encourages greater interest in STEM subjects, the relevant country science base will benefit.
1. Those living in and managing the 'research' catchment (and wider karst systems) will benefit from a better understanding of the critical zone system resilience, and threats to, its ecosystem services. This knowledge will allow them to think about how best to manage their environment and will lead to improvements in their quality of life, ensuring the fundamental needs (access to water of appropriate quality) and how to manage water resources (to also ensure sustainable soils for food provisioning), are underpinned by a useful knowledge-base.
2. The catchment managers, and those responsible for innovation, that will visit comparable UK organisations will benefit from a deeper understanding of best practise.
3. This joint research will be of benefit to NSFC, raising their profile in the UK and amongst other critical zone scientists. The skill and information exchange that will occur during this research with Chinese colleagues, ultimately demonstrating to the international scientific community, that we value sensitive environments internationally, and particularly international co-operation in research, will help consolidate each country's position as a future key research partner and particularly the Chinese National Science Foundation as a partner of choice for future co-funded research.
4. Through publication and conference activity, the SUERC AMS (NERC-recognised Facility) will receive publicity in China for excellence in novel 14C-dating approaches. They will benefit through enhanced international standing and resultant funded research collaboration.
5. The wider public, and local communities hosting the research, will benefit during the research activity through research team communication activity that meets their passion for and excites them to understand the natural world more deeply. In turn if this encourages greater interest in STEM subjects, the relevant country science base will benefit.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
Chris Soulsby (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Zhang Z
(2017)
Catchment-scale conceptual modelling of water and solute transport in the dual flow system of the karst critical zone
in Hydrological Processes
Zhang Z
(2020)
Characterizing the variability of transit time distributions and young water fractions in karst catchments using flux tracking
in Hydrological Processes
Chen X
(2018)
Characterizing the heterogeneity of karst critical zone and its hydrological function: An integrated approach
in Hydrological Processes
Zhang Z
(2019)
Storage dynamics, hydrological connectivity and flux ages in a karst catchment: conceptual modelling using stable isotopes
in Hydrology and Earth System Sciences
Zhang R
(2018)
How can streamflow and climate-landscape data be used to estimate baseflow mean response time?
in Journal of Hydrology
Zhang Z
(2021)
Linking nitrate dynamics to water age in underground conduit flows in a karst catchment
in Journal of Hydrology
Zhang Z
(2020)
Coupled hydrological and biogeochemical modelling of nitrogen transport in the karst critical zone.
in The Science of the total environment
Description | We have now collected extensive stable isotope data from the Houzhai karst catchment over the wet seasons of 2016 and 2017. This includes hourly precipitation, groundwater and streamflow data during many storm events and at different catchment scales. These sites were chose following a joint China/UK field visit in February 2016. Analysis and modelling of these data is now underway; with one paper in review (for a Special Issue of Hydrological Processes on "Water in the Critical Zone" and another in preparation. As data collection has progressed we have been developing new modelling approaches with data previously collected by our Chinese partners. The first coupled flow and tracer modules in a conceptual model to be able to integrate the hydrological and hydrochemical response of karst systems at different spatial scales. (this is reported in Zhang, Z. Chen, X. and Soulsby, C. (2017) Catchment-scale conceptual modelling of water and solute transport in the dual flow system of the karst critical zone. Hydrological Processes. DOI: 10.1002/hyp.11268). The second has been using the response of stream hydrographs and relating this to landscape properties (this work is reported in the paper: Zhang, R. Chen X. Zhang, Z. Soulsby C. and Gao M. (2018) How can streamflow and climate-landscape data be used to estimate baseflow mean response time? Journal of Hydrology. doi.10.1016/j.jhydrol.2017.12.070). Finally, new tracer models have been developed to understand the linkages between hydrological connectivity, storage dynamics and water ages. This shows the predominance of very recent rainfall in the storm response of karst catchments explaining their vulnerability to pollution. (Zhang, Z. Chen, X and Soulsby C. (2019) Storage dynamics, hydrological connectivity and flux ages in a karst catchment: conceptual modelling with stable isotopes. Hydrology and Earth System Science. (Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 51-71, 2019). |
Exploitation Route | through further result dissemination and in particular through the other WPs in the project which are dedicated to impact and knowledge exchange. |
Sectors | Agriculture Food and Drink Environment |
Description | Insights into the hydrological fucntion of karst catchments have informally fed into discussions informing University of Glasgow/Stirling knowledge transfer work on a related grant. Work has provided evidence base that fed in to MIDST-CZO NERC project. |
First Year Of Impact | 2017 |
Sector | Agriculture, Food and Drink,Environment |
Impact Types | Policy & public services |
Description | MIDZT: maximising impact by decision support tools for sustainable soil and water through UK-China critical zone science |
Amount | £217,477 (GBP) |
Funding ID | NE/S009167/1 |
Organisation | Natural Environment Research Council |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 01/2019 |
End | 03/2021 |
Title | A new coupled tracer-flow model (see Zhang, Z. Chen, X. and Soulsby, C. (2017)) |
Description | A new coupled tracer-flow model described in the paper by Zhang, Z. Chen, X. and Soulsby, C. (2017) Catchment-scale conceptual modelling of water and solute transport in the dual flow system of the karst critical zone. Hydrological Processes. DOI: 10.1002/hyp.11268 . |
Type Of Material | Computer model/algorithm |
Year Produced | 2017 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | difficult to assess at this early stage, it was just published in 2017 |