WaDE: Watershed Dynamics and Evolution

Advancing predictive understanding of how dominant processes controlling watershed hydro-biogeochemical function operate under a range of hydrologic regimes and vary along stream networks that drain heterogeneous land covers

What are we researching?

Watershed through forest and town.

Theme 1
Dynamic Headwaters

Stream corridor process; carbon dioxide and oxygen interacting with plants and water.

Theme 2
Stream Corridor Processes

Overlay of graph on watershed.

Theme 3
Network Function

Virtual model of watershed.

Theme 4
Modeling Crosscut

The Tennessee River Basin in the southeastern United States is the most intensively used freshwater water resource region in the contiguous United States, supporting approximately 4.5 million people with estimated withdrawals of more than 280,000 gallons per day per square mile.

Water resources in the Tennessee River Basin and broader southeastern region are vulnerable to changes in land use and land cover and a range of climate-induced disturbances. Projections indicate that the southeastern United States will experience higher temperatures, more extreme heat events, and an intensifying hydrologic cycle with more frequent and severe storm and drought events over time.

To address these changes, the Watershed Dynamics and Evolution (WaDE) Science Focus Area (SFA) at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) will advance predictive understanding of how dominant processes controlling watershed hydro-biogeochemical function operate under a range of hydrologic regimes and vary along stream networks that drain heterogeneous land covers.

Research Highlights

April 28, 2023 Geoelectric Characterization of Hyporheic Exchange Flow in the Bedrock-Line

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April 21, 2023 Improving Streamflow Projections in Changing Climate Conditions

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March 19, 2021 Nutrient Exposure Alters Microbial Mat Composition, Structure, and Mercury

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Publications

YearDOIAuthorsTitleJournalVolume/Pages
202310.3389/frwa.2023.1150126Liu, S., et alUncertainty Quantification of Machine Learning Models to Improve Streamflow Prediction Under Changing Climate and Environmental ConditionsFrontiers in Water5, 1150126
202110.3389/fmicb.2021.647861Carrell, A., et alNutrient Exposure Alters Microbial Composition, Structure, and Mercury Methylating Activity in Periphyton in a Contaminated WatershedFrontiers in Microbiology12(543), 647861
202110.1029/2018WR022831Painter, S. L.Multiscale Framework for Modeling Multicomponent Reactive Transport in Stream CorridorsWater Resources Research54(10), 7216–30
202110.3389/frwa.2020.595538Painter, S. L.On the Representation of Hyporheic Exchange in Models for Reactive Transport in Stream and River CorridorsFrontiers in Water2, 595538
202210.1029/2021WR029771Krause, S., et alOrganizational Principles of Hyporheic Exchange Flow and Biogeochemical Cycling in River Networks Across ScalesWater Resources Research58(3), e2021WR029771
202210.1002/hyp.14540Ward, A. S., et alAdvancing River Corridor Science Beyond Disciplinary Boundaries with an Inductive Approach to Catalyse Hypothesis GenerationHydrological Processes36(4), e14540