2023 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 5-7, 2023 • Cincinnati, OH
5/27/2021 | 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM | CHARACTERIZING LONG-TERM HYDROLOGICAL CHANGES IN IMPAIRED DEPRESSIONAL WETLANDS (TAMPA BAY REGION, FL) | Virtual Platform
CHARACTERIZING LONG-TERM HYDROLOGICAL CHANGES IN IMPAIRED DEPRESSIONAL WETLANDS (TAMPA BAY REGION, FL)
Freshwater depressional wetlands perform invaluable ecosystem functions like nutrient filtration and storage, habitat provision, and flood mitigation. Many of these functions stem from the unique hydrological conditions that occur in wetlands due to their periodic flooding; however, persistent disturbances like over-extraction of groundwater can alter these hydrological conditions and subsequently wetland ecological function. This study investigates long-term changes in the hydrology of 152 wetlands in the Tampa Bay region; these wetlands have experienced cutbacks in groundwater extraction rates over the past two decades as managers try to balance drinking water demands with wetland protection. Results indicate that wetlands located near wells with historically high, medium, and low groundwater extraction volumes had hydroperiods (% time that wetlands are flooded) significantly different from reference wetlands where no extraction occurs nearby. Further, groundwater extraction and hydroperiod were significantly and negatively correlated even after accounting for precipitation. Though these results indicate that groundwater extraction is altering wetland hydrology, 55% of wetlands studied also showed significant increasing trends in wetland water levels over the study period, supporting recent research that passive restoration, in the form of extraction cutbacks, are benefiting wetlands.
- Ecohydrology
- Hydroscapes
- Socio-ecological systems
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Presenters/Authors
Jessica Balerna
(), University of South Florida, jbalerna@usf.edu;
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Nonfinancial -