Regional Blue and Green Water Balances and Use by Selected Crops in the U.S.

The availability of freshwater is a prerequisite for municipal development and agricultural production, especially in the arid and semiarid portions of the western United States (U.S.). Agriculture is the leading user of water in the U.S. Agricultural water use can be partitioned into green (derived from rainfall) and blue water (irrigation). Blue water can be further subdivided by source. In this research, we develop a hydrologic balance by 8‐Digit Hydrologic Unit Code using a combination of Soil and Water Assessment Tool simulations and available human water use estimates. These data are used to partition agricultural groundwater usage by sustainability and surface water usage by local source or importation. These predictions coupled with reported agricultural yield data are used to predict the virtual water contained in each ton of corn, wheat, sorghum, and soybeans produced and its source. We estimate that these four crops consume 480 km³ of green water annually and 23 km³ of blue water, 12 km³ of which is from groundwater withdrawal. Regional trends in blue water use from groundwater depletion highlight heavy usage in the High Plains, and small pockets throughout the western U.S. This information is presented to inform water resources debate by estimating the cost of agricultural production in terms of water regionally. This research illustrates the variable water content of the crops we consume and export, and the source of that water.     

River Basin Export Reduction Optimization Support Tool; a tool to screen options for reducing nutrient loads while minimizing cost

Excess loading of nitrogen and phosphorus to river networks causes environmental harm, but reducing loads from large river basins is difficult and expensive. We developed a new tool, the River Basin Export Reduction Optimization Support Tool (RBEROST) to identify the least-cost combinations of management practices that will reduce nutrient loading to target levels in downstream and mid-network waterbodies. We demonstrate the utility of the tool in a case study in the Upper Connecticut River Basin in New England, USA. The total project cost of optimized lowest-cost plans ranged from $18.0 million to $41.0 million per year over 15 years depending on user specifications. Plans include both point source and non-point source management practices, and most costs are associated with urban stormwater practices. Adding a 2% margin of safety to loading targets improved the estimated probability of success from 37.5% to 99%. The large spatial scale of RBEROST, and the consideration of both point and non-point source contributions of nutrients, make it well suited as an initial screening tool in watershed planning.     

An invader differentially affects leaf physiology of two natives across a gradient in diversity

Little is known about how exotics influence the ecophysiology of co-occurring native plants or how invader impact on plant physiology may be mediated by community diversity or resource levels. We measured the effect of the widespread invasive forb spotted knapweed (Centaurea maculosa) on leaf traits (leaf dry matter content, specific leaf area, leaf nitrogen percentage, leaf C:N ratios, and delta13C as a proxy for water use efficiency) of two co-occurring native perennial grassland species, Monarda fistulosa (bee balm) and Koeleria macrantha (Junegrass). The impact of spotted knapweed was assessed across plots that varied in functional diversity and that either experienced ambient rainfall or received supplemental water. Impact was determined by comparing leaf traits between identical knapweed-invaded and noninvaded assemblages. Virtually all M. fistulosa leaf traits were affected by spotted knapweed. Knapweed impact, however, did not scale with its abundance; the impact of knapweed on M. fistulosa was similar across heavily invaded low-diversity assemblages and lightly invaded high-diversity assemblages. In uninvaded assemblages, M. fistulosa delta13C, leaf nitrogen, and C:N ratios were unaffected by native functional group richness, whereas leaf dry matter content significantly increased and specific leaf area significantly decreased across the diversity gradient. The effects of spotted knapweed on K. macrantha were weak; instead native functional group richness strongly affected K. macrantha leaf C:N ratio, delta13C, and specific leaf area, but not leaf dry matter content. Leaf traits for both species changed in response to spotted knapweed or functional richness, and in a manner that may promote slower biomass accumulation and efficient conservation of resources. Taken together, our results show that an invader can alter native plant physiology, but that these effects are not a simple function of how many invaders exist in the community.     

A cost analysis technique for research management and design

A classic research approach is to optimize experimental design and available resources. However, that approach does not guarantee that results will be useful. This article takes the view that research should not be undertaken unless there is assurance that final results will be significant to a level specified before any work is begun. Given that assurance, the relationship between cost and statistical significance is explored, a new approach to optimization s developed, and the use of models in research design is considered.     

Patterns of Genetic Diversity in Remaining Giant Panda Populations

Abstract: The giant panda ( Ailuropoda melanoleuca ) is among the more familiar symbols of species conservation. The protection of giant panda populations has been aided recently by the establishment of more and better-managed reserves in existing panda habitat located in six mountain ranges in western China. These remaining populations are becoming increasingly isolated from one another, however, leading to the concern that historic patterns of gene flow will be disrupted and that reduced population sizes will lead to diminished genetic variability. We analyzed four categories of molecular genetic markers (mtDNA restriction-fragment-length polymorphisms [RFLP], mtDNA control region sequences, nuclear multilocus DNA fingerprints, and microsatellite size variation) in giant pandas from three mountain populations (Qionglai, Minshan, and Qinling) to assess current levels of genetic diversity and to detect evidence of historic population subdivisions. The three populations had moderate levels of genetic diversity compared with similarly studied carnivores for all four gene measures, with a slight but consistent reduction in variability apparent in the smaller Qinling population. That population also showed significant differentiation consistent with its isolation since historic times. From a strictly genetic perspective, the giant panda species and the three populations look promising insofar as they have retained a large amount of genetic diversity in each population, although evidence of recent population reduction—likely from habitat loss—is apparent. Ecological management to increase habitat, population expansion, and gene flow would seem an effective strategy to stabilize the decline of this endangered species.