RSPARROW Modeling Tool used to Estimate Total Nitrogen Sources to Streams and Evaluate Source Reduction Management Scenarios in the Grande Basin, Brazil
Dates
Release Date
2020-01-01
Start Date
2001-01-01
End Date
2017-06-30
Publication Date
2023-09-15
Citation
Miller, M.P., 2020, RSPARROW Modeling Tool used to Estimate Total Nitrogen Sources to Streams and Evaluate Source Reduction Management Scenarios in the Grande Basin, Brazil: U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/P9FZV0Z0.
Summary
The data release documents the development of a hybrid (statistical-mechanistic) SPARROW (SPAtially Referenced Regression On Watershed attributes) model of long-term mean annual total nitrogen applied to streams and rivers of the Grande River Basin, Brazil. The model coupled observed long-term average total nitrogen loads at monitoring locations with additional explanatory variables (e.g., landscape sources, wastewater treatment plant inputs, and in-stream nitrogen losses) to estimate nitrogen loading to all reaches in the modeled area. The model was applied to estimate the effects of hypothetical changes in land use and discharge from wastewater treatment on in-stream total nitrogen loading, as described in the journal article. This [...]
Summary
The data release documents the development of a hybrid (statistical-mechanistic) SPARROW (SPAtially Referenced Regression On Watershed attributes) model of long-term mean annual total nitrogen applied to streams and rivers of the Grande River Basin, Brazil. The model coupled observed long-term average total nitrogen loads at monitoring locations with additional explanatory variables (e.g., landscape sources, wastewater treatment plant inputs, and in-stream nitrogen losses) to estimate nitrogen loading to all reaches in the modeled area. The model was applied to estimate the effects of hypothetical changes in land use and discharge from wastewater treatment on in-stream total nitrogen loading, as described in the journal article. This USGS data release contains all of the input and output files for the execution of all of the models described in the journal article (see Table 1; https://doi.org/10.3390/w12102911). An R script is provided that allows users to execute the model.
The objective of the models was to estimate long-term mean annual total nitrogen in streams and rivers of the Grande River Basin. The background for the development of the model input and output files included in this data release is documented in the journal article (https://doi.org/10.3390/w12102911)In this study, the SPARROW total nitrogen model is used to (1) quantify spatial variability in mean annual TN loads in all streams across the GRB sub-basins; (2) quantify the major natural and human sources of nitrogen in the GRB, including the contaminant mass loading contributions from major land uses (urban, pasture, sugar cane) and wastewater treatment facilities in the river basin; and (3) illustrate an application of the model to evaluate the potential stream water-quality effects of hypothetical nutrient-reduction management actions in urban areas of the watersheds. .
Preview Image
Image of the study area, wastewater treatment plants, and stream monitoring sites in the basin