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The effects of different input data and their spatial resolution on the results obtained from a conceptual nutrient emissions model: the River Stör case study
Author(s) -
Venohr Markus,
Behrendt Horst,
Kluge Winfrid
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
hydrological processes
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.222
H-Index - 161
eISSN - 1099-1085
pISSN - 0885-6087
DOI - 10.1002/hyp.5843
Subject(s) - environmental science , nutrient , drainage basin , hydrology (agriculture) , phosphorus , catchment area , soil water , spatial variability , nitrogen , soil science , ecology , geography , geology , mathematics , statistics , materials science , cartography , geotechnical engineering , physics , quantum mechanics , metallurgy , biology
This paper focuses on the influences of different data sources, and the variation in spatial resolution of input data and analysis, on the calculated nutrient emissions using the conceptual model MONERIS. MONERIS calculates both nitrogen and phosphorus emissions from point and diffuse sources and the riverine nutrient retention. By subtracting the retention from the emissions, a riverine nutrient load was estimated and compared with the observed nutrient river load. All calculations were conducted for the period from 1991 to 1993. The River Stör, with a catchment area of 1135 km 2 , located in a postglacial lowland landscape in northern Germany, was chosen as a case study area. Two different data sets (e.g. land use, soil type or wastewater treatment plant inventory) were used: a commonly available standard data set (German or European maps) and a more detailed set with a higher spatial resolution derived from several studies at the Ecosystem Research Centre in Kiel. Initially, both data sets were used to apply MONERIS to the total catchment. The results were compared to adapt some of the free model‐parameters to the conditions in the relatively small lowland river catchment. Using the standard data set, total nutrient emissions of 2320 tons year −1 of nitrogen and 96 tons year −1 phosphorus were calculated. The detailed data set yielded slightly higher emissions for nitrogen (2420 tons year −1 ) and for phosphorus (102 tons year −1 ). According to the spatial resolution, the proportion of the area of tile drainages and sandy soils derived from the different data sets varies considerably. This causes great differences in the total nutrient emissions estimated by the two approaches. Comparing the observed and the calculated nutrient loads, reliable results for catchments larger than 50 km 2 , or third‐order streams, could be shown. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.