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September 15, 2017

Publication Features Two Papers on iUTAH Water Science

As the iUTAH project comes to a close, researchers are summarizing methodology and findings as it applies to other water-related research. The September issue of the Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) features two in-depth reviews of the mountain urban water system in Utah, specifically, iUTAH design, implementation, and maintenance of sensor equipment, data and metadata produced by the water science project.


The first paper, “Designing and Implementing a Network for Sensing Water Quality and Hydrology across Mountain to Urban Transitions” discusses the logistics of developing and maintaining the Gradients Along Mountain to Urban Transitions (GAMUT) network. The article described the practices followed, as well as insights and findings during the installation and operation of GAMUT. Early on, the research team focused on openly publishing data to drive further science. The research teams “worked to balance scientific needs with physical site limitations, communication constraints, public engagement goals, site security, and partnership potential.” Once the groundwork was laid for the project, additional enhancements focused on quality assurance and system controls to manage and communicate the numerous large datasets produced. The paper finds that GAMUT the "is underlying infrastructure that serves as a vehicle for other research endeavors, ” and instills confidence in consistent long-term data output which secondary users might find helpful after applying their own assessments.


The second paper, “Data Management Dimensions of Social Water Science: The iUTAH Experience” focuses more specifically on integrating a social science framework into the project. It reinforces the first article’s discussion of planning and policy needs, as it explores the open science, data sharing, and the human aspect of Utah’s water system. The study recommends classifying social water science data according to the dimensions of human subject data, primary vs. secondary data, and data restrictions to reveal opportunities and reduce barriers for data sharing. Furthermore, the article concludes by saying that “by facilitating innovative approaches to managing a diverse portfolio of data, the iUTAH program has furthered understanding of a mountain urban water system and provided opportunities for data integration across water sciences and between science and society.”


Full study of each article available below:


Designing and Implementing a Network for Sensing Water Quality and Hydrology across Mountain to Urban Transitions
Authors: Amber Spackman Jones, Zachary T. Aanderud, Jeffery S. Horsburgh, David P. Eiriksson, Dylan Dastrup, Christopher Cox, Scott B. Jones, David R. Bowling, Jonathan Carlisle, Gregory T. Carling, and Michelle A. Baker


Data Management Dimensions of Social Water Science: The iUTAH Experience
Authors: Courtney G. Flint, Amber Spackman Jones, and Jeffery S. Horsburgh

 

 



Conceptual diagram of GAMUT network site locations relative to each other and major features within each watershed. Not to scale. Credit: Amber Spackman Jones, et al.
 

Examples of Sources and Scales of Social Water Science Data within iUTAH as an illustration of one scalar example of many possible configurations. Credit: Courtney G. Flint, et al.

 

 

August 8, 2017

Engaging Community in Watershed Education at Utah Lake Festival

“Do you know what a watershed is?” This is the question asked of nearly 800 people by Erin Jones, Dylan Dalstrop, and Scott Collins who together ran an iUTAH/Brigham Young University booth during this year’s Utah Lake Festival, which took place on June 3, at the Utah Lake State Park. Of those asked, only a few people, mostly 4th graders, were able to respond with any kind of coherent answer.

 

Asking this open-ended question led to a discussion on how a watershed is an area on the landscape where all the water drains to one place. In Utah, Utah Lake is one of these places, with water eventually making its way downstream to the Great Salt Lake. Through use of a hands-on display of a watershed, students were able to simulate a rainstorm by squirting spray bottles over the plastic model, and watch pollution they added flow down into the pretend lake.

 

After playing with the model, people were given examples of the personal connections they have to local water sources and what individuals  and communities can choose to do to improve the water quality in their own landscape. Some of these choices that make a difference include picking up pet waste, not washing vehicles on lawns, and using less fertilizer and pesticides that flow back into Utah’s waterways. 

 

People visiting the booth were then told about iUTAH and shown the Utah Lake data on the Time Series analyst available to check on current water conditions at both GAMUT and Utah Lake sites. In the five years since the iUTAH started, the project has reached over 210,000 people through over 390 public outreach events statewide. Educational opportunities such as the Utah Lake Festival demonstrate the importance of ongoing outreach and education in building and maintaining a water-wise citizenry in the state.

 

 

Learning about local watersheds with iUTAH GAMUT technician Dylan Dastrup at the Utah Lake Festival. Credit: Erin Jones.

 

 

 

 

May 4, 2017

Snowmelt Raises Great Salt Lake

iUTAH researchers Scott Jones and Simon Wang were asked how much recent snowfalls might contribute to raising the Great Salt Lake.  Here’s what they had to say to reporter Leia Larsen, in an excerpt from the April 21 article in the Standard Examiner:

 

“Snowpack levels in the river basins feeding Utah’s largest terminal lake hit between 157 percent and 172 percent of normal by March. The snowy winter followed four years of drought. Water levels in the Great Salt Lake dropped to near-record lows while raising concerns about impacts on air quality, migrating birds and the future of lake-based businesses.  As of last week, the Great Salt Lake’s south arm sat at nearly 4,195 feet, nearly a foot higher than the same time last year. Meanwhile, the top of Logan Canyon — part of the Bear River Basin — had 9.5 feet of snow and the equivalent of around five feet of water, a positive sign that the lake could continue to rise.

 

‘What does the Great Salt Lake mean? It’s kind of an indicator of what’s going on around it,’ said Scott Jones, a professor of environmental soil physics at Utah State University, during a recent snow survey. ‘We have wet years and dry years, and the Great Salt Lake shows to some degree when those happen.’

 

USU’s Utah Climate Center has taken historical data of the lake levels along with tree-ring data to model the lake’s fluctuating levels going back hundreds of years. Combing that with historical coral data from the Pacific, they’re able to make predictions on when the lake will rise and fall. That helps water managers prepare for future years of drought and surplus. ‘By predicting lake level, you’re predicting climate,’ said Simon Wang with the Utah Climate Center.”

 

The article also included Great Salt Lake water level and predictions for the future, and even a photo of iUTAH’s ‘Gradients Along Mountain to Urban Transitions’ GAMUT climate station located in the T.W. Daniel Experimental Forest  above Logan Canyon.

 

Press: Standard Examiner | Snow Survey Podcast

 

 

iUTAH researchers Scott Jones and Simon Wang discuss snow survey results. Credit: Utah State University

 

iUTAH’s GAMUT climate station located in the T.W. Daniel Experimental Forest above Logan Canyon in northern Utah

 

 

May 2, 2017

Presentation on GAMUT at Water Commission Meeting

iUTAH data manager Amber Jones gave a presentation at the biannual Bear River Commission Water Quality Committee meeting held in Salt Lake City on April 10. In attendance were leadership and personnel from water quality agencies in Utah, Idaho and Wyoming, including state and federal offices, private interest groups, and public utilities, focused on the Bear River Basin. The committee was interested in learning about iUTAH’s water quality monitoring and research.

 

The iUTAH project was invited to the meeting because of the committee’s interest in the water quality data collected as part of the ‘Gradients Along Mountain to Urban Transitions’ GAMUT network. Jones discussed GAMUT and the tools, infrastructure, and processes used for data management and quality control. Participants included “scientists, regulators, and interested citizens interested in exchanging information and expertise,” said Jones. “It was an excellent opportunity to interact with water quality professionals and interested parties and to apprise state agencies about the work being done as part of iUTAH. “

 

Bear River Commission Water Quality Committee meets twice annually as part of its efforts to inform and educate its members on technical and policy expertise regionally in connection with water quality. They also host the Bear River Watershed Information System website.

 

Logan River is part of the Bear River Basin and is one of three watersheds where iUTAH sensors measure climate, hydrology, and water quality. Credit Wyatt Traughber.

 

 

April 5, 2017

What Climate Change Means for Leaf Litter

University of Utah and iUTAH researcher Jennifer J. Follstad Shah has been in the news for her contributions to research on leaf litter breakdown in streams and rivers, conducted in collaboration with a team of 15 scientists in the U.S. and Europe. The study “Global synthesis of the temperature sensitivity of leaf litter breakdown in streams and rivers” was published Feb. 28 in Global Change Biology.

 

An excerpt from the Phy.org story said “carbon dioxide coming from some of Earth's tiniest residents may not be increasing as quickly as some believed in the face of global climate change. Streams and rivers are home to insects, bacteria and fungi that consume plant litter, including fallen leaves, and break it into smaller pieces. This type of litter is good for streams and rivers because it helps remove toxins. As leaf litter is consumed, insects and microbes get oxygen, convert nutrients into energy and release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. This process is what scientists call leaf litter decay.”

 

“The process is not as obvious as the melting of ice caps and impacts on a charismatic creature like the polar bear, but it is an important indicator of global climate change,“ Follstad Shah said, and one that has implications for values used in climate change models. “There is still a lot about the carbon cycle we don’t understand,” she said. “Understanding the temperature sensitivity of ecosystem processes that govern carbon cycling is imperative as global temperatures rise.”

 

Jennifer is currently working with data samples from seven iUTAH GAMUT sites along the Logan, Red Butte, and Provo rivers. While the data in this study does not come from the GAMUT sites, she says that it does relate since the results from both studies can be used towards developing indicators of stream health. Data and analysis from her GAMUT site studies will be available later this year.

 

Led by the Follstad Shah, the full study is available here.

 

Press: PHYS.ORG | Science Daily | UU News | Youth Health Magazine

 

 

Leaf skeleton with invertebrates, location unknown. Credit: Walter Dodds