R-based Water Supply Stress Index (rWaSSI) model

rWaSSI model

The R-based web platform of Water Supply Stress Index model (rWaSSI) is an R-based Shiny web application of the Water Supply Stress Index (WaSSI) model. rWaSSI model has the core simulation functions of the WaSSI model. Moreover, it also has build-up functions for inputs preparation, inputs plotting, model validation/calibration, and output mapping. Users can easily prepare the formatted input files for the WaSSI model, view/download model inputs and outputs in tabular and graphical form, and view/export model outputs spatially for a variety of time scales using an interactive map viewer.

What is WaSSI model

WaSSI is an integrated, process-based model that can be used to project the effects of forest land cover change, climate change, and water withdrawals on river flows, water supply stress, and ecosystem productivity (i.e. carbon dynamics) (Sun et al., 2011a).

WaSSI was developed by a team of US Forest Service Southern Research Station & Eastern Forest Environmental Threat Assessment Center scientists and resource specialists (Ge Sun, Steve McNulty, Peter Caldwell, Erika Cohen, Jennifer Moore Myers).

The core of WaSSI is a monthly water balance model that is sensitive to land cover and climate, computing the water balance independently for each land cover class in each watershed. Evapotranspiration, infiltration, soil storage, snow accumulation and melt, surface runoff, and base flow processes are accounted for within each basin, and discharge is conservatively routed through the stream network from upstream to downstream watersheds (Fig. 1).

The input potential Evapotranspiration for the water balance is computed based on empirical relationships derived from multisite eddy covariance measurements (Sun et al., 2011b).

Further information of WaSSI model is available at: USDA - Forest Service or the Guide PDF

Fig. 1 The Hydrologic processes in the WaSSI water balance model. (Caldwell et al., 2012)

References:

Liu, N.; Caldwell, P. V.; Dobbs, G.R.; Miniat, C.F.; Bolstad, P. V.; Nelson, S.A.C.; Sun, G. Forested lands dominate drinking water supply in the conterminous United States. Environ. Res. Lett. 2021, 16, 084008, doi:10.1088/1748-9326/ac09b0.
Liu, Ning, G. Rebecca Dobbs, Peter V. Caldwell, Chelcy Ford Miniat, Paul Bolstad, Stacy Nelson, and Ge Sun. Quantifying the Role of State and Private Forest Lands in Providing Surface Drinking Water Supply for the Southern United States. United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station, 2020. https://www.fs.usda.gov/treesearch/pubs/download/59654.pdf
Sun, G., Caldwell, P., Noormets, A., Cohen, E., McNulty, S., Treasure, E., Domec, J. C., Mu, Q., Xiao, J., John, R., and Chen, J., 2011a, Upscaling key ecosystem functions across the conterminous United States by a water-centric ecosystem model, Journal of Geophysical Research, 116, G00J05. Available at: http://www.treesearch.fs.fed.us/pubs/38560
Sun, G., Alstad, K., Chen, J., Chen, S., Ford, C.R., Lin, G., Liu, C., Lu, N., McNulty, S.G., Miao, H. and Noormets, A., 2011b. A general predictive model for estimating monthly ecosystem evapotranspiration. Ecohydrology, 4(2), pp.245-255. Available at: https://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/pubs/37878
Caldwell, P. V., Sun, G., McNulty, S. G., Cohen, E. C., and Moore Myers, J. A.: Impacts of impervious cover, water withdrawals, and climate change on river flows in the conterminous US, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 16, 2839-2857, 2012. Available at: http://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/16/2839/2012/hess-16-2839-2012.html

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