Redrawing the River Network: Towards a New Generation of Continental-Scale Water Quality Models

Abstract:

River corridors are critical components of the water, energy, solute, and greenhouse budgets at local to continental scales. They act as a complex network of biogeochemical reactors that modulates natural and anthropogenic disturbances. The advent of new ideas and understanding of the processes connecting channels and their surrounding environments has highlighted the need for a paradigm shift, where we conceptualize river corridors as a system that is not a linear feature but an intricate three-dimensional veneer expanding the river network. Our premise is that the abstract ideas that led us to “redraw the river network” should translate into new mathematical representations at the core of the next generation of local-to-continental scale water quality models. In this presentation, we discuss the requirements of this new modeling framework, and in particular we emphasize the importance of (i) adequate upscaling approaches, (ii) computational advances, (ii) carefully designed observational networks, and (iii) linking with models of human behavior. Framing and implementing this new modeling framework can translate into effective management practices for a rapidly changing world. This effort will be a significant challenge for the hydrological sciences community in the coming century, requiring a multidisciplinary approach with input from physical and social scientist, stakeholders, and policymakers.