Modeling Ecologic and Geomorphic Change in Semi-Arid New Mexico
Abstract
A record of grazing, fire suppression and drought in the semi-arid American south-west since the 1800s has left a mark on the landscape. In the Pajarito Plateau, New Mexico, pinyon-juniper woodlands have expanded at the expense of ponderosa pine forest, giving rise to increased erosion rates - a concern to the sustainability of the soil resource and of vegetation. Soil loss also risks human exposure to contaminants from Los Alamos National Laboratory. The dynamics of this water-controlled environment arise from the complex interplay of climate, hydrology, ecology and geomorphology, an understanding of which is fundamental to solution of the environmental challenges. In an effort to predict the course of ecological and geomorphic change in the region, and to provide a tool for land-use planners in averting possible human health and environmental hazards, a numerical landscape evolution model is developed. It assimilates research encompassing plant physiology, ecology, hydrology, and geomorphology, highlights weaknesses in process understanding, and provides a prediction of the future environmental state on the time-scale of 100s of years.
- Publication:
-
AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2004
- Bibcode:
- 2004AGUFM.H51C1148C
- Keywords:
-
- 1800 HYDROLOGY;
- 1803 Anthropogenic effects;
- 1815 Erosion and sedimentation;
- 1824 Geomorphology (1625);
- 1851 Plant ecology