What
Anna Bergstrom from Boise State University presents on, “Lessons from the past and directions for the future: Hydrology of the Dry Creek Experimental Watershed”
When
Tuesday Oct. 11, 2022
11:30-12:20 MT (10:30-11:20 Pacific)
Abstract
Long term, collaborative, and interdisciplinary studies in hydrology have allowed us to gain an understanding of how the landscape stores and transmits water, supports vegetation, moderates water quality, and supplies surface and groundwater to downstream systems. Research contributions from the Dry Creek Experimental Watershed, located just outside Boise, Idaho, have improved community understanding of hydrologic processes and watershed function in a semi-arid landscape situated right on the rain-snow transition. Here, we present the legacy of scientific research in Dry Creek, including how the distinct landscape morphology influences how precipitation is stored in the watershed and how it supports vegetation, streamflow, and groundwater recharge. We also discuss how past learnings have helped identify gaps in our research but set us up well to be able to address them moving into the future. Namely, we focus on initial research on the patterns and drivers of stream network drying and impacts of a changing climate. This continued research will help inform how our mountain watersheds supply water and support critical aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems and how this may shift in the future.
Bio
Anna Bergstrom started as an assistant professor in the Geosciences Department at Boise State University in 2021. Her research focuses on watershed hydrology, biogeochemistry, and glaciology. Besides studying climate change impacts to local watersheds, she also does research on biogeochemical processes and hydrology on and downstream of glaciers in Alaska and Antarctica. Before starting at BSU, Anna received a PhD at University of Colorado – Boulder, an MS at University of Montana, and her BS at Montana State University.
