Adam SkibbeAdam SkibbeUS-EPAUS-EPA

Ecological Modeling of the Flint HillsEcological Modeling of the Flint Hills

Happy GIS Day!Happy GIS Day!

• The Project• Background• Research goals• How that applies to the

Flint Hills• Long-term

• My work• What do I do?

OverviewOverview

Region 7 and ORD Corvallis

A Collaborative EffortA Collaborative Effort

EPA RegionsEPA Regions

• Initial research

• Hydrology modeling at H.J. Andrews LTER (Oregon)

• Georgia Tech Hydrology Model (TOPMODEL)

• Interest in applying to additional ecosystems

• Chesapeake Bay

BackgroundBackground

• Kansas City air pollution concerns• Clean air = government money• Pollution = less/no money

• Issue concerning spike in particulate matter… city questionsburning in the Flint Hills

• How does burning in the Flint Hills impact air quality in KC?

BackgroundBackground

• ORD – Region 7 team up

• How to address this question…? • Models

• Things to consider• What is burning… ? (land cover)• How much… ? (total biomass)• What is in it… ? (nutrients)• Contributing… ? (hydrology, climate)

BackgroundBackground

Bill Snead / Journal - World

• Development of a Multi-Model Ecosystem Simulator• Modify models to run i/o from each other

• Single set of input variables

• Modifiable • Application to different ecosystems

• Distribute for use

• Future (phases 2 and 3)• Links to air quality models• Alternative futures

• Scenario based changes over time

Research GoalsResearch Goals

Ecosystem SimulatorEcosystem Simulator

Biogeochemistry (MEL)

Hydrology (GTHM)

Land Cover (FORCLIM)

Disturbances EnvironmentalEffects

ModelingModeling

• Disturbances• Vegetation change• Climate variability• Management

• Fire frequency• Grazing intensity• Pesticides • Fertilizers

• Environmental effects• Terrestrial effects

• Vegetation changes• Productivity• Carbon storage

• Aquatic effects• Stream discharge • Nutrient loads

The Multiple Element Limitation Model - MELThe Multiple Element Limitation Model - MEL

CO2

CO2

CO2

Ps

N fixN fix

Coarse Woody DebrisVegetation

Phase ISOM

Phase IISOM

SoilNutrients

Deposition

Weathering

LeachingOcclusion

C

Both

Nutrients

Courtesy of Ed Rastetter

Example:

• Tasks• Regional ecosystem modeling in the Flint Hills• Local ecosystem modeling in Konza Prairie

• Focus on the Kings Creek watershed• Use for calibration of regional models

• Slight differences between models• Mainly due to scale issues

• Hydrology• Regional vs. local climate

As it RelatesAs it Relates

• 3,487 ha • Native tallgrass prairie• 13 km S of Manhattan• Owned by The Nature

Conservancy / KSU• Long – term ecological

research (LTER) station• Began 1982• Focus on burn, grazing

research, etc.

Konza PrairieKonza Prairie

Konza PrairieKonza Prairie

• 1,637 ha • Within Konza• Sub-basin

• data collection• model calibration

• Available Data!

Kings Creek WatershedKings Creek Watershed

Kings Creek WatershedKings Creek Watershed

The Flint HillsThe Flint Hills

• Around 10,000 sq. miles

• Eastern Kansas into Northern Oklahoma

• Originally Bluestem Pastures, renamed for high chert content

• Primarily used for grazing, as land not suitable for tillage

The Flint HillsThe Flint Hills

• Data • Collection (gopher)• Analysis• Management

• Collaboration at KSU

• Communication• Web• Metadata• Visualization• “jack of all data”

• Explorer

““GIS Support”GIS Support”

Data Types - GeneralData Types - General

• Stream flow (local)• Stream chemistry (local)• Climate

• Precipitation• Temperature

• Max, Min, Avg• Solar radiation• Relative humidity

• Soils• Horizons• Texture• Bulk density• Hydraulic conductivity• Total N, C, P

• Boundaries• FH, Konza, Watersheds• Modeling units

• Elevation• Slope, Aspect, etc.

• Land cover• Leaf Area Index• Impervious surfaces

• Land use• Disturbances

• Grazing / burning• Bedrock

• Permeability• Structure

Flint Hills DataFlint Hills Data

Data IssuesData Issues

• Identifying gaps• Finding workarounds

• Soils example• All variables not part of

SSURGO• Append SCD pedon

data• Surrogates for missing

soil types

• Regional vs. local climate• Worldclim vs. weather stations

• Diffuse research team with variedbackgrounds• Math• Chemistry• Physics• Biology• Statistics• Programming

• I can see the landscape… they cannot

CommunicationCommunication

• What do they need to know?• How do I tell them?

• Maps• Videos• 3D• KML

CommunicationCommunication

• Early reliance on static images / videos• ArcMap, ArcScene, ArcGlobe

• Later expansion to use Kehole Markup Language (KML)• Google Earth, ArcExplorer

• KML is a simple, interactive setup for end users

VisualizationVisualization

Google EarthGoogle Earth

• Web-site to distributeall information related to project

• Archive of all maps, data, metadata, presentations, etc.

• Always available for access by collaborator

• Hosted .KML files

• http://epa.adamskibbe.com

Knowledge DistributionKnowledge Distribution

ExplorerExplorer

ORD Corvallis – Dr. Bob McKane Region 7 – Brenda Groskinsky

A Collaborative EffortA Collaborative Effort

Dr. Marc SteiglitzDr. Feifei Pan

Bonnie KwiatkowskiDr. Ed Rastetter

Dr. Shawn HutchinsonDr. John Blair

Dr. Loretta JohnsonCountless others

ThanksThanks

QuestionsQuestions