Grantee Research Project Results
2017 Progress Report: Fuel Reduction Techniques as Effective Forested Watershed Management Practices against Wildfire: Drinking Water Quality Aspects
EPA Grant Number: R835864Title: Fuel Reduction Techniques as Effective Forested Watershed Management Practices against Wildfire: Drinking Water Quality Aspects
Investigators: Karanfil, Tanju , Chow, Alex
Institution: Clemson University
EPA Project Officer: Packard, Benjamin H
Project Period: September 1, 2015 through August 31, 2018 (Extended to August 31, 2019)
Project Period Covered by this Report: September 1, 2016 through August 31,2017
Project Amount: $1,260,408
RFA: National Priorities: Systems-Based Strategies to Improve The Nation’s Ability to Plan And Respond to Water Scarcity and Drought Due to Climate Change (2014) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Water
Objective:
This research project investigates the consequences of different fuel reduction techniques, as watershed management practices against wildfire, on the exports of dissolved organic matter (DOM) from forested watersheds and associated biogeochemical processes and impacts on drinking water supplies. Specifically, the temporal variations of DOM exported from watersheds under prescribed burn, or mechanical thinning are examined and compared to determine how they form regulated and emerging carbonaceous and nitrogenous disinfection byproducts (DBPs) with DOM from unmanaged watersheds. The overarching goal of this project is to identify the best forest management practices to minimize the impact of wildfires on water quality and treatability.
Progress Summary:
There are three major components of this project: I) Controlled Studies, II) Experimental Watershed Investigations and III) Treatability Assessment, corresponding to watershed management, landscape processes, and water quality, respectively. For the controlled studies (Objective I), we conducted two field experiments to quantify the productions and exports of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), dissolved organic nitrogen (DON), and nutrients (e.g. nitrate and ammonia) from forest detritus layers collected from field plots under different management practices, including annual dormant season burn (i.e., burn every winter), annual growing season burn (i.e., burn every spring or summer), and periodic growing season burn (i.e., burn every other 2 to 4 years in spring or summer). These practices were implemented at the experimental plots in the Tom Yakwey Wildlife Center Heritage Preserve located at Georgetown, South Carolina in 2015 and 2016. Fuel mass per unit area in the plots were determined before and after each management practice in order to determine their consequences in changing the forest fuel loading and detritus chemistry (Experiment #1). In addition, detrital materials from different burning regimes were collected for a one-year open field incubation study (Experiment #2). Dissolved organic matter (DOM) and disinfection by-product precursors (DBPs) leached from these detritus materials were extensively characterized to determine the temporal effects on drinking water quality after wildland fire. Finally, the same materials were split into sub-compartments (i.e., live, 39woody and detritus) and laboratory leaching experiments are being conducted to understand the leaching potentials of these sub-compartments.
The Experimental Watershed Investigation (Objective II) involves watershed scale studies in Santee Experimental Watershed and Clemson Experimental Forest. In April 2016, with support from US Forest Service, 155 ha of the first-order watershed in Santee Experimental Watershed was burned using aerial ignition. The biweekly grab sampling was conducted between January-December 2016. This sampling strategy enabled us to collect samples before and after the prescribed fire applied in April 2016. Water exported from this watershed and an adjunct control watershed were closely monitored (Experiment #3) through three different water sampling techniques, including bi-weekly grab sample, flow-proportion auto-sampler, and in-situ DOC sensors (Experiment #4). The biweekly grab sampling was completed in April 2017, one-year after the burn. The flow proportion auto-sampler and in-situ sensors will continue to collect water samples and record the data until the end of the project in 2018. In addition to chemical parameters, we also evaluated water quality using biological indicator. Stream benthic macroinvertebrate samples were collected biweekly for one year from March 2016 to March 2017 to determine if prescribed fire practices can produce significant impacts on the aquatic biota, thus indicating changes in water quality (Experiment #5). Comparing the two fuel reduction techniques (i.e., mechanical thinning and prescribed burns) is the second part of the Experimental Watershed Investigations, and this study will be conducted in Clemson Experimental Forest in spring 2018. Due to the challenges in installing and optimizing field sampling devices during spring and summer 2017, the proposed schedule has been postponed. Currently, we are collecting samples from installed field sampling devices and at the ephemeral stream as pre-treatment and baseline data (Experiment #6).
The Water Quality & Treatability Assessment (Objective III) is to characterize water and dissolved organic matter (DOM) samples collected for the Objectives I and II. In addition to conventional water treatment such as coagulation and DBP formation tests, our research team conducted laboratory studies to evaluate any photochemical and microbial transformations of DOM in source waters. In the first year of the study, our research team conducted a laboratory study to evaluate effects of black and white ash water extractable substances on the population growth of M. aeruginosa, as well as to evaluate quantitative and qualitative alterations of subsequent DBP precursors throughout algal life. This experiment was completed, a manuscript was prepared last year, and the results were published in the Environmental Science and Technology. (Experiment #7). In addition to the prescribed fires, we also evaluated the impact of wildfires on drinking water quality and DBP precursors in this project. During the first year, water samples from Wragg and Rocky Fires (2015) in California were collected in 2016 (January-May), when the burnt area regenerated surface run-off. In the second year, water samples from Cold Fire (2016) in California were collected in 2017 (January-April) and, we continued sample collection in 2017 from Wragg and Rocky fires to evaluate the long-term effect of the wildfires. Water quality parameters and DBP precursor`s concentration levels were measured from samples (Experiment #8). To be able to examine the effect of fire on the treatability of DOM and DBP precursors, extra water samples were collected from prescribed fire (experiments #1 and 2) and wildfire (experiment #8) studies. Initially, optimum dose determination tests (based on DOC removals) were conducted for all waters with alum and ferric. Then, waters were treated with optimum doses of alum and ferric to test the removal of water quality parameters and DBP precursors (Experiment #9). Finally, we also evaluated impacts of extreme flooding events, occurred in some portion of our study area, on DBP precursor dynamics and water treatability. In October 2015, large areas of coastal South Carolina were flooded by Hurricane Joaquin. This so-called “thousand-year” rainfall mobilized and flushed large amounts of terrestrial organic matter and associated pollutants (e.g., mercury) into source water, affecting water quality and safety of municipal water supply. To understand the dynamics of water quality and water treatability during this extreme flood, water samples were collected from Waccamaw River (a typical blackwater river in the southeastern US) during rising limb, peak discharge, falling limb, and base flow. The results were published in Chemosphere as cited in published manuscripts section.
Future Activities:
We will continue our study plan as stated in the original proposal. In 2017-2018, we will conduct two fuel management practices (i.e., mechanical thinning and prescribed fire) in several 1st order forested watersheds in Clemson Experimental Forest. Water exported from these watersheds and an adjunct control watershed will be closely monitored and fully characterized for its treatability and DBP formation.
References:
Tsai, K.; Uzun, H.; Karanfil, T.; Chow, A. Dynamic Changes of Disinfection Byproduct Precursors following Exposures of Microcystis aeruginosa to Wildfire Ash Solutions. Environ. Sci. Technol., 2017, 51, pp 8272–8282
• Ruecker, A.; Uzun, H.; Karanfil, T.; Tsui, M. T. K.; Chow, A. Disinfection Byproduct Precursor Dynamics and Water Treatability during an Extreme Flooding Event in a Coastal Blackwater River in Southeastern United States. Chemosphere 2017, 188, 90–98.
• Erdem, C.; Zhang, W.; Uzun, H.; Karanfil, T.; Olivares, C.; Coates, A.; Chow, A.; Karanfil, T. The effect of prescribed burns on dissolved organic matter (DOM) exports and disinfection by-product formation potential (DBP FP). Presented at Presented at the South Carolina Environmental Conference (SCEC). (Myrtle Beach, SC, March 2017).
• Erdem, C.; Olivares, C.; Uzun, H.; Zhang, W.; Trettin, C.; Liu, Y.; Robinson, E.; Chow, A.; Karanfil, T. Compositional changes of Dissolved organic matter following prescribed fire on forested watersheds and their effect on drinking water quality. Presented at Presented at the South Carolina Environmental Conference (SCEC). (Myrtle Beach, SC, March 2017).
• Olivares, C.I.; Uzun, H.; Erdem, C.U.; Zheng, W.; Coates, A.T.; Trettin, C.; Liu, Y.; Robinson, E.; Chow, A.; Karanfil, T. Compositional changes to dissolved organic matter following prescribed fires on forested watersheds and their effect on drinking water supply. Association of Environmental Engineering & Science Professors 2017 Conference. (Ann Arbor, MI, June 20-22, 2017.)
• Olivares, C.I.; Zheng, W.; Uzun, H.; Erdem, C.U.; Majidzadeh, H.; Trettin, C.; Karanfil, T.; Chow, A. Sampling methodology, and frequency to address dynamic seasonality and storm pulses of DOC exports in prescribed fire watersheds. Will be Submitted to Water Research by November 30th (2017).
•Olivares, C.; Uzun, H.; Dahlgren, R.; Erdem, C.U.; Chow, A.; Karanfil, T. Water quality, and disinfection by-products precursor changes after the 2015 Wragg wildfire in Northern California. Presented at Presented at the South Carolina Environmental Conference (SCEC). (Myrtle Beach, SC, March 2017).
• Uzun, H.; Zhang, W.; Erdem, C.; Olivares, C.; Coates, A.; Chow, A.; Karanfil, T. The effect of prescribed fire on DOC and DBP precursors in forested watersheds. Presented at annual conference of American Water Work Association (ACE). (Philadelphia, PA, June 11-14, 2017)
• Coates, A. Black carbon production as a result of prescribed fire in coastal longleaf pine forests. Presented at the 5th International Fire Behavior and Fuels Conference. (Portland, OR, April 13, 2016).
Erdem, C.; Uzun, H.; Karanfil, T.; Chow, A. Forest fire and drinking water quality. Presented at the South Carolina Environmental Conference (SCEC). (Myrtle Beach, SC, March 13-15, 2016).
• Uzun, H.; Olivares, C.; Zhang, W.; Erdem, C.; Chow, A.; Karanfil, T. Can prescribed fire reduce disinfection by-product precursor loading to source water? Presented at the Water Quality Technology Conference. (Indianapolis, IN, November 13-17, 2016).
• Zhang, W.; Olivares, C.L.; Uzun, H; Erdem, C.U.; Trettin, C.; Liu, Y.; Robinson, E.R.; Karanfil, T; Chow, A.T. Export of Dissolved Organic Carbon following Prescribed Fire on Forested Watersheds: Implications for Watershed Management for Drinking Water Supply. Presented at American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting 2016 (San Francisco, CA, December 12-16, 2016)
Journal Articles on this Report : 2 Displayed | Download in RIS Format
Other project views: | All 39 publications | 10 publications in selected types | All 10 journal articles |
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Tsai K, Uzun H, Karanfil T, Chow, A. Dynamic Changes of Disinfection Byproduct Precursors following Exposures of Microcystis aeruginosa to Wildfire Ash Solutions. Environ. Sci. Technol., 2017, 51, pp 8272–8282. |
R835864 (2017) R835864 (Final) |
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Ruecker A, Uzun H, Karanfil T, Tsui MTK., Chow, A. Disinfection Byproduct Precursor Dynamics and Water Treatability during an Extreme Flooding Event in a Coastal Blackwater River in Southeastern United States. Chemosphere 2017, 188, 90–98. |
R835864 (2017) R835864 (Final) |
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Supplemental Keywords:
Disinfection Byproducts, Wildland FireProgress and Final Reports:
Original AbstractThe perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.