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Tracing sediment loss from eroding farm tracks using a geochemical fingerprinting procedure combining local and
A L Collins1, Y Zhang, D E Walling
1Environment Group, ADAS, Woodthorne, Wergs Road, Wolverhampton WV6 8TQ, UK. adrian.collins@adas.co.uk
The Science of the Total Environment
|August 19, 2010
Summary
Eroding farm tracks contribute minimally to sediment problems in agricultural catchments, with pasture and channel banks being larger sources. Combining local and global optimization techniques improves sediment source apportionment accuracy.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Hydrology
- Geochemistry
Background:
- Eroding farm tracks are recognized as potential sediment sources in agricultural landscapes.
- Understanding their contribution relative to other sources is crucial for effective sediment mitigation strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify the contribution of eroding farm track surfaces to suspended sediment loads.
- To compare the efficacy of local and global optimization techniques in sediment source apportionment.
Main Methods:
- Sediment source tracing using geochemical fingerprinting.
- Mass balance modeling with local and genetic algorithm (GA) optimization.
- Analysis in the upper River Piddle catchment, southern England.
Main Results:
- Farm track surfaces contributed 1-19% to suspended sediment, while pasture (31-55%) and channel banks (23-49%) were more significant sources.
- Genetic algorithm optimization improved model performance over local optimization.
- Combining local and GA optimization yielded the best results for sediment source apportionment.
Conclusions:
- Farm tracks are a minor contemporary source of suspended sediment compared to pasture and channel banks.
- Integrating local and global optimization methods enhances the reliability of sediment source apportionment models.
- Careful consideration of fingerprint property datasets is necessary for accurate source tracing.
