Hydrology and Earth System Sciences www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net 1027-5606 1607-7938 11 4 2007 10.5194/hess-11-1441-2007 http://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/11/1441/2007/ http://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/11/1441/2007/hess-11-1441-2007.html http://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/11/1441/2007/hess-11-1441-2007.pdf 1441 1454 2007-07-18 Analysis of the runoff response of an alpine catchment at different scales B. Zillgens B. Merz bmerz@gfz-potsdam.de R. Kirnbauer N. Tilch GeoForschungsZentrum Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany Institute of Hydraulics, Hydrology and Water Resources Management, Vienna University of Technology, Vienna, Austria Geological Survey of Austria, Department of Engineering Geology, Vienna, Austria To understand how hydrological processes are related across different spatial scales, 201 rainfall runoff events were examined in three nested catchments of the upper river Saalach in the Austrian Alps. The Saalach basin is a nested catchment covering different spatial scales, from the micro-scale (Limberg, 0.07 km²), to the small-catchment scale (Rammern, 15.5 km²), and the meso-scale (Viehhofen, 150 km²). At these three scales two different event types could clearly be identified, depending on rainfall characteristics and initial baseflow level: (1) a unimodal event type with a quick rising and falling hydrograph, responding to short duration rainfall, and (2) a bimodal event type with a double peak hydrograph at the micro-scale and substantially increased flow values at the larger basins Rammern and Viehhofen, responding to long duration rainfall events. In all cases where a bimodal event was identified at the microscale, the hydrographs at the larger scales exhibited significantly attenuated recession behavior, quantified by recession constants. At all scales, the bimodal events are associated with considerably higher runoff volumes than the unimodal events. From the investigations at the headwater Limberg we came to the conclusion that the higher amount of runoff of bimodal events is due to the mobilization of subsurface flow processes. The analysis shows that the occurrence of the two event types is consistent over three orders of magnitude in area. This link between the scales means that the runoff behavior of the headwater may be used as an indicator of the runoff behavior of much larger areas. Aksoy, H. and Wittenberg, H.: Jahreszeitliche Veränderung der Trockenwetterganglinie – Fallstudie für einen Fluss im europäischen Teil der Türkei, Wasserwirtschaft, 90, 38–41, 2001. Anderson, M. G. and Burt, T. P.: The role of topography in controlling throughflow generation, Earth Surf. Processes, 3, 331–344, 1978. Chapman, T.: A comparison of algorithms for stream flow recession and baseflow separation, Hydrol. Processes, 13, 701–714, 1999. Dewandel, B., Lachassagne, P., Bakalowicz, M., Weng, P., and Al-Malki, A.: Evaluation of aquifer thickness by analyzing recession hydrographs. Application to the Oman Ophiolite hard-rock aquifer, J. Hydrol., 274, 248–269, 2003. Gutknecht, D.: Abflussentstehung an Hängen – Beobachtungen und Konzeptionen, Österreichische Wasser- und Abfallwirtschaft, 48, 134–144, 1996. Grayson, R. and Blöschl, G.: Spatial processes, organisation and patterns, in: Spatial patterns in catchment hydrology. Observations and modelling, edited by: Grayson, R. and Blöschl, G., Cambridge University Press, 3–16, 2000. Hall, F. R.: Baseflow recessions – a review, Water Resour. Res., 4973–4983, 1968. HDÖ (Ed.): Hydrographisches Jahrbuch von Österreich 1999, Bundesministerium für Land- und Forstwirtschaft, Umwelt und Wasserwirtschaft, Wien, 2002. Jenkins, A., Ferrier, R. C., Harriman, R., and Ogunkoya, Y. O.: A case study in catchment hydrochemistry: Conflicting interpretations from hydrological and chemical observations, Hydrol. Processes, 8, 335–349, 1994. Kirnbauer, R., Blöschl, G., Haas, P., Müller, G., and Merz, B.: Identifying space-time patterns of runoff generation in the Löhnersbach catchment, in: Runoff generation and implications for river basin modelling, Freiburger Schriften zur Hydrologie, 13, 37–45, 2001. Kirnbauer, R., Tilch, N., Markart, G., Zillgens, B., Kohlbeck, F., Leroch, K., Seidler, C., Haas, P., Uhlenbrook, S., Didszun, J., Leibundgut, C., Merz, B., Chawatal, W., and Fürst, J.: Runoff generation in the northern greywack zone of the Alps – field studies and mathematical modeling, in: 10. Kongress Interpraevent in Garda 2004, 24–27 May 2004, vol II, 45–56, 2004. Kirnbauer, R., Pirkl, H., Haas, P., and Steidl, R.: Runoff processes – observations and modelling, Österreichische Wasser- und Abfallwirtschaft, 48, 15–26, 1996. Kirnbauer, R., Blöschl, G., Haas, P., Müller, G., and Merz, B.: Identifying space-time patterns of runoff generation – A case study from the Löhnersbach catchment, Austrian Alps, in: Global change and mountain regions – a state of knowledge overview, edited by: Huber, U., Bugmann, H., and Reasoner, M., Springer Verlag, 309–320, 2005. Klemes, V.: Probability of extreme hydrometeorological events – a different approach, in: Extreme Hydrological Events: Precipitation, Floods and Droughts, 213, 167–176, 1993. Kubota, J. and Sivapalan, M.: Towards a catchment-scale model of subsurface runoff generation based on synthesis of small-scale process-based modelling and field studies, Hydrol. Processes, 9, 541–554, 1995. Markart, G. and Kohl, B.: Die Böden im Einzugsgebiet des Löhnerbaches/Saalbach. Unveröffentlichter Projektbericht an das BMLF (unpublished report), Wien, 1993a. Markart, G. and Kohl, B.: Beregnungen im Einzugsgebiet des Löhnerbaches/Saalbach, Unveröffentlichter Projektbericht an das BMLF (unpublished report), Wien, 1993b. Masiyandima, M. C., van de Giesen, N., Diatta, S., Windmeijer, P. N., and Steenhuis, T. S.: The hydrology of inland valleys in the sub-humid zone of West Africa: rainfall-runoff processes in the M'bé experimental watershed, Hydrol. Processes, 17, 1213–1225, 2003. McDonnell, J. and Woods, R.: On the need for catchment classification (editorial), J. Hydrol., 299, 2–3, 2004. McNamara, J. P., Kane, D. L., and Hinzman, L. D.: An analysis of streamflow hydrology in the Kuparuk River basin, Arctic Alaska; a nested watershed approach, J. Hydrol., 206, 39–57, 1998. Mendoza, G. F., Steenhuis, T. S., Walter, M. T., and Parlange J.-Y.: Estimating basin-wide hydraulic parameters of a semi-arid mountainous watershed by recession-flow analysis, J. Hydrol., 279, 57–69, 2003. Mishra, A., Hata, T., Abdelhadi, A. W., Tada, A., and Tanakamaru, H.: Recession flow analysis of the Blue Nile River, Hydrol. Processes, 17, 2825–2835, 2003. Morgali, J. R. and Linsley, R. K.: Computer Analysis of Overland Flow, J. Hydraul. Div., Proc. ASCE, 91, HY 5, 81–100, 1965. Naef, F., Scherrer, S., and Weiler, M.: A process based assessment of the potential to reduce flood runoff by land use change, J. Hydrol., 267, 74–79, 2002. Nathan, R. J. and McMahon, T. A.: Evaluation of automated techniques for base flow and recession analyses, Water Resour. Res., 26, 1465–1473, 1990. Onda, Y., Komatsu, Y., Tsujimura, M., and Fujihara, J. I.: The role of subsurface runoff through bedrock on storm flow generation, Hydrol. Processes, 15, 1693–1706, 2001. Pilgrim, D. H. and Cordery, I.: Flood Runoff, in: Handbook of Hydrology, edited by: Maidment, D. R., McGraw-Hill Inc., 9.1–9.42, 1993. Pirkl, H.: Erarbeitung der Zusammenhänge zwischen Hanginstabilitäten und -labilitäten, Hangwasserhaushalt und Massenbewegungen in Teilen des Zentralalpenkristallins, Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Geologische Bundesanstalt (unpublished report), Wien, 1989. Rodda, J. C.: Mountains – a hydrological paradox or paradise?, Beiträge zur Hydrologie der Schweiz, 41–51, 1994. Rose, S. and Peters, N. E.: Effects of urbanization on streamflow in the Atlanta area (Georgia, USA): A comparative hydrological approach, Hydrol. Processes, 15, 1441–1457, 2001. Schiffer, R. and Burgstaller, B.: Vegetationskartierung Löhnersbach, Thematische Karte (unpublished report), 1990. Singh, V. P. and Strupczewski, W. G.: On the status of flood frequency analysis, Hydrol. Processes, 16, 3737–3740, 2002. Sujono, J., Shikasho, S., and Hiramatsu, K.: A comparison of techniques for hydrograph recession analysis, Hydrol. Processes, 18, 403–413, 2004. Tallaksen, L. M.: A review of baseflow recession analysis, J. Hydrol., 165, 349–370, 1995. Tilch, N., Uhlenbrook, S., Didszun, J., Leibundgut, C., Zillgens, B., Kirnbauer, R., and Merz, B.: Decoding flow formation processes using tracer hydrologic methods in an Alpine catchment, Österreichische Wasser- und Abfallwirtschaft, 55, 9–17, 2003. Uhlenbrook, S., Frey, M., Leibundgut, C., and Maloszewski, P.: Hydrograph separations in a mesoscale mountainous basin at event and seasonal timescales, Water Resour. Res., 38(6), 1096, doi:10.1029/2001WR000938, 2002. Vitvar, T., Gurtz, J., and Lang, H.: Application of GIS-based distributed hydrological modelling for estimation of water residence times in the small Swiss pre-alpine catchment Rietholzbach, IAHS-AISH-Publication, 258, 241–248, 1999. Viviroli, D., Weingartner, R., and Messerli, B.: Assessing the hydrological significance of the world's mountains, Mt. Res. Dev., 23, 32–40, 2003. Weiler, M., McGlynn, B. L., McGurie, K. J., and McDonnell, J. J.: How does rainfall become runoff? A combined tracer and runoff transfer function approach, Water Resour. Res., 39(11), 1315, doi:10.1029/2003WR002331, 2003. Weingartner, R., Barben, M., and Spreafico, M.: Floods in mountain areas – an overview based on examples from Switzerland, J. Hydrol., 282, 10–24, 2003. Wetzel, K. F.: Runoff production processes during different rainfall in small hillslope catchments of the northern limestone Alps, Erde, 132, 361–379, 2001. Wittenberg, H.: Nonlinear analysis of flow recession curves, IAHS-Publication, 221, 61–67, 1994. Wittenberg, H.: Baseflow recession and recharge as nonlinear storage processes, Hydrol. Processes, 13, 715–726, 1999. Wittenberg, H.: Effects of season and man-made changes on baseflow and flow recession – case studies, Hydrol. Processes, 17, 2113–2123, 2003. Wittenberg, H. and Sivapalan, M.: Watershed groundwater balance estimation using streamflow recession analysis and baseflow separation, J. Hydrol., 219, 20–33, 1999.