Journal article
Evaluation of flood metrics across the Mississippi-Atchafalaya River Basin and their relation to flood damages
PloS one, Vol.19(10), e0307486
10/09/2024
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0307486
PMCID: PMC11463744
PMID: 39383168
Abstract
Societal risks from flooding are evident at a range of spatial scales and climate change will exacerbate these risks in the future. Assessing flood risks across broad geographical regions is a challenge, and often done using streamflow time-series records or hydrologic models. In this study, we used a national-scale hydrological model to identify, assess, and map 16 different streamflow metrics that could be used to describe flood risks across 34,987 HUC12 subwatersheds within the Mississippi-Atchafalaya River Basin (MARB). A clear spatial difference was observed among two different classes of metrics. Watersheds in the eastern half of the MARB exhibited higher overall flows as characterized by the mean, median, and maximum daily values, whereas western MARB watersheds were associated with flood indicative of high extreme flows such as skewness, standardized streamflow index and top days. Total agricultural and building losses within HUC12 watersheds were related to flood metrics and those focused on higher overall flows were more correlated to expected annual losses (EAL) than extreme value metrics. Results from this study are useful for identifying continental scale patterns of flood risks within the MARB and should be considered a launching point from which to improve the connections between watershed scale risks and the potential use of natural infrastructure practices to reduce these risks.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Evaluation of flood metrics across the Mississippi-Atchafalaya River Basin and their relation to flood damages
- Creators
- Keith E Schilling - University of IowaElliot S Anderson - University of IowaJerry Mount - University of IowaKelly Suttles - Environmental Defense FundPhilip W Gassman - Iowa State UniversityNatalja Čerkasova - Grassland, Soil and Water Research LaboratoryMichael J White - Grassland, Soil and Water Research LaboratoryJeffrey G Arnold - Agricultural Research Service
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- PloS one, Vol.19(10), e0307486
- DOI
- 10.1371/journal.pone.0307486
- PMID
- 39383168
- PMCID
- PMC11463744
- NLM abbreviation
- PLoS One
- ISSN
- 1932-6203
- eISSN
- 1932-6203
- Publisher
- PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE
- Grant note
- Integrated Big Data Framework for Water Quality Issues in the Upper Mississippi River Basin" award: 1761772
Funding: This study was financially supported by Environmental Defense Fund (https://www.edf.org/) in the form of an award (2021) received by KS. This study was also financially supported by National Science Foundation (https://www.nsf.gov/) in the form of "An Integrated Big Data Framework for Water Quality Issues in the Upper Mississippi River Basin" award (1761772) received by PG.
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 10/09/2024
- Academic Unit
- Earth and Environmental Sciences; IIHR--Hydroscience and Engineering
- Record Identifier
- 9984732541802771
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