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Modeling the hydrochemistry of the Choptank River Basin using GWLF and Arc/Info: 1. Model calibration and validation

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Abstract

We modeled nutrient export in the ChoptankRiver Basin on the coastal plain of the Chesapeakedrainage, using a modified version of alumped-parameter, hydrochemical model (GWLF).Calibration was performed using long-term (WY1980–WY1990)hydrochemistry data from a gauged site. Thecalibrated model reproduced water yields, TN, and TPexport with cumulative errors of <1% over the11-year calibration period and with annual RMS errorsof 10–50%. Model validation was done withindependent measurements at the same gauged site(WY1991 to WY1996) and at another nearby independentlygauged site (WY1991 to WY1995). Local adjustment ofthe groundwater recession coefficient and thedissolved N concentration in agricultural stormflowwas essential for successful application at the secondsite. GWLF appears to be a useful model for estimationof fluxes of water, N and P from ungauged areas withaccuracies of 10–50% at annual time scales.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Horn Point Laboratory, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, PO Box 775, Cambridge, MD, 21613, U.S.A.

    Kuang-Yao Lee & Thomas R. Fisher

  2. Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, PO Box 28, Edgewater, MD, 21037, U.S.A.

    Thomas E. Jordan, David L. Correll & Donald E. Weller

Authors
  1. Kuang-Yao Lee
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  2. Thomas R. Fisher
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  3. Thomas E. Jordan
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  4. David L. Correll
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  5. Donald E. Weller
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Lee, KY., Fisher, T.R., Jordan, T.E. et al. Modeling the hydrochemistry of the Choptank River Basin using GWLF and Arc/Info: 1. Model calibration and validation. Biogeochemistry 49, 143–173 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006375530844

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