Relationship of Weather Types on the Seasonal and Spatial Variability of Rainfall, Runoff, and Sediment Yield in the Western Mediterranean Basin

Rainfall is the key factor to understand soil erosion processes, mechanisms, and rates. Most research was conducted to determine rainfall characteristics and their relationship with soil erosion (erosivity) but there is little information about how atmospheric patterns control soil losses, and this is important to enable sustainable environmental planning and risk prevention. We investigated the temporal and spatial variability of the relationships of rainfall, runoff, and sediment yield with atmospheric patterns (weather types, WTs) in the western Mediterranean basin. For this purpose, we analyzed a large database of rainfall events collected between 1985 and 2015 in 46 experimental plots and catchments with the aim to: (i) evaluate seasonal differences in the contribution of rainfall, runoff, and sediment yield produced by the WTs; and (ii) to analyze the seasonal efficiency of the different WTs (relation frequency and magnitude) related to rainfall, runoff, and sediment yield. The results indicate two different temporal patterns: the first weather type exhibits (during the cold period: autumn and winter) westerly flows that produce the highest rainfall, runoff, and sediment yield values throughout the territory; the second weather type exhibits easterly flows that predominate during the warm period (spring and summer) and it is located on the Mediterranean coast of the Iberian Peninsula. However, the cyclonic situations present high frequency throughout the whole year with a large influence extended around the western Mediterranean basin. Contrary, the anticyclonic situations, despite of its high frequency, do not contribute significantly to the total rainfall, runoff, and sediment (showing the lowest efficiency) because of atmospheric stability that currently characterize this atmospheric pattern. Our approach helps to better understand the relationship of WTs on the seasonal and spatial variability of rainfall, runoff and sediment yield with a regional scale based on the large dataset and number of soil erosion experimental stations.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Peña-Angulo, Dahis, Nadal-Romero, Estela, González Hidalgo, José Carlos, Albaladejo Montoro, Juan, Andreu Pérez, V., Bahri, H., Bernal, Susana, Biddoccu, Marcella, Bienes, Ramón, Campo, Julián, Campo-Bescós, M. A., Canatário-Duarte, Antonio, Cantón, Yolanda, Casalí, Javier, Castillo Ruiz, Víctor, Cavallo, Eugenio, Cerdà, Artemi, Cid, Patricio, Cortesi, Nicola, Desir, Gloria, Díaz-Pereira, Elvira, Espigares, T., Estrany, Joan, Farguell, J., Fernández-Raga, María, Ferreira, C. S. S., Ferro, V., Gallart Gallego, Francesc, Giménez, R., Gimeno-García, Eugenia, Gómez Calero, José Alfonso, Gómez-Gutiérrez, Anna I., Gómez Macpherson, H., González-Pelayo, Óscar, Kairis, O., Karatzas, G. P., Keesstra, Saskia, Klotz, S., Kosmas, C., Lana-Renault, Noemí, Lasanta Martínez, Teodoro, Latron, Jérôme, Lázaro, Roberto, Le Bissonnais, Y., Le Bouteiller, C., Licciardello, Feliciana, López-Tarazón, José A., Lucía, Ana, Marín-Moreno, V. M., Marín, Cinta, Marqués, María José, Martínez-Fernández, José, Martínez-Mena García, M. Dolores, Mateos, Luciano, Mathys, N., Merino-Martín, L., Moreno de las Heras, Mariano, Moustakas, N., Nicolau, J. M., Pampalone, V., Raclot, D., Rodríguez-Blanco, M. Luz, Rodrigo Comino, Jesús, Romero Díaz, Asunción, Ruiz Sinoga, José Damián, Rubio, José Luis, Schnabel, Susanne, Senciales-González, J. M., Solé-Benet, Albert, Taguas, E. V., Taboada-Castro, M. Teresa, Taboada-Castro, M. Mercedes, Todisco, F., Úbeda, Xavier, Varouchakis, E. A., Wittenberg, L., Zabaleta, Ane, Zorn, M.
Other Authors:	Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (España)
Format:	artículo biblioteca
Published:	Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute 2020-06-09
Subjects:	Weather types, Rainfall, Runoff, Erosion, Sediment yield, Seasonal analyses, Mediterranean basin,
Online Access:	http://hdl.handle.net/10261/215641 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100011033 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000780 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100003086 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100002809 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100010067 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100003329 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100014180
Tags:	Add Tag No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!