JAWRA Blog

August 2010 article: The Effect of Channelization on Floodplain Sediment Deposition and Subsidence Along the Pocomoke River, Maryland, by Daniel E. Kroes and Cliff R. Hupp.

Channelization’s got to be one of these things that sounded like a good idea at the time. No doubt it achieved some immediate benefits and there are places today where we probably can’t do without it. The environmental price of massive channelization, however, has been very high.

The nontidal Pocomoke River was intensively ditched and channelized by the mid-1900s, and this article documents the effects. The sediment storage function of this river has been dramatically altered by channelization. Channelization has limited contact between streamflow and the floodplain, resulting in little or no sediment retention in channelized reaches. Additionally, the drainage of floodplains by improved channels has resulted in the oxidation of stored organic sediments, resulting in subsidence. The nutrient by-product (nitrates, phosphates) of this subsidence could be a contributor to the eutrophication of downstream water bodies; in this case, the already stressed Chesapeake Bay. Wish we knew all this when somebody made the decision to channelize!

[Please note: I have quoted and paraphrased freely from the article, but the interpretation is my own!]

June 2010 Article: Effects of Urban Spatial Structure, Sociodemographics, and Climage on Residential Water Consumption in Hillsboro, Oregon, by Lily House-Peters, Bethany Pratt, and Heejun Chang.

We often think of the Northwest United States as a wet climate where seasonal outdoor water use would not be a major factor. However Lily House-Peters and her colleagues found this not to be the case. Their findings imply properties with large outdoor spaces are sensitive to variations in climate, especially an increase in summertime temperature, which is widely projected to be an outcome of anthropogenic climate change.

They found individual census blocks that respond with a significantly greater amount of seasonal water usage during a drought period. The census blocks that used the most external water during the summer 2004 had newer and larger homes, higher property values, and more affluent and well-educated residents. Importantly, their results suggest that during periods of low precipitation and higher than average maximum temperatures, seasonal water use tends to be more dependent on physical property variables rather than socioeconomic variables.

Basically, this research means that community design matters. Decisions planners make now will affect water use in the future. One more argument against the unsustainable big-house, big-yard American dream!

[Please note: I have quoted and paraphrased freely from the article, but the interpretation is my own!]

I recently was asked if JAWRA accepts opinion articles. Here’s what I replied:

Opinion articles are welcome in JAWRA provided they are fact-based. That is, “I think A because of B and C.” Naturally, all sources must be properly cited. We are particularly interested in articles which give a unique perspective on a topical issue or which enlighten us on the views of decision makers.

Why, oh why, do people agree to review a paper then not do so? It’s not like we grab them in a headlock until they agree! We just had another author inconvenienced because an inconsiderate reviewer disappeared off the radar. Yeah, we’ll find another, but we would have liked to have done so two months ago.

We realize sometimes you’re busy. There is no shame in declining to review a paper; we’re not even concerned about the reason. “Thanks, I but can’t do it now. Try again some other time” works just fine. Even if you look at a paper and then feel you’re not really qualified, or you need some more time, a quick note to Susan or the Associate Editor will get you off the hook with a thanks for your courtesy.

Manuscript Central has a long memory. There are two ways to be sure you’re not asked to review papers. The honorable one is to simply ask us to mark you as unavailable. The other one is a blot on your record.

Welcome to a blog dedicated to issues in modern journal publishing and how it affects multidisciplinary water-resource issues! The Editor’s Notes in the front of each issue are limited in length and more appropriate for administrative topics. Moreover, they don’t allow for the interactive exchange off views a blog offers. So, we decided to establish this blog for open discussions with JAWRA readers.

What kind of subject is appropriate for this blog? Almost anything related to JAWRA! However, questions about specific manuscripts under review should be handled through our Manuscript Central system (http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jawra) so we can ensure confidentiality and maintain an audit trail.

I will allow anything to be posted within this blog. However, I reserve the right to remove any postings which do not conform to our Principles of Professionalism and Civility. (See: http://www.awra.org/jawra/instructionsforauthors.html#professionalism).

That said, let the blogging begin!

– Ken Lanfear, JAWRA Editor