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- Title
Modelling canopy and litter interception in commercial forest plantations in South Africa.
- Authors
Bulcock, H. H.; Jewitt, G. P. W.
- Abstract
There is a gap in the knowledge of both canopy and litter interception in South African forest hydrology. Interception is typically considered to constitute only a small portion of the total evaporation and in some models is disregarded. Interception is a threshold process, as a certain amount of water is required before successive processes can take place. Therefore an error introduced in modelling interception, especially disregarding it, will automatically introduce errors in the calibration of subsequent models/processes. Field experiments to assess these processes, viz. canopy and litter interception were established for the three main commercial forestry genera in South Africa, namely, Pinus, Acacia and Eucalyptus. Drawing on both field and laboratory data, the "variable storage Gash" model for canopy interception and an idealised drying curve litter interception model were developed to represent these processes. It was found that canopy and litter interception can account for as much as 26.6% and 13.4% of gross precipitation, respectively, and are therefore important hydrological processes. The models developed were able to adequately represent these interception processes and provide a way forward for more representative water resources planning modelling.
- Subjects
SOUTH Africa; PLANT canopies; PLANT litter; COMMERCIAL forests; TREE farms; FOREST hydrology; WATER supply
- Publication
Hydrology & Earth System Sciences Discussions, 2012, Vol 9, Issue 7, p8293
- ISSN
1812-2108
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.5194/hessd-9-8293-2012