Tagged: water cycle

Tussocks – a fundamental component of New Zealand’s water cycle - Waiology

Waiology • Oct 20, 2014 •

• canopy,
• fog,
• interception,
• Runoff,
• tussock,
• water cycle,
• water yield

By Alice Trevelyan, Sarah Mager and Peter Wilson The significance of fog deposition to increased water yield has been contested for many years, especially across the Otago region. Determining the importance of the role of tussock grasslands in the hydrological system is becoming increasingly important, especially over the summer periods when the demand for water for irrigation, recreation and domestic … Read More

Waiology moving from water cycle to freshwater sciences - Waiology

Waiology • Nov 26, 2012 •

• ecology,
• engineering,
• freshwater,
• Freshwater sciences,
• geomorphology,
• hydrology,
• policy,
• water cycle,
• Water resource management,
• water use

By Daniel Collins After over a year serving New Zealand as a source of information and discussion on hydrology and the water cycle, I am pleased to announce that Waiology is expanding its scope to freshwater sciences and allied disciplines more generally. This includes all things hydrological, as before, but also aquatic ecology and chemistry, fluvial geomorphology, hydraulic engineering, and … Read More

The hydro-illogical cycle - Waiology

Waiology • Mar 06, 2012 •

• Planning,
• Resource management,
• Variability,
• water cycle

By Daniel Collins Seen during a presentation by water resources expert Professor Robert Glennon last month. This says a lot about the costs of complacent water resources planning in a variable climate. The principle here is much like the Latin adage: Si vis pacem, para bellum — if you wish for peace, prepare for war. Read More

Edmond Halley, an underappreciated hydrologist - Waiology

Waiology • Jan 09, 2012 •

• Edmund Halley,
• Evaporation,
• Experimental hydrology,
• History of hydrology,
• water cycle

By Daniel Collins I remember in 1986 going to the Beverly-Begg Observatory, in Dunedin, to see Halley’s Comet. At the time, I was a young kid fascinated with astronomy. I had discovered a book on the topic the previous year while on holiday in Central Otago, and soon joined an astronomy club. Through the club, I built a basic … Read More

Where to get information on NZ hydrology - Waiology

Waiology • Dec 08, 2011 •

• hydrology,
• New Zealand,
• References,
• water cycle

By Daniel Collins While we’re building up Waiology to be a useful reference for those of you who are interested in New Zealand’s hydrology and freshwaters, I thought it would also be good to mention some other useful resources available. BOOKS Freshwaters of New Zealand. Edited by Jon Harding, Paul Mosley, Charles Pearson and Brian Sorrell. Jointly published in … Read More

The importance of groundwater - Waiology

Waiology • Nov 14, 2011 •

• Groundwater,
• Irrigation,
• water cycle

By Tiejun Wang Groundwater is one of the most important natural resources in New Zealand, which by one estimate accounts for about 80% of the water present at any one time across and beneath the country. According to a 2010 review of water allocation [2], the number of groundwater consents accounts for 68% of all national consents. In … Read More

How much water does New Zealand have again? - Waiology

Waiology • Oct 06, 2011 •

• New Zealand,
• regions,
• Variability,
• water cycle

By Daniel Collins Today, Statistics NZ released a new assessment on the water accounts of the country. Back in June I distilled the previous 2005 assessment for you, and now here’s the update. The average amount of precipitation that falls on New Zealand each year, now based on data from 1995-2010, is 610,000 x 106 m3 — just … Read More

Plants in the water cycle - Waiology

Waiology • Jun 30, 2011 •

• Ecohydrology,
• plants,
• water cycle,
• Waterscape

By Daniel Collins When you think about hydrology, the first things that come to mind are often rain and rivers, not plants. But plants have a significant effect on how much rain actually reaches the rivers. We see this most readily in the reduction in river flow when grassland is replaced by shrubland or forest. Low flows, mean flow and … Read More

Introducing Waterscape - Waiology

Waiology • Jun 13, 2011 •

• msi,
• SW-GW interaction,
• water cycle,
• Waterscape

By Ross Woods Hydrology is the study of the presence and movement of water over and under the Earth’s surface. Like many sciences, hydrology is often partitioned into sub-disciplines: surface hydrology and groundwater hydrology. This separation shows up in hydrology courses at universities, in research programmes and organisations, and in the way resource management agencies manage water. It’s a natural … Read More

How much water does NZ have? - Waiology

Waiology • Jun 08, 2011 •

• New Zealand,
• regions,
• Variability,
• water cycle

By Daniel Collins The amount of water that falls on New Zealand each year is about 560,000 million m3. Lumped together as ‘precipitation’, this is mostly rain, but also snow, hail and even some graupel. That’s enough water to cover the country 2.1 metres deep, or to fill Lake Taupo over 9 times. More than most countries, but not … Read More