Top-down seasonal streamflow model with spatiotemporal forest sapwood area

Abstract

Forest growth dynamics affect streamflow with changes in actual evapotranspiration (AET) during forest regeneration. Using a “top-down” model approach, we present a seasonal forest hydrology model that estimates streamflow in forested catchments containing sparse soil and climate data. Across a 1423 km2 remote study area, a rainfall interpolation procedure using available rainfall data and information on terrain was integrated into a new seasonal streamflow model, called ABCF, which uses catchment sapwood area (SA) as the emergent property that equilibrates with potential evapotranspiration (PET), and a soil storage threshold that reduces AET below PET when soil water is limiting. We produce..