Jacob LaFontaine
Jacob is the Chief of Modeling Support and Coordination Branch with the Water Resources Mission Area.
Jacob’s research has primarily focused on regional to national scale hydrologic model application development to inform national water availability assessments and understanding the effects of potential future climate and land cover change on water resources.
Science and Products
Assessing Water Availability and Streamflow Characteristics in the Conterminous United States for Current and Future Climatic and Landscape Conditions
This project is funded by the Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center (SE CASC), one of eight regional CASCs that are coordinated by a National CASC. The CASC network is a partnership-driven program that teams scientists with natural and cultural resource managers and local communities to deliver research and tools that can be applied directly to adaptation decisions. This project is focused...
National Hydrologic Model Infrastructure
The USGS National Hydrologic Model (NHM) infrastructure supports the efficient construction of local-, regional-, and national-scale hydrologic models. The NHM infrastructure consists of: 1) an underlying geospatial fabric of modeling units with an associated parameter database, 2) a model input data archive, and 3) a repository of the physical model simulation code bases.
Climate- and Land-Cover-Induced Shifts in the Distribution and Abundance of Invasive Fish and Their Impacts on Native Fish Communities in the Tennessee and Cumberland River Basins
The climate of the Southeast is changing rapidly. As streams warm and streamflow dynamics change due to climate and land-cover changes, previously unsuitable habitats may become hospitable for invasive species. Warmwater and large-river adapted invasive species such as Asian carps may move upstream as habitats that were previously too cold or had too little flow become welcoming environments for t
Assessment of Water Availability and Streamflow Characteristics in the Southeastern U.S. for Current and Future Climatic and Landscape Conditions
Information about streamflow and streamflow variability is critical to assist natural resource managers when they make decisions related to the water needs of both human communities and ecosystems. In order for managers to effectively plan for and adapt to future climate and land cover conditions, they require information on changes that could occur in the distribution and quantity of water resour
Webinar: Hydrologic Research and Assessment: From Local to Regional Scales
View this webinar to learn how scientists are conducting hydrologic modeling of unguaged streams in the Southeast.
Assessment of Water Availability and Streamflow Characteristics in the Gulf Coastal Plains and Ozarks (GCPO) Landscape Conservation Cooperative for Current and Future Climatic and Landscape Conditions
The objective of this research is to provide an automated methodology and data products to the GCPO LCC partners by (1) developing a multi-model synthesis to simulate streamflow using a monthly water balance model and daily time step hydrologic models (physical process-based and statistical) for all watersheds of the GCPO LCC geographic region and (2) providing products from these models (flow...
Understanding the Impacts of Glaciers on Streamflow in Alaska and Washington
Glaciers are a central component to the hydrology of many areas in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest. Glacier melt plays a crucial role in the movement of nutrients through a landscape and into the ocean, and the flow of water into streams that sustain many species. As air temperatures rise, increased rates of glacier melt may have significant impacts to the hydrology and ecology in these areas. T
Estimating Future Water Availability and Streamflow in the Southeast
Estimates of water flows in streams are critical to inform natural resource managers of water availability for both human and ecological needs. Monitoring flow in the stream using a streamgage provides information about the amount and timing of surface water resources. However, not every stream has a streamgage and decisions about water resources may need to be made in a watershed where there is n
SERAP: Modeling of Hydrologic Systems
A hydrologic model was developed as part of the Southeast Regional Assessment Project using the Precipitation Runoff Modeling System (PRMS), a deterministic, distributed-parameter, process-based system that simulates the effects of precipitation, temperature, and land use on basin hydrology. Streamflow and other components of the hydrologic cycle simulated by PRMS were used to inform other types o
USGS-USFS Partnership to Help Managers Evaluate Conservation Strategies for Aquatic Ecosystems Based on Future Climate Projections
The Southeastern U.S. spans broad ranges of physiographic settings and contains a wide variety of aquatic systems that provide habitat for hundreds of endemic aquatic species that pose interesting challenges and opportunities for managers of aquatic resources, particularly in the face of climate change. For example, the Southeast contains the southernmost populations of the eastern brook trout and
Science and Products
Assessing Water Availability and Streamflow Characteristics in the Conterminous United States for Current and Future Climatic and Landscape Conditions
This project is funded by the Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center (SE CASC), one of eight regional CASCs that are coordinated by a National CASC. The CASC network is a partnership-driven program that teams scientists with natural and cultural resource managers and local communities to deliver research and tools that can be applied directly to adaptation decisions. This project is focused...
National Hydrologic Model Infrastructure
The USGS National Hydrologic Model (NHM) infrastructure supports the efficient construction of local-, regional-, and national-scale hydrologic models. The NHM infrastructure consists of: 1) an underlying geospatial fabric of modeling units with an associated parameter database, 2) a model input data archive, and 3) a repository of the physical model simulation code bases.
Climate- and Land-Cover-Induced Shifts in the Distribution and Abundance of Invasive Fish and Their Impacts on Native Fish Communities in the Tennessee and Cumberland River Basins
The climate of the Southeast is changing rapidly. As streams warm and streamflow dynamics change due to climate and land-cover changes, previously unsuitable habitats may become hospitable for invasive species. Warmwater and large-river adapted invasive species such as Asian carps may move upstream as habitats that were previously too cold or had too little flow become welcoming environments for t
Assessment of Water Availability and Streamflow Characteristics in the Southeastern U.S. for Current and Future Climatic and Landscape Conditions
Information about streamflow and streamflow variability is critical to assist natural resource managers when they make decisions related to the water needs of both human communities and ecosystems. In order for managers to effectively plan for and adapt to future climate and land cover conditions, they require information on changes that could occur in the distribution and quantity of water resour
Webinar: Hydrologic Research and Assessment: From Local to Regional Scales
View this webinar to learn how scientists are conducting hydrologic modeling of unguaged streams in the Southeast.
Assessment of Water Availability and Streamflow Characteristics in the Gulf Coastal Plains and Ozarks (GCPO) Landscape Conservation Cooperative for Current and Future Climatic and Landscape Conditions
The objective of this research is to provide an automated methodology and data products to the GCPO LCC partners by (1) developing a multi-model synthesis to simulate streamflow using a monthly water balance model and daily time step hydrologic models (physical process-based and statistical) for all watersheds of the GCPO LCC geographic region and (2) providing products from these models (flow...
Understanding the Impacts of Glaciers on Streamflow in Alaska and Washington
Glaciers are a central component to the hydrology of many areas in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest. Glacier melt plays a crucial role in the movement of nutrients through a landscape and into the ocean, and the flow of water into streams that sustain many species. As air temperatures rise, increased rates of glacier melt may have significant impacts to the hydrology and ecology in these areas. T
Estimating Future Water Availability and Streamflow in the Southeast
Estimates of water flows in streams are critical to inform natural resource managers of water availability for both human and ecological needs. Monitoring flow in the stream using a streamgage provides information about the amount and timing of surface water resources. However, not every stream has a streamgage and decisions about water resources may need to be made in a watershed where there is n
SERAP: Modeling of Hydrologic Systems
A hydrologic model was developed as part of the Southeast Regional Assessment Project using the Precipitation Runoff Modeling System (PRMS), a deterministic, distributed-parameter, process-based system that simulates the effects of precipitation, temperature, and land use on basin hydrology. Streamflow and other components of the hydrologic cycle simulated by PRMS were used to inform other types o
USGS-USFS Partnership to Help Managers Evaluate Conservation Strategies for Aquatic Ecosystems Based on Future Climate Projections
The Southeastern U.S. spans broad ranges of physiographic settings and contains a wide variety of aquatic systems that provide habitat for hundreds of endemic aquatic species that pose interesting challenges and opportunities for managers of aquatic resources, particularly in the face of climate change. For example, the Southeast contains the southernmost populations of the eastern brook trout and