Regolith Water in Zero-Order Chaparral and Perennial Grass Watersheds Four Decades after Vegetation Conversion Tanja N. Williamson, Brent D. Newman, Robert C. Graham, and Peter J. Shouse Vadose Zone Journal 2004 3: 3: 1007-1016 doi:10.2136/vzj2004.1007
Tanja N Williamson, PhD
eSoil-water scientist experienced in natural and human-affected systems, including links with vegetation and landscape dynamics. Research interest spans landscape and water-resource effects of agriculture, mining, development, and climate change. Published research supported by OSMRE, USDA, NSF, USEPA, USGS, state agencies, and universities.
Biography
Recent and ongoing research includes:
- Hydrologic modeling of mixed land-use watersheds
- the importance of land-cover change to streamflow magnitude, variability, and seasonality
- developing decision-support systems that inform resource managers
- Incorporation of soil-physical data into hydrologic modeling
- Comparison of lab and field measurements to modeled soil properties
- Sensitivity of hydrologic models to changes in soil properties
- Simulation of hydrologic response from landscape reconstruction
- Temporal variability of soil-water storage and movement
- Agricultural resilience under projected climate change
- Delineation of ephemeral and intermittent streams in Appalachia
- Conservation management in agricultural landscapes
- Identifying sediment source
- Linking soil-water storage with the stream environment
- Extent and characteristics of tile-drains (sub-surface agricultural drainage)
Education
Ph.D. Soil and Water Science (Pedology), University of California, Riverside, 1999
M.S. Earth Science (Geomorphology), University of California, Riverside, 1995
B.S. Geoscience, The Pennsylvania State University, 1992 (includes PSU Field Camp)
Professional Experience
U.S. Geological Survey
- Research Hydrologist, Kentucky Water Science Center (2010 to present)
- Hydrologist, Kentucky Water Science Center (2006 to 2010)
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Kentucky (2016 to present)
Quinte Conservation, Belleville, ON, Canada (2006)
Loyalist College, Belleville, ON, Canada (2004-2005)
University of the Pacific, Stockton, CA, Geosciences (1999-2004)
Science and Products
Date published: April 20, 2020
Status: Active Using machine learning to map topographic-soil & densely-patterned sub-surface agricultural drainage (tile drains) from satellite imagery
In the mid-1800s, tile-drains were installed in poorly-drained soils of topographic lows as water management to protect cropland during wet conditions; consequently, estimations of tile-drain location have been based on soil series. Most tile drains are in the Midwest, however each state has farms with tile and tile-drain density has increased in the last decade. Where tile drains quickly...
Contacts: Tanja N Williamson, PhD
Attribution: Community for Data Integration (CDI)
Date published: March 25, 2020
Status: Active Agriculture Best Management Practices: Quantification of In-Stream Phosphorus and Sediment Storage and Transport - Linking Land Use and Landscape Best Management Practices with Downstream Transport in Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Priority Watersheds
As part of a coordinated effort with University of Minnesota (UMN) and US Forest Service (USFS), USGS will conduct sediment and phosphorus source tracking in two agricultural watersheds -- specifically corn and soybean production -- of Black Creek and Plum Creek, tributaries to the Maumee and Fox Rivers, respectively.
Contacts: Tanja N Williamson, PhD
Attribution: Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Cost Center
Date published: April 10, 2019
Status: Active Environmental Effects of Agricultural Practices
As agricultural land in the Minnesota River Basin is retired, tile drains are removed or broken and riparian corridors are planted to reduce runoff. Early studies saw decreased sediment and nitrogen and improved biological indicators but no significant changes in phosphorus. This project continues to investigate the linkages...
Attribution: Upper Midwest Water Science Center
Date published: July 29, 2016
Status: Active Simulation of Soil-Water Availability
How much water is stored in the soil? Does agricultural management affect this? Will this change if temperatures increase and plants need more water?
In order to answer this question, we have focused on the differences in soil physical properties under four land management types (forest, pasture, traditional agriculture, and conservation agriculture) and whether these differences...
Contacts: Tanja N Williamson, PhD
Date published: July 12, 2016
Status: Active Unmanned Aircraft Systems
The USGS Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Water Science Center has become a regional leader in using Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), also known as drones, for mapping and hazards analysis.
Contacts: Shawn Meyer, Tanja N Williamson, PhD
Year Published: 2021
Workflow for using unmanned aircraft systems and traditional geospatial data to delineate agricultural drainage tiles at edge-of-field sites
Managing nutrient and sediment runoff from fields that drain to the Great Lakes is key to mitigating harmful algal blooms. Implementation of best management practices on agricultural land is considered a critical step to improving water quality in these streams, however the effect of these best management practices is difficult to quantify. The...
Webber, J. Jeremy; Williamson, Tanja N.Attribution: Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Water Science Center
View Citation
Webber, J.J., and Williamson, T.N., 2021, Workflow for using unmanned aircraft systems and traditional geospatial data to delineate agricultural drainage tiles at edge-of-field sites: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2021–5013, 18 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20215013.
Year Published: 2021
The Robinson Forest environmental monitoring network: Long‐term evaluation of streamflow and precipitation quantity and stream‐water and bulk deposition chemistry in eastern Kentucky watersheds
The University of Kentucky (U KY) has owned Robinson Forest (37.460723° N, 83.158598° W) since 1923, conducting experiments crucial to understanding the environmental effects of land management in the region. Part of the management of Robinson Forest has been collection of environmental data, including precipitation quantity, bulk‐deposition...
Sena, Kenton; Barton, Chris D.; Williamson, Tanja N.Attribution: Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Water Science Center
Year Published: 2021
Climate change impacts and strategies for adaptation for water resource management in Indiana
Changes to water resources are critical to all sectors of the economy. Climate change will affect the timing and quantity of water available in the environment as well as have an adverse effect on the quality of that water. Floods, droughts, and changing patterns of water scarcity—when water is not available in sufficient enough quantities or of a...
Cherkauer, Keith A.; Bowling, Laura; Byun, Kyuhyun; Chaubey, Indrajeet; Chin, Natalie; Ficklin, Darren; Hamlet, Alan; Kines, Stephen; Lee, Charlotte; Neupane, Ram; Pignotti, Garett; Rahman, Sanoar; Singh, Sarmistha; Valappil-Femeena, Pandara; Williamson, Tanja N.Attribution: Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Water Science Center
Year Published: 2020
Monthly suspended-sediment apportionment for a western Lake Erie agricultural tributary
Black Creek, a headwater to the Maumee River and western Lake Erie, is an agricultural basin with a mix of cropland (66%), pasture (19%), and forest (7%) linked by a road network to the rural community. Suspended sediment was collected monthly during the 2018 water year for the main stem and two sub-basins using in-situ, passive samplers that...
Williamson, Tanja N.; Dobrowolski, Edward G.; Gellis, Allen; Sabitov, Timur; Gorman Sanisaca, Lillian
Year Published: 2020
Hydrologic modeling to examine the influence of the forestry reclamation approach and climate change on mineland hydrology
Forests in the Appalachian region of the U.S. are threatened by a variety of short- and long-term pressures, including climate change, invasive species, and resource extraction. Surface mining for coal is one of the most important drivers of land-use change in the region, reducing native forest cover, causing forest fragmentation, eliminating...
Williamson, Tanja N.; Barton, Chris D.Attribution: Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Water Science Center
Year Published: 2020
Overall results and key findings on the use of UAV visible-color, multispectral, and thermal infrared imagery to map agricultural drainage pipes
Effective and efficient methods are needed to map agricultural subsurface drainage systems. Visible-color (VIS-C), multispectral (MS), and thermal infrared (TIR) imagery obtained by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) may provide a means for determining drainage pipe locations. Aerial surveys using a UAV with VIS-C, MS, and TIR cameras were conducted...
Allred, Barry J.; Martinez, Luis; Fessehazion, Melake; Rouse, Greg; Williamson, Tanja N.; Wishart, DeBonne; Koganti, Triven; Freeland, Robert; Eash, Neal; Batschelet, Adam; Featheringill, RobertAttribution: Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Water Science Center
Year Published: 2019
Tracking phosphorus and sediment sources and transport from fields and channels in Great Lakes Restoration Initiative priority watersheds
A multi-agency, integrated series of studies were initiated in 2017 under the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) by the U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Forest Service, and the University of Minnesota to quantify the source, downstream travel time, and storage of particulate-bound phosphorus and sediment in agricultural tributaries to the Great...
Williamson, Tanja N.; Fitzpatrick, Faith A.; Karwan, Diana L.; Kolka, Randall K.; Dobrowolski, Edward G.; Blount, James; Pawlowski, Ethan D.View Citation
Williamson, T.N., F.A. Fitzpatrick, D.L. Karwan, R.K. Kolka, E.G. Dobrowolski, J.D. Blount, et al. 2019. Tracking Phosphorus and Sediment Sources and Transport from Fields and Channels in Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Priority Watersheds. In: C. S. P.-P. Chair, editor Federal Interagency Sedimentation and Hydrologic Modeling Conference. Reno, NV. https://www.sedhyd.org/2019/openconf/modules/request.php?module=oc_program&action=view.php&id=79&file=1/79.pdf.
Year Published: 2019
Reduced soil macropores and forest cover reduce warm-season baseflow below ecological thresholds in the upper Delaware River Basin
We examined the impacts of changes in land cover and soil conditions on the flow regime of the upper Delaware River Basin using the Water Availability Tool for Environmental Resources (WATER). We simulated flows for two periods, circa 1600 and 1940, at three sites using the same temperature and precipitation conditions: the East Branch (EB), West...
Endreny, Theodore A.; Kwon, Peter Yong Seuk; Williamson, Tanja N.; Evans, Richard
Year Published: 2019
Delineation of tile-drain networks using thermal and multispectral imagery—Implications for water quantity and quality differences from paired edge-of-field sites
As part of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, paired edge-of-field sites were established in high priority subwatersheds to assess the effectiveness of agricultural management practices. One pairing was in Black Creek, a tributary to the Maumee River and Lake Erie. These fields were paired because of similarity in soils, topography, and...
Williamson, Tanja N.; Dobrowolski, Edward G.; Meyer, Shawn M.; Frey, Jeffrey W.; Allred, Barry J.
Year Published: 2019
Sensitivity of streamflow simulation in the Delaware River Basin to forecasted land‐cover change for 2030 and 2060
In order to simulate the potential effect of forecasted land‐cover change on streamflow and water availability, there has to be confidence that the hydrologic model used is sensitive to small changes in land cover (<10%) and that this land‐cover change exceeds the inherent uncertainty in forecasted conditions. To investigate this, a 26‐year...
Williamson, Tanja N.; Claggett, Peter R.
Year Published: 2017
Multiple-source tracking: Investigating sources of pathogens, nutrients, and sediment in the Upper Little River Basin, Kentucky, water years 2013–14
The South Fork Little River (SFLR) and the North Fork Little River (NFLR) are two major headwater tributaries that flow into the Little River just south of Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Both tributaries are included in those water bodies in Kentucky and across the Nation that have been reported with declining water quality. Each tributary has been...
Crain, Angela S.; Cherry, Mac A.; Williamson, Tanja N.; Bunch, Aubrey R.Attribution: Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Water Science Center
View Citation
Crain, A.S., Cherry, M.A., Williamson, T.N., and Bunch, A.R., 2017, Multiple-source tracking—Investigating sources of pathogens, nutrients, and sediment in the Upper Little River Basin, Kentucky, water years 2013–14: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2017–5086, 60 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20175086.
Year Published: 2017
Water quality and natural resources in the Green River Basin
No abstract available.
Lee, Brad D.; Williamson, Tanja N.; Crain, Angela S.Attribution: Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Water Science Center
View Citation
Lee, B.D., Williamson, T.N., and Crain, A.S., 2017, Water quality and natural resources in the Green River Basin, in Lee, B.D., Carey, D.I., and Jones, A.L., eds., Water in Kentucky: Natural History, Communities, and Conservation: University Press of Kentucky, p. 133-150.
Pre-USGS Publications
Effects of a chaparral-to-grass conversion on soil physical and hydrologic properties after four decades Tanja N. Williamson, Robert C. Graham, and Peter J. Shouse Geoderma 2004 123: 1-2: 99-114
Pedogenesis–Terrain Links in Zero-Order Watersheds after Chaparral to Grass Vegetation Conversion Tanja N. Williamson, Paul E. Gessler, Peter J. Shouse, and Robert C. Graham Soil Science Society of America Journal 2006 70: 6: 2065-2074 doi:10.2136/sssaj2003.0316
Identification of stolen rare palm trees by soil morphological and mineralogical properties Brad D. Lee, Tanja N. Williamson, and Robert C. Graham Journal of Forensic Science 2002 47: 190-194
Forensic soils: An integrative laboratory exercise for Introductory Soil Science Brad D. Lee, Tanja N. Williamson, Robert C. Graham, and Lanny J. Lund Journal of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Education 1998 27:110-112