National Research Networks Facilitate Mutually Beneficial Research at ARS Locations

Abstract:

A major benefit of participation in research networks such as the Long Term Agroecosystem Research (LTAR) network is that multidisciplinary research on a broad range of topics is facilitated. The interaction between the Agricultural Research Service long-term experimental watersheds and LTAR exemplifies this. At the Reynolds Creek Experimental Watershed (RCEW), this is further enhanced by participation in the Critical Zone Observatory (CZO) network. The RCEW has a long history (55 years) of experimentation, modeling and monitoring emphasizing hydrologic processes, which are inevitably related to biogeochemical processes, but rarely linked directly in RCEW research. New research with the Reynolds Creek CZO (RC CZO) emphasizes biogeochemistry. The background research and infrastructure at the RCEW provides an ideal platform for that research. At the same time, RC CZO products are enabling ARS to extend its research activities. We highlight three examples: (i) forcing data sets used to facilitate physical modeling of hydrologic and biogeochemical processes, (ii) linkage of hydrology and geophyscis to extend our understanding of subsurface processes, and (iii) climate/elevation linkages to ecosystem productivity, which are closely related in water limited environments such as the RCEW. The addition of the RCEW to the LTAR is further extended ARS capabilities. For example, the RCEW is now monitoring net carbon balance and productivity at sites along an elevation/climatic gradient. The addition of LTAR research enhances that work by extending the climate gradient and introducing management and land surface change effects. We anticipate that these interactions will grow and that cross-site experiments will be initiated as the results begin to accumulate.