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Pomona College

Publication Date

Spring 2024

Program Name

Ecuador: Comparative Ecology and Conservation

Abstract

Andean headwater streams play a crucial role in the provisioning of ecosystem services and supplying water to downstream communities. This study sought to analyze trends in hydrological patterns in the páramo of the southwestern aspect of Volcán Chimborazo in central Ecuador, as well as to provide a more complete survey of the fluvial network given the lack of existing data and its importance in water resource management. Measurements of stream elevation, grade of slope, water temperature, pH, width, depth, turbidity, velocity, and discharge, as well as geomorphological characteristics of catchments such as slope and permeability, were taken at 19 sites across eight streams with flowing water and compared with climate data from the 19-day period. Observed changes in the physicochemical characteristics of streams, especially elevated water temperature and lack of climatic influence on discharge, reflected a diminished degree of glacial influence on streams, likely due to rapid recession. True kryal streams no longer exist in the area, and the peak water threshold of glaciers may have been reached. More variable precipitation patterns and the transformation of multiple perennial streams into intermittent or ephemeral streams, even during the wet season, support evidence of a changing hydrological regime, which increases pressure on water availability in the sub-basin for agricultural and domestic uses and leaves communities more vulnerable to flooding. Climate change will continue to impact the region’s fluvial network, and more widespread hydrometeorological monitoring is needed to prepare localities for either decreased or more variable streamflow.

Disciplines

Climate | Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment | Fresh Water Studies | Glaciology

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