Article
Engineering, Environmental
Christine M. Lee, Erin L. Hestir, Nicholas Tufillaro, Brendan Palmieri, Shawn Acuna, Amye Osti, Brian A. Bergamaschi, Ted Sommer
Summary: This study used satellite data and in-situ sensor measurements to study water quality conditions in the San Francisco Estuary and its upstream delta, and evaluated the impact of the Gates action on turbidity in the Suisun Marsh.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN WATER RESOURCES ASSOCIATION
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Siyu Qi, Minxue He, Zhaojun Bai, Zhi Ding, Prabhjot Sandhu, Francis Chung, Peyman Namadi, Yu Zhou, Raymond Hoang, Bradley Tom, Jamie Anderson, Dong Min Roh
Summary: This study develops and applies two deep learning models to estimate the spatial and temporal variations of salinity in water resources management. The results demonstrate that these models outperform the baseline models at both daily and hourly scales.
Article
Computer Science, Interdisciplinary Applications
Peyman Namadi, Minxue He, Prabhjot Sandhu
Summary: This study develops four types of machine learning models to emulate salinity-constituent conversion. The results show that machine learning models can provide better simulations than regression models, with the Random Forest model performing the best.
EARTH SCIENCE INFORMATICS
(2022)
Article
Computer Science, Interdisciplinary Applications
Peyman Namadi, Minxue He, Prabhjot Sandhu
Summary: Salinity plays a crucial role in estuarine environments, affecting water quality, ecosystem health, and the ability to meet various human and environmental demands. This study compares four machine learning models to estimate ion concentrations based on electrical conductivity (EC) measurements. The artificial neural network (ANN) model outperforms the others, especially for ions with strong non-linear relationships with EC. These ML models exhibit higher accuracy than traditional parametric regression equations in estimating ion concentrations. The reliability of the ANN model is evaluated using the K-fold cross-validation method, and an interactive web-based dashboard is developed for simulating ion levels in the Delta.
JOURNAL OF HYDROINFORMATICS
(2023)
Article
Water Resources
Han Sang Kim, Minxue He, Prabhjot Sandhu
Summary: This study developed a machine-learning model to simulate suspended sediment concentration (SSC) in water. Comparison with field observations showed that the LSTM model outperformed the traditional process-based model in terms of estimation accuracy. The results suggest that the LSTM model has the potential to supplement the operational process-based model in water resources planning and management.
HYDROLOGICAL PROCESSES
(2022)
Article
Geography, Physical
Irina Delusina, Scott W. Starratt, Kenneth L. Verosub
Summary: The study reveals that peat formation in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta of California occurred under relatively dry conditions in a freshwater environment, influenced by terrigenous material transported by rivers. This finding has crucial implications for the remediation and restoration of the delta ecosystem.
QUATERNARY INTERNATIONAL
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Jason L. Hassrick, Josh Korman, Wim J. Kimmerer, Edward S. Gross, Lenny F. Grimaldo, Calvin Lee, Andrew A. Schultz
Summary: Productivity of the food web supporting small pelagic fishes in the San Francisco Estuary is low, particularly in the low-salinity zone. It is hypothesized that freshwater flow increases the subsidy of a key copepod prey species into the low-salinity zone. A box-model approach combining modeling and analysis estimated the magnitude of this subsidy and its dependence on freshwater flow. The subsidy increased with freshwater flow, but achieving a detectable net gain may be difficult and costly.
ESTUARIES AND COASTS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Joseph K. Fackrell, Tamara E. C. Kraus, Megan B. Young, Carol Kendall, Sara Peek
Summary: River deltas are increasingly impacted by human inputs of nitrogen, which can lead to harmful phenomena. A study on the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta in California used a multi-tracer approach to examine nitrogen sources and processes. Results showed that the Sacramento River and its distributaries primarily received nitrogen in the form of NH4+ from treated wastewater effluent, and there were significant biogeochemical processes that affected the downstream transport of nitrogen. The study also highlighted the diversity in nitrogen dynamics and the utility of a multi-tracer approach in complex river delta environments.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Fisheries
Brock M. Huntsman, Frederick Feyrer, Matthew J. Young, James A. Hobbs, Shawn Acuna, Joseph E. Kirsch, Brian Mahardja, Swee Teh
Summary: In tidal lakes of California's Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, largemouth bass recruitment dynamics are influenced by factors such as growth, nutrition, and overwinter starvation. However, habitat characteristics, such as submerged aquatic vegetation, rather than overwinter mortality, shape the population structure of largemouth bass in this region.
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF FISHERIES AND AQUATIC SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Shruti Khanna, Jereme W. Gaeta, J. Louise Conrad, Edward S. Gross
Summary: This study evaluated the efficacy of fluridone treatment in controlling invasive submerged aquatic vegetation. The amount of herbicide applied and local current speed were found to affect treatment efficacy, while multiple years of treatment did not improve the results. The study highlights the importance of careful site selection and the development of alternative treatment methods for dynamic estuarine systems.
BIOLOGICAL INVASIONS
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Brian Mahardja, Vanessa Tobias, Shruti Khanna, Lara Mitchell, Peggy Lehman, Ted Sommer, Larry Brown, Steve Culberson, J. Louise Conrad
Summary: The study found that pelagic fishes in the San Francisco Estuary consistently decline during droughts, but exhibit a considerable amount of resilience in the subsequent wet years; however, not all wet years result in full recovery, leading to permanently lower baseline numbers for some pelagic fishes. In contrast, littoral fishes seem to be more resistant to drought and may even increase in occurrence during dry years.
ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Civil
Siyu Qi, Zhaojun Bai, Zhi Ding, Nimal Jayasundara, Minxue He, Prabhjot Sandhu, Sanjaya Seneviratne, Tariq Kadir
Summary: The research proposes three major enhancements for estimating salinity levels in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, including a novel multitask ANN architecture, replacing predetermined preprocessing, and further optimizing the multitask ANN design and training. These enhancements substantially improve the efficiency and capacity of current ANN models in the Delta.
JOURNAL OF WATER RESOURCES PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT
(2021)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
J. V. Hopper, P. D. Pratt, A. M. Reddy, K. F. McCue, S. O. Rivas, E. D. Grosholz
Summary: The study found that weevils showed a positive response to increased nitrogen content in water hyacinth, while high river flow and low temperatures had negative impacts on their performance. Additionally, low genetic diversity and population genetic structure were observed in N. bruchi in the Delta region.
BIOLOGICAL CONTROL
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Nick Rasmussen, J. Louise Conrad, Heather Green, Shruti Khanna, Hailey Wright, Krista Hoffmann, Jeffrey Caudill, Patricia Gilbert
Summary: Estuaries are important ecosystems that are threatened by non-native invasive species, including submersed aquatic vegetation. Herbicides are commonly used to control this vegetation, but most evaluations have been done in lentic systems, not estuaries. A study in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta found that a widely used herbicide was not effective in controlling vegetation in this estuarine ecosystem. This highlights the need for tailored management tools for estuaries.
ESTUARIES AND COASTS
(2022)
Article
Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences
Minxue He
Summary: This study assesses the potential changes in precipitation and temperature in California's Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta in the coming century. The findings suggest a further increase in temperature, with a strong seasonal pattern. The number of wet days is projected to decrease, but the number of very wet and extremely wet days will increase. These changes pose challenges to the water supply and ecosystems of the Delta.