An investigation of the interrelationships among streamflow, lake level, climate and land use, with particular reference to the Battle River Basin, Alberta

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Date
1980Author
Herrington, Ross
Type
ThesisDegree Level
MastersMetadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Streamflow records exist for the Battle River near Ponoka,
Alberta from 1913 to 1931 and from 1966 to the present. Analysis
of these two periods has indicated that streamflow in the month of
April has remained constant while mean flows in the other months
have significantly decreased in the more recent period. In contrast,
streamflow in the same periods at Battleford, Saskatchewan has
tended to increase. This indicates that the regime of the Battle
River above Ponoka has changed.
From the analysis of monthly and daily precipitation
recorded at Lacombe and Wetaskiwin, Alberta, it was concluded that
April, May, and September flows for the Battle River near Ponoka
are probably responding to precipitation characteristics. No clear
relationship between precipitation and runoff is indicated for June,
July, and August.
From Alberta census data it has been demonstrated that
the amount of deforestation in the basin upstream from Ponoka has
probably had no significant effect on runoff. It has been postulated
that a decrease in summer runoff may be related to higher growing
season temperatures and the replacement of natural pasture by improved
pasture and field crops. This decrease may be related to
higher transpiration rates, increased infiltration potential and
increased soil moisture evaporation.
Many of the lakes in Central Alberta appear to be responding
to regional effects of climate and land use. Although poor correlations
exist between lake levels and Battle River flows, significant.
correlations in mean annual lake levels occur between Gull Lake and
Buffalo, Sylvan, Pigeon, and Wabamun Lakes in the 1956 to 1966
period and between Gull Lake and Sylvan Lake only in the 1967 to
1978 period. It has been postulated that the land use changes
influencing streamflow also are affecting lake levels. Variations
in elevation for Gull Lake (and possibly many of the other lakes in
the region) do not appear to be related to artificial drainage,
erosion of an outlet channel, buried valleys, bedrock fractures,
or seismic exploration.