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Soil erosion by water and sediment delivery to water bodies are major threats to soil and water resources around the globe. Under climate change, these processes are exacerbated because of an increase in extreme convective rainfalls in a warmer world. Many soil erosion models are based on the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) where the influence of climate is included in the rainfall erosivity factor R. In these models, projections of future rainfall erosivity are often impaired by the low spatio-temporal resolution of precipitation data generated by global or regional climate models. Convection-permitting climate simulations (CPS) have a high and to date unexploited potential for climate impact studies on soil erosion because of their high spatio-temporal resolution and their more accurate representation of heavy rainfall. Here we used the precipitation data generated by the convection-permitting model COSMO-CLM with a resolution of 3 km and 1h to calculate rainfall erosivity for central Europe in the past (1971-2000), present (2001-2019), near future (2031-2060) and far future (2071-2100). Our results show a high similarity between past modelled and measured rainfall erosivity. Furthermore, rainfall erosivity calculated from CPS precipitation data increased by up to 84% in the far future. This increase is much higher than previous estimates based on annual precipitation simulated with an ensemble of regional climate models. Thus, further studies are needed to estimate future rainfall erosivity and to assess the potential and limitations of using CPS for erosion modelling., The 28th IUGG General Assembly (IUGG2023) (Berlin 2023)

The study of soil erosion by water and the transfer of suspended solids from watersheds to rivers is crucial given the environmental and socio-economic issues with regards to growing human influence and the expected intensification of these processes under climate change. The objective of this thesis is to understand how rainfall variability controls the activation of different sediment source zones and the dynamics of hydro-sedimentary flows in two mesoscale Mediterranean catchments, i.e. the Claduègne (42 km², subcatchment of the Ardèche) and the Galabre (20 km2 , subcatchment of the Durance) which are members of the OZCAR critical zone research infrastructure.In the first part, the contributions of the erosion zones to sediment fluxes at the outlet of the Claduègne catchment were quantified at high temporal resolution with a low-cost sediment fingerprinting approach. Two sets of tracers (Color and X-ray fluorescence tracers) and three mixing models were compared to assess the sensitivity of estimated source contributions to these methodological choices. Marly-calcareous badlands were identified as the main sediment source. A similar approach carried out on the Galabre catchment area showed that badlands on molasses were the main source. The comparison of tracer sets and mixing models, showed that the methodological choices generated important differences. Thus, we suggest a multi-tracer-multi-model ensemble approach to obtain more robust results. The application of this approach to a large number of sediment samples highlighted the important within and between event variability in the contributions of different sediment sources, raising questions about the hydro-sedimentary processes that cause this variability.We hypothesized that this variability resulted from variable suspended sediment transit time distributions governed by the interplay of (i) catchment characteristics such as the location of different sources and how they are linked to the outlet (referred to as structural sediment connectivity) and (ii) the spatio-temporal characteristics of rain events that activate and impact transfer velocities (i.e. functional connectivity).Thus, in the second part, a distributed numerical model based on the resolution of Saint Venant equations coupled to a multi-source erosion module was used to evaluate the respective roles of structural and functional connectivity. Sensitivity analysis of the discretization and parameterization choices (i.e. threshold of contributing drainage area to identify the river network, values of roughness coefficients on hillslopes and the river) showed that the location of the sediment sources in the watershed was more important than the modeling choices when the parameters were limited to realistic range. A general temporal pattern of source contributions was observed. This was consistent with the results of the fingerprinting approach and the distribution of distances from the sources to the river and the outlet. The same pattern persists for different rainfall durations or intensities but became much more variable when bimodal hyetographs or spatially variable precipitation was applied. In addition, the location of the rainfall with respect to the sources determined the average contributions of the sources and thus differences between rainfall events.The two approaches, sediment fingerprinting and numerical modeling, were found to complement each other and their combined application has a high potential for understanding how interactions between structural and functional connectivity control the dynamics of sediment fluxes in mesoscale catchments.; L’étude des mécanismes d’érosion hydrique des sols et de transfert de matières en suspension (MES) des bassins versants vers les rivières revêt des enjeux environnementaux et socio-économiques prégnants face à une pression anthropique grandissante et au changement climatique. L'objectif de cette thèse est de comprendre comment la variabilité de la pluie contrôle l’activation de différentes zones sources de MES et la dynamique des flux hydro-sédimentaires dans deux bassins versants méditerranéens de méso-échelle, la Claduègne (42 km²) et le Galabre (20 km2) membres de l’infrastructure de recherche sur la zone critique OZCAR.Dans la première partie, les contributions des zones d'érosion aux MES à l’exutoire de la Claduègne ont été quantifiées à haute résolution temporelle avec une approche low-cost de traçage. Deux ensembles de traceurs (spectres colorimétriques et de fluorescence X) et trois modèles de mélange ont été comparés pour évaluer la sensibilité des contributions de sources à ces choix méthodologiques. Les principales sources de MES identifiées sont les zones de badlands marno-calcaires. Une approche similaire conduite sur le bassin versant du Galabre a mis en avant la dominance des badlands sur molasses dans les flux de MES. La comparaison des traceurs et des modèles de mélange, a montré que les choix méthodologiques génèrent des différences importantes, qui amènent à recommander une approche d’ensemble multi-traceurs-multi-modèle pour obtenir des résultats plus robustes. L’application de cette approche à un grand nombre d’échantillons de MES a souligné l’importante variabilité inter et intra évènements des contributions des différentes sources de MES, soulevant des questions sur les processus hydro-sédimentaires à l'origine de la variabilité des flux de MES.Le concept de connectivité hydrosédimentaire a été testé en posant l’hypothèse que cette variabilité résultait de distributions des temps de transfert des MES très variables contrôlées par i) les caractéristiques inhérentes aux bassins versants comme la localisation des différentes sources de MES et la façon dont elles sont liées à l’exutoire (i.e. connectivité structurelle) et ii) les caractéristiques spatio-temporelles des évènements pluvieux qui activent et impactent les vitesses de transfert (i.e. connectivité fonctionnelle). Ainsi, dans la deuxième partie, un modèle numérique distribué basé sur la résolution des équations de Saint Venant couplé à un module d’érosion multi-sources de MES, a été utilisé pour évaluer les rôles respectifs des connectivités structurelle et fonctionnelle. L’analyse de sensibilité aux choix de discrétisation et de paramétrisation (i.e. seuil d’aire drainée pour distinguer la rivière des versants, valeurs de coefficients de frottement sur les versants et la rivière) a montré que la localisation des sources de MES dans le bassin versant était plus importante que les choix de modélisation à condition que les paramètres soient dans une gamme réaliste et limitée. Un schéma général de réponse temporelle du bassin versant par type de sources a été observé, cohérent avec les résultats de l’approche de traçage et la distribution des distances des sources à la rivière et à l'exutoire. Ce même schéma persiste pour différentes durées ou intensités des précipitations mais devient beaucoup plus variable lorsque des hyétogrammes bimodaux ou des précipitations variables dans l'espace sont appliquées. En outre, la localisation de la pluie par rapport aux sources détermine les contributions moyennes des sources et donc les différences entre les événements de pluie.Les deux approches de traçage des MES et de modélisation numérique se sont avérées complémentaires et leur application combinée présente un fort potentiel pour comprendre comment les interactions entre connectivité structurelle et fonctionnelle contrôlent la dynamique des flux de MES aux exutoires de bassins versants de méso-échelle.

The study of soil erosion by water and the transfer of suspended solids from watersheds to rivers is crucial given the environmental and socio-economic issues with regards to growing human influence and the expected intensification of these processes under climate change. The objective of this thesis is to understand how rainfall variability controls the activation of different sediment source zones and the dynamics of hydro-sedimentary flows in two mesoscale Mediterranean catchments, i.e. the Claduègne (42 km², subcatchment of the Ardèche) and the Galabre (20 km2 , subcatchment of the Durance) which are members of the OZCAR critical zone research infrastructure.In the first part, the contributions of the erosion zones to sediment fluxes at the outlet of the Claduègne catchment were quantified at high temporal resolution with a low-cost sediment fingerprinting approach. Two sets of tracers (Color and X-ray fluorescence tracers) and three mixing models were compared to assess the sensitivity of estimated source contributions to these methodological choices. Marly-calcareous badlands were identified as the main sediment source. A similar approach carried out on the Galabre catchment area showed that badlands on molasses were the main source. The comparison of tracer sets and mixing models, showed that the methodological choices generated important differences. Thus, we suggest a multi-tracer-multi-model ensemble approach to obtain more robust results. The application of this approach to a large number of sediment samples highlighted the important within and between event variability in the contributions of different sediment sources, raising questions about the hydro-sedimentary processes that cause this variability.We hypothesized that this variability resulted from variable suspended sediment transit time distributions governed by the interplay of (i) catchment characteristics such as the location of different sources and how they are linked to the outlet (referred to as structural sediment connectivity) and (ii) the spatio-temporal characteristics of rain events that activate and impact transfer velocities (i.e. functional connectivity).Thus, in the second part, a distributed numerical model based on the resolution of Saint Venant equations coupled to a multi-source erosion module was used to evaluate the respective roles of structural and functional connectivity. Sensitivity analysis of the discretization and parameterization choices (i.e. threshold of contributing drainage area to identify the river network, values of roughness coefficients on hillslopes and the river) showed that the location of the sediment sources in the watershed was more important than the modeling choices when the parameters were limited to realistic range. A general temporal pattern of source contributions was observed. This was consistent with the results of the fingerprinting approach and the distribution of distances from the sources to the river and the outlet. The same pattern persists for different rainfall durations or intensities but became much more variable when bimodal hyetographs or spatially variable precipitation was applied. In addition, the location of the rainfall with respect to the sources determined the average contributions of the sources and thus differences between rainfall events.The two approaches, sediment fingerprinting and numerical modeling, were found to complement each other and their combined application has a high potential for understanding how interactions between structural and functional connectivity control the dynamics of sediment fluxes in mesoscale catchments.; L’étude des mécanismes d’érosion hydrique des sols et de transfert de matières en suspension (MES) des bassins versants vers les rivières revêt des enjeux environnementaux et socio-économiques prégnants face à une pression anthropique grandissante et au changement climatique. L'objectif de cette thèse est de comprendre comment la variabilité de la pluie contrôle l’activation de différentes zones sources de MES et la dynamique des flux hydro-sédimentaires dans deux bassins versants méditerranéens de méso-échelle, la Claduègne (42 km²) et le Galabre (20 km2) membres de l’infrastructure de recherche sur la zone critique OZCAR.Dans la première partie, les contributions des zones d'érosion aux MES à l’exutoire de la Claduègne ont été quantifiées à haute résolution temporelle avec une approche low-cost de traçage. Deux ensembles de traceurs (spectres colorimétriques et de fluorescence X) et trois modèles de mélange ont été comparés pour évaluer la sensibilité des contributions de sources à ces choix méthodologiques. Les principales sources de MES identifiées sont les zones de badlands marno-calcaires. Une approche similaire conduite sur le bassin versant du Galabre a mis en avant la dominance des badlands sur molasses dans les flux de MES. La comparaison des traceurs et des modèles de mélange, a montré que les choix méthodologiques génèrent des différences importantes, qui amènent à recommander une approche d’ensemble multi-traceurs-multi-modèle pour obtenir des résultats plus robustes. L’application de cette approche à un grand nombre d’échantillons de MES a souligné l’importante variabilité inter et intra évènements des contributions des différentes sources de MES, soulevant des questions sur les processus hydro-sédimentaires à l'origine de la variabilité des flux de MES.Le concept de connectivité hydrosédimentaire a été testé en posant l’hypothèse que cette variabilité résultait de distributions des temps de transfert des MES très variables contrôlées par i) les caractéristiques inhérentes aux bassins versants comme la localisation des différentes sources de MES et la façon dont elles sont liées à l’exutoire (i.e. connectivité structurelle) et ii) les caractéristiques spatio-temporelles des évènements pluvieux qui activent et impactent les vitesses de transfert (i.e. connectivité fonctionnelle). Ainsi, dans la deuxième partie, un modèle numérique distribué basé sur la résolution des équations de Saint Venant couplé à un module d’érosion multi-sources de MES, a été utilisé pour évaluer les rôles respectifs des connectivités structurelle et fonctionnelle. L’analyse de sensibilité aux choix de discrétisation et de paramétrisation (i.e. seuil d’aire drainée pour distinguer la rivière des versants, valeurs de coefficients de frottement sur les versants et la rivière) a montré que la localisation des sources de MES dans le bassin versant était plus importante que les choix de modélisation à condition que les paramètres soient dans une gamme réaliste et limitée. Un schéma général de réponse temporelle du bassin versant par type de sources a été observé, cohérent avec les résultats de l’approche de traçage et la distribution des distances des sources à la rivière et à l'exutoire. Ce même schéma persiste pour différentes durées ou intensités des précipitations mais devient beaucoup plus variable lorsque des hyétogrammes bimodaux ou des précipitations variables dans l'espace sont appliquées. En outre, la localisation de la pluie par rapport aux sources détermine les contributions moyennes des sources et donc les différences entre les événements de pluie.Les deux approches de traçage des MES et de modélisation numérique se sont avérées complémentaires et leur application combinée présente un fort potentiel pour comprendre comment les interactions entre connectivité structurelle et fonctionnelle contrôlent la dynamique des flux de MES aux exutoires de bassins versants de méso-échelle.

Numerous studies investigated the influence of abiotic (meteorological conditions) and biotic factors (tree characteristics) on stemflow generation. Although these studies identified the variables that influence stemflow volumes in simply structured forests, the combination of tree characteristics that allows a robust prediction of stemflow volumes in species-rich forests is not well known. Many hydrological applications, however, require at least a rough estimate of stemflow volumes based on the characteristics of a forest stand. The need for robust predictions of stemflow motivated us to investigate the relationships between tree characteristics and stemflow volumes in a species-rich tropical forest located in central Panama. Based on a sampling setup consisting of ten rainfall collectors, 300 throughfall samplers and 60 stemflow collectors and cumulated data comprising 26 rain events, we derive three main findings. Firstly, stemflow represents a minor hydrological component in the studied 1-ha forest patch (1.0% of cumulated rainfall). Secondly, in the studied species-rich forest, single tree characteristics are only weakly related to stemflow volumes. The influence of multiple tree parameters (e.g. crown diameter, presence of large epiphytes and inclination of branches) and the dependencies among these parameters require a multivariate approach to understand the generation of stemflow. Thirdly, predicting stemflow in species-rich forests based on tree parameters is a difficult task. Although our best model can capture the variation in stemflow to some degree, a critical validation reveals that the model cannot provide robust predictions of stemflow. A reanalysis of data from previous studies in species-rich forests corroborates this finding. Based on these results and considering that for most hydrological applications, stemflow is only one parameter among others to estimate, we advocate using the base model, i.e. the mean of the stemflow data, to quantify stemflow volumes for a given study area. Studies in species-rich forests that wish to obtain predictions of stemflow based on tree parameters probably need to conduct a much more extensive sampling than currently implemented by most studies. Copyright (c) 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A comprehensive hydrometeorological dataset is presented spanning the period 1 January 201131 December 2014 to improve the understanding of the hydrological processes leading to flash floods and the relation between rainfall, runoff, erosion and sediment transport in a mesoscale catchment (Auzon, 116 km(2)) of the Mediterranean region. Badlands are present in the Auzon catchment and well connected to high-gradient channels of bedrock rivers which promotes the transfer of suspended solids downstream. The number of observed variables, the various sensors involved (both in situ and remote) and the space-time resolution (similar to km(2), similar to min) of this comprehensive dataset make it a unique contribution to research communities focused on hydrometeorology, surface hydrology and erosion. Given that rainfall is highly variable in space and time in this region, the observation system enables assessment of the hydrological response to rainfall fields. Indeed, (i) rainfall data are provided by rain gauges (both a research network of 21 rain gauges with a 5 min time step and an operational network of 10 rain gauges with a 5 min or 1 h time step), S-band Doppler dual-polarization radars (1 km(2), 5 min resolution), disdrometers (16 sensors working at 30 s or 1 min time step) and Micro Rain Radars (5 sensors, 100m height resolution). Additionally, during the special observation period (SOP-1) of the HyMeX (Hydrological Cycle in the Mediterranean Experiment) project, two X-band radars provided precipitation measurements at very fine spatial and temporal scales (1 ha, 5 min). (ii) Other meteorological data are taken from the operational surface weather observation stations of Meteo-France (including 2m air temperature, atmospheric pressure, 2 m relative humidity, 10m wind speed and direction, global radiation) at the hourly time resolution (six stations in the region of interest). (iii) The monitoring of surface hydrology and suspended sediment is multi-scale and based on nested catchments. Three hydrometric stations estimate water discharge at a 2-10 min time resolution. Two of these stations also measure additional physico-chemical variables (turbidity, temperature, conductivity) and water samples are collected automatically during floods, allowing further geochemical characterization of water and suspended solids. Two experimental plots monitor overland flow and erosion at 1 min time resolution on a hillslope with vineyard. A network of 11 sensors installed in the intermittent hydrographic network continuously measures water level and water temperature in headwater subcatchments (from 0.17 to 116 km(2)) at a time resolution of 2-5 min. A network of soil moisture sensors enables the continuous measurement of soil volumetric water content at 20 min time resolution at 9 sites. Additionally, concomitant observations (soil moisture measurements and stream gauging) were performed during floods between 2012 and 2014. Finally, this dataset is considered appropriate for understanding the rainfall variability in time and space at fine scales, improving areal rainfall estimations and progressing in distributed hydrological and erosion modelling., Postprints der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe, 671