Tropical forests generate rainfall worth billions

A new study led by the University of Leeds has put a monetary value on one of forests

A framework for understanding the effects of subsurface agricultural drainage on downstream flows

Understanding controls on streamflow volume and magnitude is important to water resource management applications, such as critical water and transportation structure design and floodplain mapping. Changes in land use and agricultural practices, such as subsurface agricultural drainage, may be contributing to changes in streamflow characteristics. Subsurface agricultural drainage, also known as tile drainage, is the practice of installing drains in the subsurface of agricultural fields to improve productivity. Because of the complex interactions between subsurface drainage systems, precipitation, local soil conditions, and land management practices, it is difficult to determine how subsurface agricultural drainage affects downstream flow. Previously developed subsurface agricultural drainage conceptual models under dry, saturated, and winter conditions are summarized, and current literature on the effects of subsurface agricultural drainage on downstream flows, focusing on peak flow, non-event flow, and total flow to develop frameworks for discussing these systems is compiled.The effects that subsurface drainage has on hydrologic...

Earth's storage of water in soil, lakes and rivers is dwindling. And it's especially bad for farming

University of Melbourne hydrology professor Dongryeol Ryu and his collaborator Ki-Weon Seo were on a train to visit Ryu's family when they found something startling. Stopped at a station for technical issues, Seo had pulled out his computer to pass the time with some work when a result popped up in their data that Ryu could hardly believe: It suggested a "remarkable" amount of Earth's water stored on land had been depleted.

FARMing with Data: OpenET Launches new Tool for Farmers and Ranchers - NASA

A NASA and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)-supported research and development team is making it easier for farmers and ranchers to manage their water resources.

OpenET – Filling the Biggest Gap in Water Data