The analysis of a territory’s climatic water balance dynamics against the background of climate c... more The analysis of a territory’s climatic water balance dynamics against the background of climate change is a key component for increasing water resource management efficiency. The present study aims to analyse climatic water balance (CWB) dynamics in Romania’s most arid region, Dobrogea, located in the southeast. The study covers the 1961–2009 period, and is based on annual and seasonal CWB values (mm), provided by nine weather stations located throughout the region. The study, based on statistical and GIS techniques, is divided into two main stages, both carried out at annual and seasonal scales–trend analysis using the Mann-Kendall test, the Sen’s slope method, and CWB value distribution type analysis. In order to identify the probabilistic types of distributions, four mathematical models were identified–Pearson, Gamma, Chi-Squared and Wakeby, statistically verified with the P-P Plot, Q-Q Plot and Probabillity Difference Graph (PDG) curve tests. Thus, in terms of trends, the results showed a deficit increase especially at the northern stations, mainly for annual values (with a peak in the northeast, where CWB rates reached –3.2 mm/yr). While general CWB declines occurred in winter, spring and summer, apparent decrease rates were found in the northern region (highest negative rates–summer, northwest, –1.4 mm/yr). Autumn is an exception, due to overall increase rates which peaked in the southwest (2.3 mm/yr). However, the entire trend analysis indicated a general lack of statistical significance. The distribution type histogram analysis showed that, annually and seasonally, deficit values are generally dominant (more noticeable in the northern region), except for the winter season, mainly characterized by surplus intervals. Thus, the results suggest a climatic water deficit increase over the last five decades especially in northern Dobrogea, which signals the need for a spatial prioritization targeting a more efficient water resource management, necessary first and foremost for increasing regional agricultural system productivity.
Carpathian journal of earth and environmental sciences
This paper attempts to analyze the potential relationship between the climatic water deficit of t... more This paper attempts to analyze the potential relationship between the climatic water deficit of the vegetation period of corn (April-September) and its agricultural yield, recorded in the Dobrogea plateau between 1990 and 2003. The data included in this study comprise spatialized climatic water deficit values (mm) (computed as the difference between precipitation and potential evapotranspiration), obtained through interpolation methods based on ten regional weather stations and corn crop yield data (t/ha/year) in 99 territorial administrative units, almost entirely overlapping the analyzed geographical region. The study essentially aims to identify the statistical connection between the independent variable (climatic water deficit) and the dependent one (agricultural yield) over 14 years - to this end, a series of detailed statistical correlations were applied to both variables. The results showed a statistically significant relationship especially in the plateau’s central-southern ...
Journal of environmental health science & engineering, Jan 6, 2014
In the past few decades, global climate change has accentuated the intensification of aridization... more In the past few decades, global climate change has accentuated the intensification of aridization in South-Western Romania, with direct and indirect consequences on the quality of forest ecosystems. In addition to qualitative deterioration, the quantitative changes brought about by intensive anthropic deforestation have created the conditions for a decline in the size of forest areas on vast tracts of land. The paper aims to analyze the qualitative and quantitative changes in the forest ecosystems in South-Western Romania, changes due to the synergic context of the global climate changes and the anthropic pressures of the past three decades. In order to capture the evolution of aridization in the study area, specific aridization indexes have been calculated, such as the De Martonne index and the UNEP aridity index. 1990 and 2011 satellite images have been used in order to quantify the qualitative changes. The results obtained indicated that, in the past two decades, the quality of t...
Journal of environmental health science & engineering, Jan 24, 2013
The report released by the Intergovernmental Committee for Climate Change indicates that Romania ... more The report released by the Intergovernmental Committee for Climate Change indicates that Romania ranks among the top seven countries in Europe that would be strongly impacted by aridity in the next few years, with climate changes consisting in a rise of average annual temperatures by as much as 5°C. The research work was conducted in the South of the Oltenia South-Western Development Region, where more than 700,000 hectares of farmland is impacted by aridification, more than 100,000 hectares among them impacted by aridity. Research methodology encompassed the analysis of average annual temperatures over the time span data was available for, at three weather stations, an analysis of average annual precipitations, an analysis of the piezometric data, the evolution of land use as a result of the expansion of the aridity process. The assessment of the aridity process also involved taking into consideration the state of the vegetation by means of the normalized difference vegetation inde...
The analysis of a territory’s climatic water balance dynamics against the background of climate c... more The analysis of a territory’s climatic water balance dynamics against the background of climate change is a key component for increasing water resource management efficiency. The present study aims to analyse climatic water balance (CWB) dynamics in Romania’s most arid region, Dobrogea, located in the southeast. The study covers the 1961–2009 period, and is based on annual and seasonal CWB values (mm), provided by nine weather stations located throughout the region. The study, based on statistical and GIS techniques, is divided into two main stages, both carried out at annual and seasonal scales–trend analysis using the Mann-Kendall test, the Sen’s slope method, and CWB value distribution type analysis. In order to identify the probabilistic types of distributions, four mathematical models were identified–Pearson, Gamma, Chi-Squared and Wakeby, statistically verified with the P-P Plot, Q-Q Plot and Probabillity Difference Graph (PDG) curve tests. Thus, in terms of trends, the results showed a deficit increase especially at the northern stations, mainly for annual values (with a peak in the northeast, where CWB rates reached –3.2 mm/yr). While general CWB declines occurred in winter, spring and summer, apparent decrease rates were found in the northern region (highest negative rates–summer, northwest, –1.4 mm/yr). Autumn is an exception, due to overall increase rates which peaked in the southwest (2.3 mm/yr). However, the entire trend analysis indicated a general lack of statistical significance. The distribution type histogram analysis showed that, annually and seasonally, deficit values are generally dominant (more noticeable in the northern region), except for the winter season, mainly characterized by surplus intervals. Thus, the results suggest a climatic water deficit increase over the last five decades especially in northern Dobrogea, which signals the need for a spatial prioritization targeting a more efficient water resource management, necessary first and foremost for increasing regional agricultural system productivity.
Carpathian journal of earth and environmental sciences
This paper attempts to analyze the potential relationship between the climatic water deficit of t... more This paper attempts to analyze the potential relationship between the climatic water deficit of the vegetation period of corn (April-September) and its agricultural yield, recorded in the Dobrogea plateau between 1990 and 2003. The data included in this study comprise spatialized climatic water deficit values (mm) (computed as the difference between precipitation and potential evapotranspiration), obtained through interpolation methods based on ten regional weather stations and corn crop yield data (t/ha/year) in 99 territorial administrative units, almost entirely overlapping the analyzed geographical region. The study essentially aims to identify the statistical connection between the independent variable (climatic water deficit) and the dependent one (agricultural yield) over 14 years - to this end, a series of detailed statistical correlations were applied to both variables. The results showed a statistically significant relationship especially in the plateau’s central-southern ...
Journal of environmental health science & engineering, Jan 6, 2014
In the past few decades, global climate change has accentuated the intensification of aridization... more In the past few decades, global climate change has accentuated the intensification of aridization in South-Western Romania, with direct and indirect consequences on the quality of forest ecosystems. In addition to qualitative deterioration, the quantitative changes brought about by intensive anthropic deforestation have created the conditions for a decline in the size of forest areas on vast tracts of land. The paper aims to analyze the qualitative and quantitative changes in the forest ecosystems in South-Western Romania, changes due to the synergic context of the global climate changes and the anthropic pressures of the past three decades. In order to capture the evolution of aridization in the study area, specific aridization indexes have been calculated, such as the De Martonne index and the UNEP aridity index. 1990 and 2011 satellite images have been used in order to quantify the qualitative changes. The results obtained indicated that, in the past two decades, the quality of t...
Journal of environmental health science & engineering, Jan 24, 2013
The report released by the Intergovernmental Committee for Climate Change indicates that Romania ... more The report released by the Intergovernmental Committee for Climate Change indicates that Romania ranks among the top seven countries in Europe that would be strongly impacted by aridity in the next few years, with climate changes consisting in a rise of average annual temperatures by as much as 5°C. The research work was conducted in the South of the Oltenia South-Western Development Region, where more than 700,000 hectares of farmland is impacted by aridification, more than 100,000 hectares among them impacted by aridity. Research methodology encompassed the analysis of average annual temperatures over the time span data was available for, at three weather stations, an analysis of average annual precipitations, an analysis of the piezometric data, the evolution of land use as a result of the expansion of the aridity process. The assessment of the aridity process also involved taking into consideration the state of the vegetation by means of the normalized difference vegetation inde...
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Papers by Remus Pravalie