Evaluation and improvement of water quality models for application to temporary waters in Southern European catchments. Incorporation of in-stream biogeochemical processes running in Mediterranean temporary rivers in river catchment models.
The aim of the project was to study the factors and processes controlling sediment and solute loads and provide modeling tools for increasing the efficiency of integrated water management in Southern European catchments and elsewhere where temporary rivers prevail.
Specific objectives of tempQsim project were: to develop and test hydrological modules to account for the different runoff generation mechanisms as well as surface/ground water exchanges; to develop and test sediment modules to account for accumulation, re-suspension and transformation processes of organic matter and nutrients during the dry and wet periods; to modify and improve water quality models by integrating the new sediment and hydrological modules; to apply and verify the modified models in selected Mediterranean test catchments. In this framework, the main factors and biogeochemical processes controlling sediment transport and nutrient dynamics in temporary rivers were examined.