Value of quality controlled citizen science data for rainfall-runoff characterization in a rapidly urbanizing catchment

The major concern of applying citizen science in water resources is the quality of the data. However, there are limited scientific studies addressing this concern and showing the data value. In this study, we established a citizen science program in the Akaki catchment which hosts Addis Ababa, Ethio...

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Main Authors: Mengistie, G. K., Wondimagegnehu, Kirubel Demissie, Walker, D. W., Haile, Alemseged Tamiru
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Elsevier 2024
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/168110
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author Mengistie, G. K.
Wondimagegnehu, Kirubel Demissie
Walker, D. W.
Haile, Alemseged Tamiru
author_browse Haile, Alemseged Tamiru
Mengistie, G. K.
Walker, D. W.
Wondimagegnehu, Kirubel Demissie
author_facet Mengistie, G. K.
Wondimagegnehu, Kirubel Demissie
Walker, D. W.
Haile, Alemseged Tamiru
author_sort Mengistie, G. K.
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description The major concern of applying citizen science in water resources is the quality of the data. However, there are limited scientific studies addressing this concern and showing the data value. In this study, we established a citizen science program in the Akaki catchment which hosts Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Citizen scientists monitored river stage at multiple gauging sites for multiple years. We evaluated the quality of citizen science data through a systematic quality control. Reference data was obtained from neighboring stations of the citizen science program and professionals while the evaluation involved graphical inspections and statistical methods. The quality-controlled data were applied to evaluate the spatial and temporal variation of rainfall-runoff relationships. Initially, large numbers of suspicious data were detected using single station data but that was significantly reduced when the data of multiple sites were compared. Further comparison against professional data revealed excellent agreement with high correlation coefficient (r >0.95), and low centered root mean square error (RMSE) <0.03–0.08 mm. The citizen science data indicated a large difference in rainfall-runoff relationship over the dominantly urban and rural sub-catchments. The citizen science data allowed comparison of runoff coefficient and base flow index for recent and historical periods where recent streamflow data is unavailable from a formal data source. This study illustrates the immense value of (i) multiple data quality assessment steps for building confidence on the quality of citizen science data, and (ii) citizen science for enhancing our understanding of rainfall-runoff relationships and change in a rapidly urbanizing catchment.
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spelling CGSpace1681102025-12-08T10:11:39Z Value of quality controlled citizen science data for rainfall-runoff characterization in a rapidly urbanizing catchment Mengistie, G. K. Wondimagegnehu, Kirubel Demissie Walker, D. W. Haile, Alemseged Tamiru citizen science data quality quality control rainfall runoff urbanization rivers datasets The major concern of applying citizen science in water resources is the quality of the data. However, there are limited scientific studies addressing this concern and showing the data value. In this study, we established a citizen science program in the Akaki catchment which hosts Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Citizen scientists monitored river stage at multiple gauging sites for multiple years. We evaluated the quality of citizen science data through a systematic quality control. Reference data was obtained from neighboring stations of the citizen science program and professionals while the evaluation involved graphical inspections and statistical methods. The quality-controlled data were applied to evaluate the spatial and temporal variation of rainfall-runoff relationships. Initially, large numbers of suspicious data were detected using single station data but that was significantly reduced when the data of multiple sites were compared. Further comparison against professional data revealed excellent agreement with high correlation coefficient (r >0.95), and low centered root mean square error (RMSE) <0.03–0.08 mm. The citizen science data indicated a large difference in rainfall-runoff relationship over the dominantly urban and rural sub-catchments. The citizen science data allowed comparison of runoff coefficient and base flow index for recent and historical periods where recent streamflow data is unavailable from a formal data source. This study illustrates the immense value of (i) multiple data quality assessment steps for building confidence on the quality of citizen science data, and (ii) citizen science for enhancing our understanding of rainfall-runoff relationships and change in a rapidly urbanizing catchment. 2024-02 2024-12-20T01:28:57Z 2024-12-20T01:28:57Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/168110 en Open Access Elsevier Mengistie, G. K.; Wondimagegnehu, Kirubel Demissie; Walker, D. W.; Haile, Alemseged Tamiru. 2024. Value of quality controlled citizen science data for rainfall-runoff characterization in a rapidly urbanizing catchment. Journal of Hydrology, 629:130639. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2024.130639]
spellingShingle citizen science
data quality
quality control
rainfall
runoff
urbanization
rivers
datasets
Mengistie, G. K.
Wondimagegnehu, Kirubel Demissie
Walker, D. W.
Haile, Alemseged Tamiru
Value of quality controlled citizen science data for rainfall-runoff characterization in a rapidly urbanizing catchment
title Value of quality controlled citizen science data for rainfall-runoff characterization in a rapidly urbanizing catchment
title_full Value of quality controlled citizen science data for rainfall-runoff characterization in a rapidly urbanizing catchment
title_fullStr Value of quality controlled citizen science data for rainfall-runoff characterization in a rapidly urbanizing catchment
title_full_unstemmed Value of quality controlled citizen science data for rainfall-runoff characterization in a rapidly urbanizing catchment
title_short Value of quality controlled citizen science data for rainfall-runoff characterization in a rapidly urbanizing catchment
title_sort value of quality controlled citizen science data for rainfall runoff characterization in a rapidly urbanizing catchment
topic citizen science
data quality
quality control
rainfall
runoff
urbanization
rivers
datasets
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/168110
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