Repository logo

Infoscience

  • English
  • French
Log In
Logo EPFL, École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne

Infoscience

  • English
  • French
Log In
  1. Home
  2. Academic and Research Output
  3. Journal articles
  4. Climate change impacts on dissolved organic carbon and total suspended solids in Alpine streams and rivers
 
research article

Climate change impacts on dissolved organic carbon and total suspended solids in Alpine streams and rivers

Bertone, Edoardo
•
Deluigi, Nicola  
•
Battin, Tom Ian  
March 1, 2026
Water Research

Climate change is altering hydrology, land cover, and biogeochemistry in Alpine river systems, yet predictive understanding of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and total suspended solids (TSS), across glacierised and lowland catchments remains limited. This knowledge gap constrains our ability to forecast impacts on carbon cycling and sediment management. We present a data-driven predictive model for Swiss streams from diverse catchments, spanning glacierised high-mountain basins to lowland agricultural and forested systems. The machine learning framework incorporates discharge, water quality, and land use and land cover changes to predict DOC and TSS, with high accuracy (RMSE=14% of standard deviation for DOC) following validation of the best performing algorithm. While its reliance on routinely measured parameters makes it adaptable for near real-time forecasting, the model was designed for climate change scenario analysis. Projections indicate that by 2090, under RCP8.5, DOC exports will rise by ∼50% in high-mountain catchments and ∼15% in lowland systems, primarily driven by discharge, not by land cover change. TSS responses vary seasonally and by catchment, with increases in many glacierised basins and decreases in most lowland streams. Seasonal DOC load peaks are projected to occur earlier in the year. By harmonising diverse datasets and quantifying site-specific climate, hydrology and land cover interactions, this approach provides a tool for managing carbon and sediment fluxes in rapidly changing Alpine environments.

  • Files
  • Details
  • Metrics
Type
research article
DOI
10.1016/j.watres.2025.125232
Scopus ID

2-s2.0-105025429343

Author(s)
Bertone, Edoardo

School of Engineering and Built Environment

Deluigi, Nicola  

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Battin, Tom Ian  

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Date Issued

2026-03-01

Published in
Water Research
Volume

291

Article Number

125232

Subjects

Alpine streams

•

Climate change impacts

•

Dissolved organic carbon

•

Glacierised catchments

•

Hydrology

•

Machine learning

•

Sediment transport

Editorial or Peer reviewed

REVIEWED

Written at

EPFL

EPFL units
RIVER  
Available on Infoscience
January 5, 2026
Use this identifier to reference this record
https://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/257462
Logo EPFL, École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne
  • Contact
  • infoscience@epfl.ch

  • Follow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on Instagram
  • Follow us on LinkedIn
  • Follow us on X
  • Follow us on Youtube
AccessibilityLegal noticePrivacy policyCookie settingsEnd User AgreementGet helpFeedback

Infoscience is a service managed and provided by the Library and IT Services of EPFL. © EPFL, tous droits réservés