ABSTRACT
The Patuxent Landscape Model (PLM) is
designed to simulate fundamental ecological processes in
interaction with an economic component that determines the
land use patterns. The PLM is based on a modified General
Ecosystem Model (GEM) that is replicated in each of the
cells that compose the rasterized landscape. Hydrologic
flows are crucial to link the cells together horizontally.
Modeling surface water flows in the watershed scale implies
certain restrictions on the spatial, temporal and structural
resolution of the methods involved and processes considered.
The spatial resolution in such models is coarse and the time
step tends to be large enough to make space for simulation
of other ecological and economic processes of interest. The
quasi-empirical hydrologic module of the PLM was built in
attempt to compromise between the heterogeneity of spatial
hydrologic fluxing and the spatial and structural complexity
of other model components. Rescaling experiments are
performed to define the spatial sensitivity to various
processes and land use changes. The calibration process and
some scenario runs are discussed.