Water and sediment yield estimation: A case study in Bawashaswar Watershed/ Iraqi Kurdistan Region

Water flow in the seasonal streams forms a vital supplier of water resources, particularly in arid and semiarid areas due to its high water supply from the precipitation during the wet season. This research aims to estimate water and sediment yield in the Bawashaswar watershed (BW), which is far ~90 km from Kirkuk City and covers an area of 277 km2. The Bawashaswar Dam (BD) was constructed for multi-purposes, such as drinking, irrigation, livestock, and tourism at the outlet of the watershed north of Kifri town. The Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) was integrated with several datasets, such as satellite images, Digital Elevation Model (DEM), land use, land cover, curve number (CN), daily climatic data of temperature, precipitation, and digital soil map to achieve the results. The estimated results include precipitation, evaporation transpiration, percolation, surface runoff, water yield, loss of transport, and sediment yield. The results showed that almost all the siltation (>0.5 ton/ha) comes from the western and northern parts of the BW due to the high topographic relief and the high channel discharge there. These results will support the future development plans and management of the watershed through mitigating and minimizing the size of the ground surface degradation problems all over the study area with increasing the lifespan of the BD.

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CLIMATE- AND LAND USE-INDUCED RISKS TO WATERSHED SERVICES IN THE NYANDO RIVER BASIN, KENYA

Experimental Agriculture ◽

10.1017/s001447971100007x ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 47 (2) ◽

pp. 339-356 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

MWANGI GATHENYA ◽

HOSEA MWANGI ◽

RICHARD COE ◽

JOSEPH SANG

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Land Use ◽

Land Use Change ◽

Sediment Yield ◽

Land Surface ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Surface Condition ◽

Water Yield ◽

Minor Effect ◽

Watershed Services

SUMMARYClimate change and land use change are two forces influencing the hydrology of watersheds and their ability to provide ecosystem services, such as clean and well-regulated streamflow and control of soil erosion and sediment yield. The Soil Water Assessment Tool, SWAT, a distributed, watershed-scale hydrological model was used with 18 scenarios of rainfall, temperature and infiltration capacity of land surface to investigate the spatial distribution of watershed services over the 3587 km2 Nyando basin in Western Kenya and how it is affected by these two forces. The total annual water yield varied over the 50 sub-basins from 35 to 600 mm while the annual sediment yield ranged from 0 to 104 tons ha−1. Temperature change had a relatively minor effect on streamflow and sediment yield compared to change in rainfall and land surface condition. Improvements in land surface condition that result in higher infiltration are an effective adaptation strategy to moderate the effects of climate change on supply of watershed services. Spatial heterogeneity in response to climate and land use change is large, and hence it is necessary to understand it if interventions to modify hydrology or adapt to climate change are to be effective.

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Effects of Land Use Changes on Streamflow and Sediment Yield in Atibaia River Basin—SP, Brazil

Water ◽

10.3390/w12061711 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (6) ◽

pp. 1711 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Franciane Mendonça dos Santos ◽

Rodrigo Proença de Oliveira ◽

José Augusto Di Lollo

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Sensitivity Analysis ◽

River Basin ◽

Sediment Yield ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Land Use Changes ◽

Curve Number ◽

Moisture Condition ◽

Land Use Scenario ◽

Effects Of Land Use

The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) is often used to evaluate the impacts of different land use scenarios on streamflow and sediment yield, but there is a need for some clear recommendations on how to select the parameter set that defines a given land use scenario and on what is the most appropriate methodology to change the selected parameters when describing possible future conditions. This paper reviews the SWAT formulation to identify the parameters that depend on the land use, performs a sensitivity analysis to determine the ones with larger impacts on the model results and discusses ways to consider future land use conditions. The case study is the Atibaia river basin, with 2838 km2 (São Paulo, Brazil). The parameters identified by sensitivity analysis with the largest impacts on streamflow and sediment yield were the initial curve number for moisture condition II (CN), maximum canopy storage for each land use (CANMX) and the cover and management factor (USLE_C). The identification and appropriate parameter change can provide real estimates of the magnitudes in the land use changes, which were verified in this study. Such information can be used as an instrument for proposing improvements in the basin’s environmental quality and management.

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Stream flow simulation and verification in ungauged zones by coupling hydrological and hydrodynamic models: a case study of the Poyang Lake ungauged zone

Hydrology and Earth System Sciences ◽

10.5194/hess-21-5847-2017 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 21 (11) ◽

pp. 5847-5861 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Ling Zhang ◽

Jianzhong Lu ◽

Xiaoling Chen ◽

Dong Liang ◽

Xiaokang Fu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Water Resource ◽

Stream Flow ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Poyang Lake ◽

Swat Model ◽

Water Yield ◽

Lake Basin ◽

Observation Data ◽

Wet Season ◽

Annual Water

Abstract. To solve the problem of estimating and verifying stream flow without direct observation data, we estimated stream flow in ungauged zones by coupling a hydrological model with a hydrodynamic model, using the Poyang Lake basin as a test case. To simulate the stream flow of the ungauged zone, we built a soil and water assessment tool (SWAT) model for the entire catchment area covering the upstream gauged area and ungauged zone, and then calibrated the SWAT model using the data in the gauged area. To verify the results, we built two hydrodynamic scenarios (the original and adjusted scenarios) for Poyang Lake using the Delft3D model. In the original scenario, the upstream boundary condition is the observed stream flow from the upstream gauged area, while, in the adjusted scenario, it is the sum of the observed stream flow from the gauged area and the simulated stream flow from the ungauged zone. The experimental results showed that there is a stronger correlation and lower bias (R2 = 0.81, PBIAS  =  10.00 %) between the observed and simulated stream flow in the adjusted scenario compared to that (R2 = 0.77, PBIAS  =  20.10 %) in the original scenario, suggesting the simulated stream flow of the ungauged zone is reasonable. Using this method, we estimated the stream flow of the Poyang Lake ungauged zone as 16.4 ± 6.2 billion m3 a−1, representing ∼ 11.24 % of the annual total water yield of the entire watershed. Of the annual water yield, 70 % (11.48 billion m3 a−1) is concentrated in the wet season, while 30 % (4.92 billion m3 a−1) comes from the dry season. The ungauged stream flow significantly improves the water balance with the closing error decreased by 13.48 billion m3 a−1 (10.10 % of the total annual water resource) from 30.20 ± 9.1 billion m3 a−1 (20.10 % of the total annual water resource) to 16.72 ± 8.53 billion m3 a−1 (10.00 % of the total annual water resource). The method can be extended to other lake, river, or ocean basins where observation data is unavailable.

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Modeling runoff response to land-use changes using the SWAT model in the Mundaú watershed, Brazil

Journal of Environmental Analysis and Progress ◽

10.24221/jeap.5.2.2020.2828.194-206 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 5 (2) ◽

pp. 194-206

Author(s):

Carolyne Wanessa Lins de Andrade Farias ◽

Suzana Maria Gico Lima Montenegro ◽

Abelardo Antônio de Assunção Montenegro ◽

José Romualdo de Sousa Lima ◽

Raghavan Srinivasan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Land Use Change ◽

Sediment Yield ◽

Surface Runoff ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Swat Model ◽

Land Use Changes ◽

Water Yield ◽

Grazing Land ◽

Runoff And Sediment Yield

Land-use change has a significant influence on runoff process of any watershed, and the deepening of this theme is essential to assist decision making, within the scope of water resources management. The study was conducted for Mundaú River Basin (MRB) using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model. The study aims to assess the issue of land-use change and its effect on evapotranspiration, surface runoff, and sediment yield. Input data like land use, topography, weather, and soil data features are required to undertake watershed simulation. Two scenarios of land use were analyzed over 30 years, which were: a regeneration scenario (referring to use in the year 1987) and another scene of degradation (relating to use in the year 2017). Land use maps for 1987 and 2017 were acquired from satellite images. Overall, during the last three decades, 76.4% of forest was lost in the MRB. The grazing land increased in 2017 at a few more than double the area that existed in 1987. Changes in land use, over the years, resulted in an increase of about 37% in the water yield of MRB. Changes have led to increased processes such as surface runoff and sediment yield and in the decrease of evapotranspiration. The spatial and temporal distribution of land use controls the water balance and sediment production in the MRB.

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Hydrological modeling for streamflow and sediment yield simulation using the SWAT model in a forest-dominated watershed of north-eastern Himalayas of Kashmir Valley, India

Journal of Hydroinformatics ◽

10.2166/hydro.2022.042 ◽

2022 ◽

Author(s):

Sarvat Gull ◽

Shagoofta Rasool Shah

Keyword(s):

Sediment Yield ◽

Hydrological Modeling ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Swat Model ◽

Model Performance ◽

Curve Number ◽

Model Parameters ◽

Influence Strategies ◽

North Eastern ◽

Performance Statistics

Abstract In this study, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model was used to examine the spatial variability of sediment yield, quantify runoff, and soil loss at the sub-basin level and prioritize sub-basins in the Sindh watershed due to its computational efficiency in complex watersheds. The Sequential Uncertainty Fitting-2 approach was used to determine the sensitivity and uncertainty of model parameters. The parameter sensitivity analysis showed that Soil Conservation Services Curve Number II is the most sensitive model parameter for streamflow simulation, whereas linear parameters for sediment re-entrainment is the most significant parameter for sediment yield simulation. This study used daily runoff and sediment event data from 2003 to 2013; data from 2003 to 2008 were utilized for calibration and data from 2009 to 2013 were used for validation. In general, the model performance statistics showed good agreement between observed and simulated values of streamflow and sediment yield for both calibration and validation periods. The noticed insights of this research show the ability of the SWAT model in simulating the hydrology of the Sindh watershed and its reliability to be utilized as a decision-making tool by decision-makers and researchers to influence strategies in the management of watershed processes.

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Evaluation of Forest Water Storage by changing Land Cover in Korea Peninsula

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-21216 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Youngjin Ko ◽

Hyun-Woo Jo ◽

Sujong Lee ◽

Halim Lee ◽

Chul-Hee Lim ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Land Cover ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Soil Depth ◽

Swat Model ◽

Google Earth ◽

Water Infiltration ◽

Water Yield ◽

Climatic Data ◽

Fog Water ◽

Positive Effects

<p>Water security depends on forests. Forest return less water to soil compared with grasslands or cultivation land because of their higher contribution to atmospheric moisture content via evapotranspiration. Water infiltration and retention are encouraged in forest soil by root systems. They are vital for reducing soil erosion and reducing drought by capturing fog water, reducing surface water run-off and promoting groundwater recharge. Deforestation and Afforestation in Korea Peninsula may cause change of water yield on precipitation storage and erosion control. This study is focus on how much water is contented in the changing land cover, especially forests. SWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tool) model needs some data for simulation of water yield for example DEM, climatic data, land cover, soil data, etc. In this study, evaluation of water yield was performed at two time, 2005 and 2018 using SWAT model. Land cover was classified by using GEE (Google Earth Engine) which is useful tool for classification about enormous data. Through GEE, we got the two land cover maps, 2005 and 2018, these data were used for input data in SWAT model. Soil data is used by FAO Soil. To calibrate result data, we controlled some parameters like soil depth, porous volume which have stronger correlation between forests and soil properties. We can find that forest can store more water than other classes such as city, agriculture, and so on. In this study, we quantitatively estimated the water content by changing land cover. This study present functional positive effects of forests to store water. This study can be used in preparing various forest strategy in South Korea. Above all, this result maybe useful background data for supporting North Korea in afforestation.</p>

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Does forest replacement increase water supply in watersheds? Analysis through hydrological simulation

10.5194/hess-2017-281 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Ronalton Evandro Machado ◽

Milena Lopes ◽

Lubienska Cristina Lucas J. Ribeiro

Keyword(s):

Sediment Yield ◽

Forest Cover ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Swat Model ◽

Hydrological Regime ◽

Water Yield ◽

Watershed Hydrology ◽

Hydrological Simulation ◽

Environmentally Sensitive Areas ◽

Current Usage

Abstract. Forests play an important role in watershed hydrology, regulating the transfer of water within the system. Their role in maintaining the hydrological regime of watersheds is still a controversial issue. Consequently, we use the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model to simulate scenarios of land use in a watershed. In one of these scenarios we identified, through GIS techniques, Environmentally Sensitive Areas (ESAs) which have been undergoing watershed degradation and we considered these areas as protected by forest cover. This scenario was then compared to the current usage scenario regarding watershed sediment yield and hydrological regime. The results showed a reduction in sediment yield of 54 % among different scenarios, whereas watershed water yield was reduced by 19.3 %.

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Land Use Change Impacts on Hydrology in the Nenjiang River Basin, Northeast China

Forests ◽

10.3390/f10060476 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 (6) ◽

pp. 476 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Fengping Li ◽

Guangxin Zhang ◽

Hongyan Li ◽

Wenxi Lu

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

River Basin ◽

Surface Runoff ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Swat Model ◽

Land Use Changes ◽

Sustainable Land Use ◽

Water Yield ◽

Wet Season ◽

Nenjiang River Basin

The objectives of this study were to assess land use changes and their hydrological impacts in the Nenjiang River Basin (NRB). The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model was employed to evaluate the impacts of land use changes. The Cellular Automata-Markov model was used to predict a land use map in 2038. Streamflow under each land use state was simulated by the SWAT model. The results showed that there was a significant expansion of agriculture area at the expense of large areas of grassland, wetland, and forest during 1975–2000. The land use changes during the period of 1975 to 2000 had decreased the water yield (3.5%), surface runoff (1.7%), and baseflow (19%) while they increased the annual evapotranspiration (2.1%). For impacts of individual land use type, the forest proved to have reduced streamflow in the flood season (10%–28%) and increased surface runoff in the drought season (20%–38%). Conversely, grassland, dry land, and paddy land scenarios resulted in increase of streamflow during summer months by 7%–37% and a decrease of streamflow in the cold seasons by 11.7%–59.7%. When the entire basin was changed to wetland, streamflow reduced over the whole year, with the largest reduction during January to March. The 2038 land use condition is expected to increase the annual water yield, surface runoff and wet season flow, and reduce evapotranspiration and baseflow. These results could help to improve sustainable land use management and water utilization in the NRB.

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Effectiveness of Contour Farming and Filter Strips on Ecosystem Services

Water ◽

10.3390/w10101312 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (10) ◽

pp. 1312 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

John Gathagu ◽

Khaldoon Mourad ◽

Joseph Sang

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Sediment Yield ◽

Water Conservation ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Water Yield ◽

Model Parameters ◽

Subsequent Increase ◽

Filter Strips ◽

Filter Width ◽

Annual Sediment

The failing ecosystem services in Thika-Chania catchment is manifested in the deterioration of water quality, sedimentation of reservoirs, and subsequent increase in water treatment costs due to high turbidity. The services can be restored by implementing relevant soil and water conservation practices to enhance flow regulation and control sediment yield. The impacts of contour farming and filter strips on water and sediment yield were evaluated using Soil Water and Assessment Tool (SWAT), Texas A&M University, USA. Sediment calibration and validation was achieved using data obtained from a bathymetric survey. Model parameters were adjusted to simulate the conservation impacts of contour farming and filter strips. Results indicated the average annual sediment yield as 22 t/ha at the outlet of the catchment and average annual surface runoff of 202 mm. The simulation results showed that filter strips of 5 m width would reduce the average annual sediment yield from the catchment by 54%. The efficacy of filter strips in reducing sediment yield was observed to increase with increasing filter width. Three-meter filter strips and contour farming reduced the average annual sediment yield at catchment outlet by 46% and 36%, respectively. It was concluded that the implementation of contour farming and filters strips reduced sediments by 63% from the base value. Water yield at the sub-basin level was only influenced by contour farming. The total water yield at the catchment outlet experienced no significant change.

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Predicting the Hydrological Impacts of Future Climate Change in a Humid-Subtropical Watershed

Atmosphere ◽

10.3390/atmos13010012 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (1) ◽

pp. 12

Author(s):

Haroon Rashid ◽

Kaijie Yang ◽

Aicong Zeng ◽

Song Ju ◽

Abdur Rashid ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Sediment Yield ◽

Surface Runoff ◽

Future Climate ◽

Atmospheric Co2 ◽

Future Climate Change ◽

Water Yield ◽

Runoff Water ◽

Minjiang River ◽

The Future

Future climate change is expected to impact the natural systems. This study used future climate data of general circulation models (GCMs) to investigate the impacts of climate change during the future period (2062–2095) relative to the historical period (1981–2014) on the hydrological system of the Minjiang river watershed, China. A previously calibrated soil and water assessment tool (SWAT) was employed to simulate the future hydrology under the impacts of changes in temperature, precipitation, and atmospheric CO2 concentration for four shared socioeconomic pathways (SSP 1, 2, 3, and 5) of the CMIP6. The study revealed that the impacts of increase in future temperature, i.e., increase in ET, and decrease in surface runoff, water, and sediment yield will be countered by increased atmospheric [CO2], and changes in the hydrological parameters in the future will be mostly associated to changes in precipitation. Data of the GCMs for all the SSPs predicts increase in precipitation of the watershed, which will cause increase in surface runoff, water yield, and sediment yield. Surface runoff will increase more in SSP 5 (47%), while sediment and water yield will increase more in SSP 1, by 33% and 23%, respectively. At the seasonal scale, water yield and surface runoff will increase more in autumn and winter in SSP 1, while in other scenarios, these parameters will increase more in the spring and summer seasons. Sediment yield will increase more in autumn in all scenarios. Similarly, the future climate change is predicted to impact the important parameters related to the flow regime of the Minjiang river, i.e., the frequency and peak of large floods (flows > 14,000 m3/s) will increase along the gradient of scenarios, i.e., more in SSP 5 followed by 3, 2, and 1, while duration will increase in SSP 5 and decrease in the other SSPs. The frequency and duration of extreme low flows will increase in SSP 5 while decrease in SSP 1. Moreover, peak of extreme low flows will decrease in all scenarios except SSP 1, in which it will increase. The study will improve the general understanding about the possible impacts of future climate change in the region and provide support for improving the management and protection of the watershed’s water and soil resources.

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