Stream flow variability and drought severity in the Songhua River Basin, Northeast China

2018-05-01
Faiz, Muhammad Abrar
Liu, Dong
Fu, Qiang
Uzair, Muhammad
Khan, Muhammad Imran
Baig, Faisal
Li, Tianxiao
Cui, Song
A slight variation in the magnitude of stream flow can have a substantial influence on the development of water resources. The Songhua River Basin (SRB) serves as a major grain commodity basin and is located in the northeastern region of China. Recent studies have identified a gradual decrease in stream flows, which presents a serious risk to water resources of the region. It is therefore necessary to assess the variation in stream flow and to predict the future of stream flows and droughts to make a comprehensive plan for agricultural irrigation. The simulation of monthly stream flows and the investigation of the influence of climate on the stream flow in the SRB were performed by utilizing the Integrated Water Evaluation and Planning (WEAP) tool coupled with observed precipitation data, as well as the Asian Precipitation-Highly-Resolved Observational Data Integration towards Evaluation of Water Resources (APHRODITE's Water Resources) precipitation product. The Nash-Sutcliffe coefficient (NSC) was used to assess the WEAP efficiency. During the time of calibration, NSC was obtained as 0.90 and 0.67 using observed and APHRODITE precipitation data, respectively. The results indicate that WEAP can be used effectively in the SRB. The application of the model suggested a maximum decline in stream flow, reaching 24% until the end of 21st century under future climate change scenarios. The drought indices (standardized drought index and percent of normal index) demonstrated that chances of severe to extreme drought events are highest in 2059, 2060 and 2085, while in the remaining time period mild to moderate drought events may occur in the entire study area. The drought duration, severity and intensity for the period of 2011-2099 under all scenarios, [(A1B: 12, - 1.55, - 0.12), (A2: 12, - 1.41, - 0.09), (max. wetting and warming conditions: 12, - 1.37, - 0.11) and (min. wetting and warming conditions: 12, - 1.69, - 0.19)], respectively.
STOCHASTIC ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND RISK ASSESSMENT

Suggestions

Spatial data analysis for monitoring and prediction of selected water quality parameters in reservoirs: Porsuk Dam reservoir case
Yenilmez, Firdes; Aksoy, Ayşegül; Düzgün, H. Şebnem; Department of Environmental Engineering (2014)
In the design of a water quality monitoring network, selection of water quality sampling locations is crucial to adequately represent the water quality of the water body when high costs of analyses and field work are taken into account. In this study, a new approach was proposed to identify the representative water quality sampling locations in reservoirs and lakes using geostatistical tools for estimation of spatial distribution of selected water quality parameters. To do so, kernel density estimation (KDE...
Comparison of groundwater recharge estimation techniques: a case study from the Kucuk Menderes River basin in Turkey
Gundogdu, A; Yazıcıgil, Hasan; Kirmizitas, H (2000-04-01)
Quantification of groundwater recharge is a basic prerequisite for efficient groundwater management. While there are several approaches to estimating groundwater recharge rates, some of the approaches proposed cannot be applied in basin-wide hydrogeological investigations due to a lack of data. Thus, some conventional recharge estimation techniques for which data are most often available have to be used in estimating groundwater recharge. In this study, water level fluctuation, the precipitation vs water le...
Potential Impacts of Climate Change on Turkish Water Resources: A Review
Yılmaz, Koray Kamil; Yazıcıgil, Hasan (2010-09-04)
Water resources are mainly controlled by the climate conditions. Global warming will therefore have evolving impacts on water resources and poses important challenges for sustainable development. Studies are rapidly emerging with focus on potential implications of climate change on Turkish water resources. These studies can be grouped into two major fields: (1) Studies investigating the degree of climate change reflected in the past observed hydro-meteorological records, and (2) studies investigating potent...
Assessment of the impacts of future climatic variations and anthropogenic activities on Burdur Lake levels
Kılıç Germeç, Hatice; Yazıcıgil, Hasan; Department of Geological Engineering (2023-1-24)
Lake water levels naturally fluctuate due to imbalances in water inputs and outputs. However, lake hydrologic regimes may be altered by the impacts of climatic factors and human interventions, as in Burdur Lake. The Burdur Lake level has continuously decreased since the beginning of the 1970s. In this study, in order to quantify the loss/gain relationship between the aquifer and the Burdur Lake and specify the potential causes and consequences for the lake level decline, a 3-D numerical groundwater flow mod...
Future water availability in the largest freshwater Mediterranean lake is at great risk as evidenced from simulations with the SWAT model
Bucak, Tuba; Trolle, Dennis; Andersen, Hans Estrup; Thodsen, Hans; Erdogan, Seyda; Levi, Eti E.; Filiz, Nur; Jeppesen, Erik; Beklioğlu, Meryem (2017-03-01)
Inter-and intra-annual water level fluctuations and changes in water flow regime are intrinsic characteristics of Mediterranean lakes. Additionally, considering climate change projections for the water-limited Mediterranean region, increased air temperatures and decreased precipitation are anticipated, leading to dramatic declines in lake water levels as well as severe water scarcity problems. The study site, Lake Beysehir, the largest freshwater lake in the Mediterranean basin, is - like other Mediterranea...
Citation Formats
M. A. Faiz et al., “Stream flow variability and drought severity in the Songhua River Basin, Northeast China,” STOCHASTIC ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND RISK ASSESSMENT, pp. 1225–1242, 2018, Accessed: 00, 2020. [Online]. Available: https://hdl.handle.net/11511/68478.