| Title: | Modeling the effects of climate change and human activities on the hydrological processes in a semi-arid watershed of Loess Plateau |
| Authors: | Li, Q.Y., X.X. Yu and Z.B. Xin |
| Year: | 2013 |
| Journal: | Journal of Hydrologic Engineering |
| Volume (Issue): | 18(4) |
| Pages: | 1-48 |
| Article ID: | |
| DOI: | 10.1061/(ASCE)HE.1943-5584.0000629 |
| URL (non-DOI journals): | |
| Model: | SWAT |
| Broad Application Category: | hydrologic and pollutant |
| Primary Application Category: | land use change |
| Secondary Application Category: | climate change |
| Watershed Description: | 1019 km^2 Jihe River in the Loess Plateau region of northern China |
| Calibration Summary: | |
| Validation Summary: | |
| General Comments: | |
| Abstract: | The hydrological cycle in a catchment is sensitive to climate and land-use
changes. We conduct a case study to validate the performance of the Soil and Water
Assessment Tool (SWAT) and its applicability as a simulator of runoff and sediment
transport processes at the mesoscale scale in arid and semi-arid areas. SWAT is used
to simulate runoff and sediment changes caused by human activities in a typical
watershed, the Jihe Watershed (1019 km^2), in the Loess Plateau of Northwestern
China. A marked increase in temperature was observed over the analysis period. The
investigation is conducted using 47-year historical rainfall/runoff data and
sedimentary records from 1962 to 2008. The data from 1962 to 1981 was used for
calibration and that from 1982 to 2008 for validation. Results showed that the
Nash-Sutcliffe model efficiency coefficient was about 0.7, the relative error was
below 15%, and the coefficient of determination was more than 0.7 both for annual
flow and sediment yield in the calibration period. These findings indicated that the
SWAT model was able to simulate runoff and sediment yield satisfactorily; however,
it exhibited better performance for the calibration period than it did for the validation
period. Similarly, simulations of monthly flow and sediment were better for the
calibration period. The simulated and observed values agree well with trend changes.
Uncertainty analysis indicates that digital elevation model resolutions and watershed
subdivisions imposed little influence on annual flow, but notable effects on annual
sediment yield. |
| Language: | English |
| Keywords: | SWAT, Runoff, Sediment yield, LOESS PLATEAU |