| Title: | Alternative river management using a linked GIS‑hydrology model |
| Authors: | Rosenthal, W.D., R. Srinivasan and J.G. Arnold |
| Year: | 1995 |
| Journal: | Transactions of the ASAE |
| Volume (Issue): | 38(3) |
| Pages: | 783-790 |
| Article ID: | |
| DOI: | 10.13031/2013.27892 |
| URL (non-DOI journals): | http://ssl.tamu.edu/media/12011/alternative%20river%20mgmt%20using%20linked%20gis-hydrology%20model.pdf |
| Model: | SWAT |
| Broad Application Category: | hydrologic only |
| Primary Application Category: | hydrologic assessment |
| Secondary Application Category: | none |
| Watershed Description: | 8,927 km^2 subwatershed of the Lower Colorado River, located in southeast Texas, U.S. |
| Calibration Summary: | |
| Validation Summary: | Monthly (1980-89): Bay City (near outlet) r2/E = .75/.69 ---------------------------- Other upstream gauges: Wharton r2 = .69 Bastrop r2 = .90 Columbus r2 = .83 |
| General Comments: | Watershed was subdivided into 60 subwatersheds averageing about 150 km^2 in area for the SWAT simulations. No calibration was performed for the baselin simulation; streamflow was underpredicted for extreme events. A scenario of changing irrigated rice fields to dryland resulted in an approximate streamflow increase of 10%. A second scenario representing expansion of the Austin urban area revealed that downstream streamflows at Bay City during peak events increased by about 10% but resulted in reduced overall monthly flows. |
| Abstract: | A geographic information system (GIS)-hydrologic model link was used to aid in forming input files for the hydrologic model, SWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tool). The link and SWAT prediction of streamflow volume were then tested for the Lower Colorado River basin of Texas. With no calibration, simulated monthly streamflow volume along the river was underestimated for the extreme events, but the relationship was significant (R2 = 0.75). Model results also suggest that urbanization further upstream can significantly affect streamflow downstream. The system is general enough to be applicable to other river systems. |
| Language: | English |
| Keywords: | |