scholarly journals Inclusion of Modified Snow Melting and Flood Processes in the SWAT Model

Water ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1715 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yongchao Duan ◽  
Tie Liu ◽  
Fanhao Meng ◽  
Min Luo ◽  
Amaury Frankl ◽  
...  

Flooding, one of the most serious natural disasters, poses a significant threat to people’s lives and property. At present, the forecasting method uses simple snowmelt accumulation and has certain regional restrictions that limit the accuracy and timeliness of flood simulation and prediction. In this paper, the influence of accumulated temperature (AT) and maximum temperature (MT) on snow melting was considered in order to (1) reclassify the precipitation categories of the watershed using a separation algorithm of rain and snow that incorporates AT and MT, and (2) develop a new snow-melting process utilizing the algorithm in the Soil and Water Assessment Tool Model (SWAT) by considering the effects of AT and MT. The SWAT model was used to simulate snowmelt and flooding in the Tizinafu River Basin (TRB). We found that the modified SWAT model increased the value of the average flood peak flow by 43%, the snowmelt amounts increased by 45%, and the contribution of snowmelt to runoff increased from 44.7% to 54.07%. In comparison, we concluded the snowmelt contribution to runoff, flood peak performance, flood process simulation, model accuracy, and time accuracy. The new method provides a more accurate simulation technique for snowmelt floods and flood simulation.

Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 1580
Author(s):  
Solange Uwamahoro ◽  
Tie Liu ◽  
Vincent Nzabarinda ◽  
Jules Habumugisha ◽  
Theogene Habumugisha ◽  
...  

Streamflow impacts water supply and flood protection. Snowmelt floods occur frequently, especially in mountainous areas, and they pose serious threats to natural and socioeconomic systems. The current forecasting method relies on basic snowmelt accumulation and has geographic limitations that restrict the accuracy and timeliness of flood simulation and prediction. In this study, we clarified the precipitation types in two selected catchments by verifying accumulated and maximum temperatures’ influences on snow melting using a separation algorithm of rain and snow that incorporates with the temperatures. The new snow-melting process utilizing the algorithm in the soil and water assessment tool model (SWAT) was also developed by considering the temperatures. The SWAT model was used to simulate flooding and snowmelt in the catchments. We found that the contributions of snowmelt to the river flow were approximately 6% and 7% higher, according to our model compared to the original model, for catchments A and B, respectively. After the model improvement, the flood peaks increased by 49.42% and 43.87% in A and B, respectively. The contributions of snowmelt to stream flow increased by 24.26% and 31% for A and B, respectively. Generally, the modifications improved the model accuracy, the accuracy of snowmelt’s contributions to runoff, the accuracy of predicting flood peaks, the time precision, and the flood frequency simulations.


Water ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 1263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dachen Li ◽  
Simin Qu ◽  
Peng Shi ◽  
Xueqiu Chen ◽  
Feng Xue ◽  
...  

To date, floods have become one of the most severe natural disasters on Earth. Flood forecasting with hydrological models is an important non-engineering measure for flood control and disaster reduction. The Xin’anjiang (XAJ) model is the most widely used hydrological model in China for flood forecasting, while the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model is widely applied for daily and monthly simulation and has shown its potential for flood simulation. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the performance of the SWAT model in simulating floods at a sub-daily time-scale in a slightly larger basin and compare that with the XAJ model. Taking Qilijie Basin (southeast of China) as a study area, this paper developed the XAJ model and SWAT model at a sub-daily time-scale. The results showed that the XAJ model had a better performance than the sub-daily SWAT model regarding relative runoff error (RRE) but the SWAT model performed well according to relative peak discharge error (RPE) and error of occurrence time of peak flow (PTE). The SWAT model performed unsatisfactorily in simulating low flows due to the daily calculation of base flow but behaved quite well in simulating high flows. We also evaluated the effect of spatial scale on the SWAT model. The results showed that the SWAT model had a good applicability at different spatial scales. In conclusion, the sub-daily SWAT model is a promising tool for flood simulation though more improvements remain to be studied further.


Hydrology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 3
Author(s):  
Nega Chalie Emiru ◽  
John Walker Recha ◽  
Julian R. Thompson ◽  
Abrham Belay ◽  
Ermias Aynekulu ◽  
...  

This study investigated the impacts of climate change on the hydrology of the Upper Awash Basin, Ethiopia. A soil and water assessment tool (SWAT) model was calibrated and validated against observed streamflow using SWAT CUP. The Mann–Kendall trend test (MK) was used to assess climate trends. Meteorological drought (SPEI) and hydrological drought (SDI) were also investigated. Based on the ensemble mean of five global climate models (GCMs), projected increases in mean annual maximum temperature over the period 2015–2100 (compared with a 1983–2014 baseline) range from 1.16 to 1.73 °C, while increases in minimum temperature range between 0.79 and 2.53 °C. Increases in mean annual precipitation range from 1.8% at Addis Ababa to 45.5% over the Hombole area. High streamflow (Q5) declines at all stations except Ginchi. Low flows (Q90) also decline with Q90 equaling 0 m3s−1 (i.e., 100% reduction) at some gauging stations (Akaki and Hombole) for individual GCMs. The SPEI confirmed a significant drought trend in the past, while the frequency and severity of drought will increase in the future. The basin experienced conditions that varied from modest dry periods to a very severe hydrological drought between 1986 and 2005. The projected SDI ranges from modestly dry to modestly wet conditions. Climate change in the basin would enhance seasonal variations in hydrological conditions. Both precipitation and streamflow will decline in the wet seasons and increase in the dry seasons. These changes are likely to have an impact on agricultural activities and other human demands for water resources throughout the basin and will require the implementation of appropriate mitigation measures.


Water ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 1555 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xianyong Meng ◽  
Hao Wang ◽  
Chunxiang Shi ◽  
Yiping Wu ◽  
Xiaonan Ji

We describe the construction of a very important forcing dataset of average daily surface climate over East Asia—the China Meteorological Assimilation Driving Datasets for the Soil and Water Assessment Tool model (CMADS). This dataset can either drive the SWAT model or other hydrologic models, such as the Variable Infiltration Capacity model (VIC), the Soil and Water Integrated Model (SWIM), etc. It contains several climatological elements—daily maximum temperature (°C), daily average temperature (°C), daily minimum temperature (°C), daily average relative humidity (%), daily average specific humidity (g/kg), daily average wind speed (m/s), daily 24 h cumulative precipitation (mm), daily mean surface pressure (HPa), daily average solar radiation (MJ/m2), soil temperature (K), and soil moisture (mm3/mm3). In order to suit the various resolutions required for research, four versions of the CMADS datasets were created—from CMADS V1.0 to CMADS V1.3. We have validated the source data of the CMADS datasets using 2421 automatic meteorological stations in China to confirm the accuracy of this dataset. We have also formatted the dataset so as to drive the SWAT model conveniently. This dataset may have applications in hydrological modelling, agriculture, coupled hydrological and meteorological modelling, and meteorological analysis.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1189
Author(s):  
Yongchao Duan ◽  
Min Luo ◽  
Xiufeng Guo ◽  
Peng Cai ◽  
Fu Li

Rivers located in high altitude mountainous areas provide a large number of water resources and are also high-risk areas for seasonal snow melt floods. The accurate calculation and simulation of snow melting processes can provide reliable data for flood disaster prediction. In order to make the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model more suitable for high altitude mountainous areas, the effect of the daily accumulated temperature on the precipitation pattern and snow melting is fully considered. Applying the modified model to three mountain systems with different latitudes in Xinjiang can not only improve our understanding of the characteristics of snowmelt flooding but can also be used to test the applicability of the modified model. Through comparison, it was found that the simulation accuracy of the modified model of the flood peak value was improved by 56.19%. The correlation coefficient between the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and snowmelt increased from 0.27 to 0.68. This study provides a new method for accurately understanding the process of snowmelt runoff in the mountainous area and provides new insights into the effects of snowmelt runoff on vegetation growth at different latitudes.


Author(s):  
K. Hema Narayana Reddy ◽  
Mahesh Kothari ◽  
K. S. Reddy ◽  
P. K. Singh ◽  
K. K. Yadav

The current study based on SWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tool) Model which coordinates the GIS data with attribute database set to assess the runoff of Rela Watershed. Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) is based on distributed parameter model which has been created to forecast runoff, sediment, erosion and nutrient transport from agrarian watersheds under various management practices. The SWAT Model works related to Arc GIS. In the current study the catchment region has been delineated utilizing the DEM (Digital Elevation Model) and afterward partitioned into 29 sub-watersheds or sub-basins. For planning of landuse map, the LANDSAT images are downloaded from earth explorer and the soil mapis obtained from NBSS (National Bureau of Soil Survey, Udaipur). The sub basins are partitioned into 29 HRUs which represents Hydrological Response Unit. At that point by utilizing 30 years of every day precipitation information and daily minimum and maximum temperature information SWAT simulation is accomplished for consistent schedule to estimate Runoff. The insights indicated diverse runoff framework esteem during the time 19.5 mm being the most minimal and 527.3 mm being the maximum runoff for Rela Watershed. The average annual runoff is 162.6 mm i.e. 28% of total rainfall in Rela Watershed.


Author(s):  
Yanchen Zheng ◽  
Jianzhu Li ◽  
Ting Zhang ◽  
Youtong Rong ◽  
Ping Feng

Abstract Model calibration has always been one major challenge in hydrological community. Flood scaling property (FS) is often used to estimate the flood quantiles for data-scarce catchments based on the statistical relationship between flood peak and contributing areas. This paper investigates the potential of applying FS and multivariate flood scaling property (MLR) as constraints in model calibration. Based on the assumption that the scaling property of flood exists in four study catchments in Northern China, eight calibration scenarios are designed with adopting different combination of traditional indicators and FS or MLR as objective functions. The performance of the proposed method is verified by employing a distributed hydrological model, namely Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model. The results indicate that reasonable performance could be obtained in FS with less requirements of observed streamflow data, exhibiting better simulation on flood peak than Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient calibration scenario. The observed streamflow data or regional flood information are required in MLR calibration scenario to identify the dominant catchment descriptors, and MLR achieve better performance on catchment interior points, especially for the events with uneven distribution of rainfall. On account of the improved performance on hydrographs and flood frequency curve at watershed outlet, adopting the statistical indicators and flood scaling property simultaneously as model constraints is suggested. The proposed methodology enhances the physical connection of flood peak among sub-basins and considers watershed actual conditions and climatic characteristics for each flood event, facilitating a new calibration approach for both gauged catchments and data-scarce catchments.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 992-1000
Author(s):  
Jirawat Supakosol ◽  
Kowit Boonrawd

Abstract The purpose of this study is to investigate the future runoff into the Nong Han Lake under the effects of climate change. The hydrological model Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) has been selected for this study. The calibration and validation were performed by comparing the simulated and observed runoff from gauging station KH90 for the period 2001–2003 and 2004–2005, respectively. Future climate projections were generated by Providing Regional Climates for Impacts Studies (PRECIS) under the A2 and B2 scenarios. The SWAT model yielded good results in comparison to the baseline; moreover, the results of the PRECIS model showed that both precipitations and temperatures increased. Consequently, the amount of runoff calculated by SWAT under the A2 and B2 scenarios was higher than that for the baseline. In addition, the amount of runoff calculated considering the A2 scenario was higher than that considering the B2 scenario, due to higher average annual precipitations in the former case. The methodology and results of this study constitute key information for stakeholders, especially for the development of effective water management systems in the lake, such as designing a rule curve to cope with any future incidents.


Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 860
Author(s):  
Nicu Constantin Tudose ◽  
Mirabela Marin ◽  
Sorin Cheval ◽  
Cezar Ungurean ◽  
Serban Octavian Davidescu ◽  
...  

This study aims to build and test the adaptability and reliability of the Soil and Water Assessment Tool hydrological model in a small mountain forested watershed. This ungauged watershed covers 184 km2 and supplies 90% of blue water for the Brașov metropolitan area, the second largest metropolitan area of Romania. After building a custom database at the forest management compartment level, the SWAT model was run. Further, using the SWAT-CUP software under the SUFI2 algorithm, we identified the most sensitive parameters required in the calibration and validation stage. Moreover, the sensitivity analysis revealed that the surface runoff is mainly influenced by soil, groundwater and vegetation condition parameters. The calibration was carried out for 2001‒2010, while the 1996‒1999 period was used for model validation. Both procedures have indicated satisfactory performance and a lower uncertainty of model results in replicating river discharge compared with observed discharge. This research demonstrates that the SWAT model can be applied in small ungauged watersheds after an appropriate parameterisation of its databases. Furthermore, this tool is appropriate to support decision-makers in conceiving sustainable watershed management. It also guides prioritising the most suitable measures to increase the river basin resilience and ensure the water demand under climate change.


2013 ◽  
Vol 726-731 ◽  
pp. 3792-3798
Author(s):  
Wen Ju Zhao ◽  
Wei Sun ◽  
Zong Li Li ◽  
Yan Wei Fan ◽  
Jian Shu Song ◽  
...  

SWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tool) model is one of distributed hydrological model, based on spatial data offered by GIS and RS. This article mainly introduces the SWAT model principle, structure, and it is the application of stream flow simulation in China and other countries, then points out the deficiency existing in the process of model research. In order to service in water resources management work better, experts and scholars further research the rate constant and uncertainty of the simplification of the model parameters, and the combination of RS and GIS to use, and hydrological scale problems.


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