Evaluation of the SEDD model for predicting sediment yield at the Sicilian experimental SPA2 basin

In this paper a spatially distributed model of the hillslope sediment delivery processes, named the sediment delivery distributed (SEDD) model, is initially reviewed; the model takes into account the sediment delivery processes due to both the hillslope sediment transport and the effects of slope curvature. Then the rainfall and sediment yield events measured at the experimental SPA2 basin, in Sicily, are used both to calibrate the SEDD model and to verify the predictive capability of the distributed sediment delivery approach at event scale. For the SPA2 basin discretized into morphological units and stream tubes, the SEDD model is calibrated at event scale using the measurements carried out at the outlet of the experimental basin in the period December 2000–January 2001. The model calibration is used to determine a relationship useful for estimating the unique coefficient β_e of the model by rainfall erosivity factor R_e at event scale. To test the predictive capability of the β_e = f(R_e) relationship, 20 events measured in the period September 2002–December 2005 are used; the comparison between measured sediment yield values and calculated ones for all monitored events shows that the sediment delivery distributed approach has a good predictive ability at event scale. The analysis also shows that estimating β_e by the relationship β_e = f(R_e) gives a better agreement between measured and calculated sediment yields than obtained with the median value β_e,m of all 27 calculated β_e values. Finally the analysis at annual scale, for the period 2000–2005, allows the estimation of the median value β_a,m representative of the annual behaviour. This analysis shows that the sediment delivery distributed approach also has a good predictive ability at annual scale. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Assessing the impacts of land cover and climate on runoff and sediment yield of a river basin

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the impacts of changes in land cover and climate on runoff and sediment yield in a river basin in India. Land Change Modeler was used to derive the future land cover and its changes using the Sankey diagram approach. The future climatic parameters were derived from five general circulation models for two emission scenarios with representative concentration pathways (RCPs) 4.5 and 8.5. The land cover and climate change impacts on runoff and sediment yield were estimated using SWAT model. The results show important changes in land cover and indicate that urban and agricultural areas strongly influence the runoff and sediment yield. Among the land cover and climate change impacts, climate has more predominant (70%–95%) impact. Runoff and sediment yield are likely to decrease in both RCP scenarios in the future period. The impacts of land cover changes are more prominent on sediment yield than runoff.     

Modelling artificial channel and land‐use changes and their impact on floods and sediment yield to the Ishikari basin

The potential for flooding and sediment transport is greatly affected by river channel form and changes in land use. Therefore the modelling of channel morphology prior to canalization and of land‐use change is important with respect to the prediction of floods and sediment yield and their consequences. A combination of land‐use transformation maps and soil properties shows certain decision rules for the conversion of forest into arable or vice versa. The model proposed, from this study, was used to simulate possible past and/or future channel and land‐use patterns. Subsequently, the outcome of this simulation was used to assess the risk of flooding, sediment transport and soil‐erosion under different conditions. In this study, channel morphology prior to canalization and land‐use change in the Ishikari basin, Hokkaido, Japan, were analysed by comparing three scenarios using a physical based channel and slope model. The results indicate that pre‐canalization channel morphology has a significant impact on flood peak, but no significant effect on sediment yield. In contrast, land‐use change has a significant effect on soil eroded from hillslopes, but no significant effect on flooding for Ishikari basin. This study also illustrates the challenges that a simple model, such as a physical based channel and slope model, can simulate large‐scale river basin processes using fewer hydrological data resources. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A study of scale effect on specific sediment yield in the Loess Plateau,China

Based on data from 148 hydrometric stations in the Yellow River Basin, an analysis of regional scale relationship, or the relationship between specific sediment yield and drainage basin area, has been undertaken in the study area of the Loess Plateau. For different regions, scale relationship in log-log ordinate can be fitted by two types of lines: straight and parabola, and for each line, a function was fitted using regression analysis. The different scale relationships have been explained in terms of the difference in surface material distribution and landforms. To offset the scale-induced influence, calcu-lation has been done based on the fitted functions, in order to adjust the data of specific sediment yield to a common standard area. Based on the scaled data, a map of specific sediment yield was con-structed using Kriging interpolation. For comparison, a map based on the un-scaled data of specific sediment yield was also constructed using the same method. The two maps show that the basic pattern of specific sediment yield was basically the same. The severely eroded areas (Ys >10000 t km-2a-1) were at the same locations from Hekouzhen to Longmen in the middle Yellow River Basin. However, after the adjustment to a common standard area, the very severely eroded area (Ys >20000 t km-2a-1) became much enlarged because after the adjustment, all the values of Ys in the lower river basin in those regions became much larger than before.     

Combining suspended sediment monitoring and fingerprinting to determine the spatial origin of fine sediment in a mountainous river catchment

An excess of fine sediment (grain size <2 mm) supply to rivers leads to reservoir siltation, water contamination and operational problems for hydroelectric power plants in many catchments of the world, such as in the French Alps. These problems are exacerbated in mountainous environments characterized by large sediment exports during very short periods. This study combined river flow records, sediment geochemistry and associated radionuclide concentrations as input properties to a Monte Carlo mixing model to quantify the contribution of different geologic sources to river sediment. Overall, between 2007 and 2009, erosion rates reached 249 ± 75 t km^?2 yr^?1 at the outlet of the Bléone catchment, but this mean value masked important spatial variations of erosion intensity within the catchment (85–5000 t km^?2 yr^?1). Quantifying the contribution of different potential sources to river sediment required the application of sediment fingerprinting using a Monte Carlo mixing model. This model allowed the specific contributions of different geological sub‐types (i.e. black marls, marly limestones, conglomerates and Quaternary deposits) to be determined. Even though they generate locally very high erosion rates, black marls supplied only a minor fraction (5–20%) of the fine sediment collected on the riverbed in the vicinity of the 907 km² catchment outlet. The bulk of sediment was provided by Quaternary deposits (21–66%), conglomerates (3–44%) and limestones (9–27%). Even though bioengineering works conducted currently to stabilize gullies in black marl terrains are undoubtedly useful to limit sediment supply to the Bléone river, erosion generated by other substrate sources dominated between 2007 and 2009 in this catchment. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Modelling the effects of spatial and temporal resolution of rainfall and basin model on extreme river discharge

Abstract

Important characteristics of an appropriate river basin model, intended to study the effect of climate change on basin response, are the spatial and temporal resolution of the model and the rainfall input. The effects of input and model resolution on extreme discharge of a large river basin are assessed to give some indication on appropriate resolutions. A simple stochastic rainfall model and a river basin model with uniform parameters and multiple rainfall input have been developed and applied to the River Meuse basin in northwestern Europe. The results show that the effect of model resolution on extreme river discharge is much greater than that of input resolution. The highest model resolution seems to be quite accurate in determining extreme discharge. Although the results should be interpreted with caution, they may give some indication of appropriate input and model resolutions for the determination of extreme discharge of a large river basin.     

Predicting catchment sediment yield in Mediterranean environments: the importance of sediment sources and connectivity in Italian drainage basins

Predicting sediment yield at the catchment scale is one of the main challenges in geomorphologic research. The application of both physics‐based models and regression models has until now not provided very satisfying results for prediction of sediment yield for medium to large sized catchments (c. >50 km²). The explanation for this lies in a combination of the large data requirements of most models and a lack of knowledge to describe all processes and process interactions at the catchment scale. In particular, point sources of sediment (e.g. gullies, mass movements), connectivity and sediment transport remain difficult to describe in most models. From reservoir sedimentation data of 44 Italian catchments, it appeared that there was a (non‐significant) positive relation between catchment area and sediment yield. This is in contrast to what is generally expected from the theory of decreasing sediment delivery rates with increasing catchment area. Furthermore, this positive relation suggests that processes other than upland erosion are responsible for catchment sediment yield. Here we explore the potential of the Factorial Scoring Model (FSM) and the Pacific Southwest Interagency Committee (PSIAC) model to predict sediment yield, and indicate the most important sediment sources. In these models different factors are used to characterize a drainage basin in terms of sensitivity to erosion and connectivity. In both models an index is calculated that is related to sediment yield. The FSM explained between 36 and 61 per cent of the variation in sediment yield, and the PSIAC model between 57 and 62 per cent, depending on the factors used to characterize the catchments. The FSM model performed best based on a factor to describe gullies, lithology, landslides, catchment shape and vegetation. Topography and catchment area did not explain additional variance. In particular, the addition of the landslide factor resulted in a significantly increased model performance. The FSM and PSIAC model both performed better than a spatially distributed model describing water erosion and sediment transport, which was applied to the same catchments but explained only between 20 and 51 per cent of the variation in sediment yield. Model results confirmed the hypothesis that processes other than upland erosion are probably responsible for sediment yield in the Italian catchments. A promising future development of the models is by the use of detailed spatially distributed data to determine the scores, decrease model subjectivity and provide spatially distributed output. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The impact of land use change and check‐dams on catchment sediment yield

Extensive land use changes have occurred in many areas of SE Spain as a result of reforestation and the abandonment of agricultural activities. Parallel to this the Spanish Administration spends large funds on hydrological control works to reduce erosion and sediment transport. However, it remains untested how these large land use changes affect the erosion processes at the catchment scale and if the hydrological control works efficiently reduce sediment export. A combination of field work, mapping and modelling was used to test the influence of land use scenarios with and without sediment control structures (check‐dams) on sediment yield at the catchment scale. The study catchment is located in SE Spain and suffered important land use changes, increasing the forest cover 3‐fold and decreasing the agricultural land 2·5‐fold from 1956 to 1997. In addition 58 check‐dams were constructed in the catchment in the 1970s accompanying reforestation works. The erosion model WATEM‐SEDEM was applied using six land use scenarios: land use in 1956, 1981 and 1997, each with and without check‐dams. Calibration of the model provided a model efficiency of 0·84 for absolute sediment yield. Model application showed that in a scenario without check dams, the land use changes between 1956 and 1997 caused a progressive decrease in sediment yield of 54%. In a scenario without land use changes but with check‐dams, about 77% of the sediment yield was retained behind the dams. Check‐dams can be efficient sediment control measures, but with a short‐lived effect. They have important side‐effects, such as inducing channel erosion downstream. While also having side‐effects, land use changes can have important long‐term effects on sediment yield. The application of either land use changes (i.e. reforestation) or check‐dams to control sediment yield depends on the objective of the management and the specific environmental conditions of each area. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Interannual variation of suspended sediment load and sediment yield in an alpine catchment

Abstract

The results are described of 16 years operation of a measuring station for the automatic recording of water discharge, bed load and suspended sediment transport in the Rio Cordon catchment, a small alpine basin (5 km²) located in northeastern Italy. Hillslope erosion processes were investigated by surveying individual sediment sources repeatedly. Annual and seasonal variations of suspended sediment load during the period 1986–2001 are analysed along with their contribution to the total sediment yield. The results show that suspended load accounted for 76% of total load and that most of the suspended sediment transport occurred during two flood events: an extreme summer flash flood in September 1994 (27% of the 16-years total suspended load) and a snowmelt-induced event in May 2001 accompanied by a mud flow which fed the stream with sediments. The role of active sediment source areas is discussed in relation to the changes in flood peak—suspended load trends which became apparent after both the 1994 and the 2001 events.     

Effects of historical land use on sediment yield from a lacustrine watershed in central Chile

Sediment yield in the San Pedro Lake watershed, inferred from sedimentation in the lake, can be related to land use changes shown on aerial photographs taken during the period 1943–1994. In this watershed, which covers 4·5 km² of mountainous terrain in San Pedro County, central Chile, the area of native forest species decreased from 70 per cent in 1943 to 13 per cent in 1994. During this same period, the area of pine plantations increased from 4 to 46 per cent. To study effects of these changes, we took a core from the centre of the lake and estimated sedimentation rates by ²¹⁰Pb dating, which we checked with ¹³⁷Cs and pine pollen. The results show that sedimentation rate ranged from 5 mg cm⁻² a⁻¹ in the late 1800s to 60 mg cm⁻² a⁻¹ in the late 1960s. These rates, together with assumptions about the production and delivery of the sediment, give corresponding figures for sediment yields with maximum values close to 1 t ha⁻¹ a⁻¹. Sediment yield between 1955 and 1994 closely tracks the total land use change that can be detected, irrespective of land use type, on sets of aerial photographs taken four to 18 years apart. However, this measure of land use change, while convenient and successful as a predictor of historical erosion, may be unreliable because it probably excludes many changes that occurred in long intervals between successive photographs. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Modelling the impacts of subsurface drainage on surface runoff and sediment yield in the Le Sueur Watershed,Minnesota, USA

Abstract

Tile drainage influences infiltration and surface runoff and is thus an important factor in the erosion process. Tile drainage reduces surface runoff, but questions abound on its influence on sediment transport through its dense network and into the stream network. The impact of subsurface tiling on upland erosion rates in the Le Sueur River watershed, USA, was assessed using the Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP) model. Six different scenarios of tile drainage with varying drainage coefficient and management type (no till and autumn mulch-till) were evaluated. The mean annual surface runoff depth, soil loss rate and sediment delivery ratio (SDR) for croplands, based on a 30-year simulation for the watershed with untiled autumn mulch-till (Scenario 1), were estimated to be 83.5 mm, 0.27 kg/m² and 86.7%, respectively; on no-till management systems (Scenario 4), the respective results were 72.3 mm, 0.06 kg/m² and 88.2%. Tile drains reduced surface runoff, soil loss and SDR estimates for Scenario 1 by, on average, 14.5, 8.1 and 7.9%, respectively; and for Scenario 4 by an estimated 31.5, 22.1 and 20.2%, respectively. The impact of tile drains on surface runoff, soil loss and SDR was greater under the no-till management system than under the autumn mulch-till management system. Comparison of WEPP outputs with those of the Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) showed differences between the two methods.

Editor Z.W. Kundzewicz

Citation Maalim, F.K. and Melesse. A.M., 2013. Modelling impacts of subsurface drainage on surface runoff and sediment yield in the Le Sueur Watershed in Minnesota, USA. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 58 (3), 570–586.     

Variations in runoff,sediment load,and their relationship for a major sediment source area of the Jialing River basin,southern China

Investigation of the variations in runoff, sediment load, and their dynamic relation is conducive to understanding hydrological regime changes and supporting channel regulation and fluvial management. This study is undertaken in the Xihanshui catchment, which is known for its high sediment-laden in the Jialing River of the Yangtze River basin, southern China, to evaluate the change characteristics of runoff, sediment load, and their relationship at multi-temporal scales from 1966 to 2016. The results showed that runoff changed significantly for more months, whereas the significant changes in monthly sediment load occurred from April to September. The contributions of runoff in summer and autumn and sediment load in summer to their annual value changes were greater. Annual runoff and sediment load in the Xihanshui catchment both exhibited significant decreasing trends (p < 0.05) with a significant mutation in 1993 (p < 0.05). The average annual runoff in the change period (1994–2016) decreased by 49.58% and annual sediment load displayed a substantial decline with a reduction of 77.77% in comparison with the reference period (1966–1993) due to climate change and intensive human activity. The power functions were satisfactory to describe annual and extreme monthly runoff–sediment relationships, whereas the monthly runoff–sediment relationship and extreme monthly sediment-runoff relationship were changeable. Spatially, annual runoff–sediment relationship alteration could be partly attributed to sediment load changes in the upstream area and runoff variations in the downstream region. Three quantitative methods revealed that the main driver for significant reductions of annual runoff and sediment load is the human activity dominated by soil and water conservation measures, while climate change only contributed 22.73%–38.99% (mean 32.07%) to the total runoff reduction and 3.39%–35.56% (mean 17.32%) to the total decrease in sediment load.     

Analysis of long‐term water balance in the source area of the Yellow River basin

To analyse the long‐term water balance of the Yellow River basin, a new hydrological model was developed and applied to the source area of the basin. The analysis involved 41 years (1960–2000) of daily observation data from 16 meteorological stations. The model is composed of the following three sub‐models: a heat balance model, a runoff formation model and a river‐routing network model. To understand the heat and water balances more precisely, the original model was modified as follows. First, the land surface was classified into five types (bare, grassland, forest, irrigation area and water surface) using a high‐resolution land‐use map. Potential evaporation was then calculated using land‐surface temperatures estimated by the heat balance model. The maximum evapotranspiration of each land surface was calculated from potential evaporation using functions of the leaf area index (LAI). Finally, actual evapotranspiration was estimated by regulating the maximum evapotranspiration using functions of soil moisture content. The river discharge estimated by the model agreed well with the observed data in most years. However, relatively large errors, which may have been caused by the overestimation of surface flow, appeared in some summer periods. The rapid decrease of river discharge in recent years in the source area of the Yellow River basin depended primarily on the decrease in precipitation. Furthermore, the results suggested that the long‐term water balance in the source area of the Yellow River basin is influenced by land‐use changes. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Modelling spatio-temporal patterns of sediment yield and connectivity in a semi-arid catchment with the WASA-SED model

Abstract

Rainfall–runoff induced soil erosion causes important environmental degradation by reducing soil fertility and impacting on water availability as a consequence of sediment deposition in surface reservoirs used for water supply, particularly in semi-arid areas. However, erosion models developed on experimental plots cannot be directly applied to estimate sediment yield at the catchment scale, since sediment redistribution is also controlled by the transport conditions along the landscape. In particular, representation of landscape connectivity relating to sediment transfer from upslope areas to the river network is required. In this study, the WASA-SED model is used to assess the spatial and temporal patterns of water and sediment connectivity for a semi-arid meso-scale catchment (933 km²) in Brazil. It is shown how spatial and temporal patterns of sediment connectivity within the catchment change as a function of landscape and event characteristics. This explains the nonlinear catchment response in terms of sediment yield at the outlet.

Citation Medeiros, P. H. A., Güntner, A., Francke, T., Mamede, G. L. & de Araújo, J. C. (2010) Modelling spatio-temporal patterns of sediment yield and connectivity in a semi-arid catchment with the WASA-SED model. Hydrol. Sci. J. 55(4), 636–648.     

Spatial patterns of suspended sediment yields in a humid tropical watershed in Costa Rica

An Erratum has been published for this article in Hydrological Processes 16(5) 2002, 1130–1131. Humid tropical regions are often characterized by extreme variability of fluvial processes. The Rio Terraba drains the largest river basin, covering 4767 km², in Costa Rica. Mean annual rainfall is 3139±419_sd mm and mean annual discharge is 2168±492_sd mm (1971–88). Loss of forest cover, high rainfall erosivity and geomorphologic instability all have led to considerable degradation of soil and water resources at local to basin scales. Parametric and non‐parametric statistical methods were used to estimate sediment yields. In the Terraba basin, sediment yields per unit area increase from the headwaters to the basin mouth, and the trend is generally robust towards choice of methods (parametric and LOESS) used. This is in contrast to a general view that deposition typically exceeds sediment delivery with increase in basin size. The specific sediment yield increases from 112±11·4_sd t km^?2 year^?1 (at 317·9 km² on a major headwater tributary) to 404±141·7_sd t km^?2 year^?1 (at 4766·7 km²) at the basin mouth (1971–92). The analyses of relationships between sediment yields and basin parameters for the Terraba sub‐basins and for a total of 29 basins all over Costa Rica indicate a strong land use effect related to intensive agriculture besides hydro‐climatology. The best explanation for the observed pattern in the Terraba basin is a combined spatial pattern of land use and rainfall erosivity. These were integrated in a soil erosion index that is related to the observed patterns of sediment yield. Estimated sediment delivery ratios increase with basin area. Intensive agriculture in lower‐lying alluvial fans exposed to highly erosive rainfall contributes a large part of the sediment load. The higher elevation regions, although steep in slope, largely remain under forest, pasture, or tree‐crops. High rainfall erosivity (>7400 MJ mm ha^?1 h^?1 year ^?1) is associated with land uses that provide inadequate soil protection. It is also associated with steep, unstable slopes near the basin mouth. Improvements in land use and soil management in the lower‐lying regions exposed to highly erosive rainfall are recommended, and are especially important to basins in which sediment delivery ratio increases downstream with increasing basin area. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Streamflow and suspended sediment yield following the 2000 Bobcat fire,Colorado

Postfire runoff and erosion are a concern, and more data are needed on the effects of wildfire at the watershed‐scale, especially in the Colorado Front Range. The goal of this study was to characterize and compare the streamflow and suspended sediment yield response of two watersheds (Bobcat Gulch and Jug Gulch) after the 2000 Bobcat fire. Bobcat Gulch had several erosion control treatments applied after the fire, including aerial seeding, contour log felling, mulching, and straw wattles. Jug Gulch was partially seeded. Study objectives were to: (1) measure precipitation, streamflow, and sediment yields; (2) assess the effect of rainfall intensity on peak discharges, storm runoff, and sediment yields; (3) evaluate short‐term hydrologic recovery. Two months after the fire, a storm with a maximum 30 min rainfall intensity I₃₀ of 42 mm h^?1 generated a peak discharge of 3900 l s^?1 km^?2 in Bobcat Gulch. The same storm produced less than 5 l s^?1 km^?2 in Jug Gulch, due to less rainfall and the low watershed response. In the second summer, storms with, I₃₀ of 23 mm h^?1 and 32 mm h^?1 generated peak discharges of 1100 l s^?1 km^?2 and 1700 l s^?1 km^?2 in the treated and untreated watersheds respectively. Maximum water yield efficiencies were 10% and 17% respectively, but 18 of the 23 storms returned ≤2% of the rainfall as runoff, effectively obscuring interpretation of the erosion control treatments. I₃₀ explained 86% of the variability in peak discharges, 74% of the variability in storm runoff, and >80% of the variability in sediment yields. Maximum single‐storm sediment yields in the second summer were 370 kg ha^?1 in the treated watershed and 950 kg ha^?1 in the untreated watershed. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The responses of hydrological processes and sediment yield to land‐use and climate change in the Be River Catchment,Vietnam

In this study, we investigated the responses of hydrology and sediment yield with impacts of land‐use and climate change scenarios in the Be River Catchment, using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) hydrological model. The calibration and validation results indicated that the SWAT model is a powerful tool for simulating the impact of environmental change on hydrology and sediment yield in this catchment. The hydrologic and sediment yield responses to land‐use and climate changes were simulated based on the calibrated model. The results indicated that a 16.3% decrease in forest land is likely to increase streamflow (0.2 to 0.4%), sediment load (1.8 to 3.0%), and surface runoff (SURQ) (4.8 to 10.7%) and to decrease groundwater discharge (GW_Q) (3.5 to 7.9%). Climate change in the catchment leads to decreases in streamflow (0.7 to 6.9%) and GW_Q (3.0 to 8.4%), increase in evapotranspiration (0.5 to 2.9%), and changes in SURQ (?5.3 to 2.3%) and sediment load (?5.3 to 4.4%). The combined impacts of land‐use and climate changes decrease streamflow (2.0 to 3.9%) and GW_Q (12.3 to 14.0%), increase evapotranspiration (0.7 to 2.8%), SURQ (8.2 to 12.4%), and sediment load (2.0 to 7.9%). In general, the separate impacts of climate and land‐use changes on streamflow, sediment load, and water balance components are offset each other. However, SURQ and some component of subsurface flow are more sensitive to land‐use change than to climate change. Furthermore, the results emphasized water scarcity during the dry season and increased soil erosion during the wet season. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of forest on annual water yield in the mountains of an arid inland river basin: a case study in the Pailugou catchment on northwestern China's Qilian Mountains

The effect of forests on annual water yield is an unresolved central issue in forest hydrology despite years of study. There has been a particular shortage of research in the mountains of arid inland river basins. In the present study, we examined the effects of forests on hydrology using data on precipitation, evaporation, canopy interception, transpiration, and runoff from 1994 to 2008 for the Pailugou catchment of northwestern China's Qilian Mountains. We modelled the water balance to assess the contribution of different vegetation types to annual water yield. In our study area, Picea crassifolia forest covered 38·5% of the catchment area, but contributed little to annual water yield. For an annual average precipitation of 407·1 mm (from 2003 to 2008) at an elevation of 2700 m, the runoff depth from the forest was 11·6 mm, accounting for only 3·5% of total annual water yield of the catchment. For an annual average precipitation of 374·1 mm (from 1994 to 2002), the runoff depth from the forest was ? 14·3 mm (i.e. 5·9% of total annual water yield of the catchment was consumed to sustain tree growth). This has significant implications, because forests are increasingly being planted in the Qilian Mountains, and this may decrease the downstream water supply. Thus, the relationship between the forest and water yield must be better understood to permit the establishment of an appropriate regional level of forest cover. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Simulation of relationship between river discharge and sediment yield in the semi-arid river watersheds

Complex and variable nature of the river sediment yield caused many problems in estimating the long-term sediment yield and problems input into the reservoirs. Sediment Rating Curves (SRCs) are generally used to estimate the suspended sediment load of the rivers and drainage watersheds. Since the regression equations of the SRCs are obtained by logarithmic retransformation and have a little independent variable in this equation, they also overestimate or underestimate the true sediment load of the rivers. To evaluate the bias correction factors in Kalshor and Kashafroud watersheds, seven hydrometric stations of this region with suitable upstream watershed and spatial distribution were selected. Investigation of the accuracy index (ratio of estimated sediment yield to observed sediment yield) and the precision index of different bias correction factors of FAO, Quasi-Maximum Likelihood Estimator (QMLE), Smearing, and Minimum-Variance Unbiased Estimator (MVUE) with LSD test showed that FAO coefficient increases the estimated error in all of the stations. Application of MVUE in linear and mean load rating curves has not statistically meaningful effects. QMLE and smearing factors increased the estimated error in mean load rating curve, but that does not have any effect on linear rating curve estimation.     

Shift from transport limited to supply limited sediment concentrations with the progression of monsoon rains in the Upper Blue Nile Basin

Long‐term erosion monitoring data in the Ethiopian highlands are only available from the Soil Conservation Research Program (SCRP) watersheds including the Anjeni watershed. The 113 ha Anjeni watershed was established in 1984 and fanya juu terraces were installed in 1986. Runoff and erosion data are available from three different plot sizes and at the watershed outlet. The objective of this study was to investigate how erosion processes and sediment rating parameters vary with plot size and the progression of the rainy monsoon phase. We analyzed runoff and sediment loss data from 40 plots and the watershed outlet. The dataset included erosion data from 24 newly constructed plots (3 m length) during the rainy monsoon phase of 2012 and 2013, and 16 long‐term plots (with 12, 16, 22, and 24% slopes and 3, 15 and 30 m lengths) and the watershed outlet during the period between 1986 to 1990. Sediment concentration (C) was fitted to runoff (Q) using a power regression equation (C = aQ^b). Sediment concentration and yield increased with increasing plot length from 3 m to 15 m, but sediment yield decreased as plot length increased to 30 m.The coefficients (a and b) were affected by plot size and the progression of the rainy monsoon phase. As plot size increases, the a value increased, while the b value decreased. Greater a values were observed during the beginning of the monsoon phase, while values of b were greater towards the end of the monsoon phase. Overall findings suggest that erosion from cultivated fields is primarily controlled by transport limitations at the beginning of the monsoon phase, while towards the end of the monsoon phase, as surface covers emerge, sediment availability will be reduced, and thus sediment source would be a limitation. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.