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Analyzing the Water Budget and Hydrological Characteristics and Responses to Land Use in a Monsoonal Climate River Basin in South China

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Abstract

Hydrological models have been increasingly used by hydrologists and water resource managers to understand natural processes and human activities that affect watersheds. In this study, we use the physically based model, Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT), to investigate the hydrological processes in the East River Basin in South China, a coastal area dominated by monsoonal climate. The SWAT model was calibrated using 8-year (1973–1980) record of the daily streamflow at the basin outlet (Boluo station), and then validated using data collected during the subsequent 8 years (1981–1988). Statistical evaluation shows that SWAT can consistently simulate the streamflow of the East River with monthly Nash–Sutcliffe efficiencies of 0.93 for calibration and 0.90 for validation at the Boluo station. We analyzed the model simulations with calibrated parameters, presented the spatiotemporal distribution of the key hydrological components, and quantified their responses to different land uses. Watershed managers can use the results of this study to understand hydrological features and evaluate water resources of the East River in terms of sustainable development and effective management.

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Acknowledgments

The financial support for our study came from a HKSAR RGC GRF Project (HKU 710910E). Part of this work was performed under the USGS contract G08PC91508. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. We thank Devendra Dahal (Stinger Ghaffarian Technologies, a contractor to USGS EROS) for his comments on the early draft and thank Elisabeth Brouwers and Sandra Cooper (USGS) for further reviews to improve the paper quality. We also thank the Editor and two anonymous reviewers for their invaluable and constructive comments and suggestions.

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  1. ASRC Research and Technology Solutions, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center, Sioux Falls, SD, 57198, USA

    Yiping Wu

  2. Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, China

    Yiping Wu & Ji Chen

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  1. Yiping Wu
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  2. Ji Chen
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Wu, Y., Chen, J. Analyzing the Water Budget and Hydrological Characteristics and Responses to Land Use in a Monsoonal Climate River Basin in South China. Environmental Management 51, 1174–1186 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-013-0045-5

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