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Effects of different soil and water conservation measures on hydrological extremes and flood processes in the Yanhe River, Loess Plateau, China

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Abstract

The runoff and sediment load of the Loess Plateau have changed significantly due to the implementation of soil and water conservation measures since the 1970s. However, the effects of soil and water conservation measures on hydrological extremes have rarely been considered. In this study, we investigated the variations in hydrological extremes and flood processes during different periods in the Yanhe River Basin (a tributary of the Loess Plateau) based on the daily mean runoff and 117 flood event data from 1956 to 2013. The study periods were divided into reference period (1956–1969), engineering measures period (1970–1995), and biological control measures period (1996–2013) according to the change points of the annual streamflow and the actual human activity in the basin. The results of the hydrological high extremes (HF1max, HF3max, HF7max) exhibit a decreasing trend (P < 0.01), whereas the hydrological low extremes (HBF1min, HBF3min, HBF7min) show an increasing trend during 1956–2013. Compared with the hydrological extremes during the reference period, the hydrological high extremes increased during the engineering measures period at low (< 15%) and high frequency (> 80%), whereas decreased during the biological control measures period at almost all frequencies. The hydrological low extremes generally increased during both the engineering measures and biological control measures periods, particularly during the latter period. At the flood event scale, most flood event indices in connection with the runoff and sediment during the engineering measures period were significantly higher than those during the biological control measures period. The above results indicate that the ability to withstand hydrological extremes for the biological control measures was greater than that for the engineering measures in the studied basin. This work reveals the effects of different soil and water conservation measures on hydrological extremes in a typical basin of the Loess Plateau and hence can provide a useful reference for regional soil erosion control and disaster prevention policy-making.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (4207072131) and (41671285), the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2016YFC0501707, 2016YFC0402401).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Yangtze River Basin Monitoring Center Station for Soil and Water Conservation, Changjiang Water Resources Commission, Wuhan, 430012, Hubei Province, China

    ChaoJun Gu, Yongqing Zhu, Renhua Li & He Yao

  2. State Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Dryland Farming On the Loess Plateau, Northwest A&F University, Xinong Road 26, Yangling, 712100, Shaanxi Province, China

    ChaoJun Gu & Xingmin Mu

  3. Institute of Soil and Water Conservation of Chinese Academy of Sciences and Ministry of Water Resources, Yangling, 712100, Shaanxi Province, China

    Xingmin Mu

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  1. ChaoJun Gu
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  2. Yongqing Zhu
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Contributions

Chaojun Gu carried out data processing, data analysis and wrote the paper. Yongqing Zhu designed the research framework. Renhua Li, He Yao, and Xingmin Mu offered guidance to complete the work and made revisions to the manuscript.

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Correspondence to ChaoJun Gu.

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Gu, C., Zhu, Y., Li, R. et al. Effects of different soil and water conservation measures on hydrological extremes and flood processes in the Yanhe River, Loess Plateau, China. Nat Hazards 109, 545–566 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-021-04848-w

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