American Journal of Water Science and Engineering

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Modelling the Impacts of Land Use Change on Stream Flow in the Kimwarer Catchment Using SWAT

Received: 26 October 2018    Accepted: 21 November 2018    Published: 03 January 2019
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Abstract

The Kimwarer River basin covers 138.2 km2. It has experienced ecosystem degradation due to extensive farming that has impacted on water yield. This study was undertaken to assess the impacts of land use changes on river flow using SWAT, a mathematical model that has the potential to predict the impact of land management practices on water at catchment scale. Current and historic flow data were collected for model calibration and validation. The model was then used to simulate stream flow for different land use and land cover scenarios by varying the extend of forest cover and agriculture. The model was successfully calibrated and validated for stream flow, and proved capable of predicting flow with R2 and NSE values of 0.79 and 0.31 respectively. During validation, the model predicted flows with R2 and NSE values of 0.70 and 0.50 respectively. For scenario analysis to determine the effect of land use change on stream flow, it was observed that runoff decreased with increase in forest cover, while base-flow increased. Introduction of terraces as a management operation on agricultural land reduced runoff by 46%. It is evident from the study that the current trend of land use change affects stream flow.

DOI 10.11648/j.ajwse.20180404.14
Published in American Journal of Water Science and Engineering (Volume 4, Issue 4, December 2018)
Page(s) 107-116
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Basin, Land Use, Modelling, Stream Flow, SWAT

References
[1] Yong, S. T. Y. and Chen, W. 2002. Modelling the Relationship between Land Use and Surface Water Quality. Journal of Environmental Management 66(4): 377-393.
[2] Turner, B. L., Kasperson, R. E., Matson, P. A., McCarthy, J. J., Corell, R. W., Christensen, L. and Polsky, C. 2003. A Framework for Vulneranability Analysis in Sustainability Science. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 100(14): 8074-8079.
[3] WRI 2007. World Resources Institute. EarthTrends: The Environmental Information Portal.
[4] Saifuk, K. and Ongsomwang, S. 2003. A Decision Support Framework for Catchment Based Natural Resource Management. Proceedings of International Congress on Modelling and Simulation (MODSIM2003): 1645-1648.
[5] Akotsi, E. F. N. and Gachanja, M. 2006. Report on Changesin Forest Cover in Kenya's Five " Water Towers" 2003-2005. DRSRS, KFWG. 2.
[6] Gassman, P. W., Sadeghi, A. M. and Srinivasan, R. 2014. Applications of the SWAT Model Special Section: Overviewand Insights. Journal of Environmental Quality. 43(1): 1-8.
[7] Batjes, N. H. 1997. A World Dataset of Derived Soil Properties by FAO-UNESCO Soil Unit for Global Modelling. Soil Use and Management. 13(1): 9-16.
[8] Jarvis, A., H. I. Reuter, A. Nelson, E. Guevara, 2008, Hole-filled SRTM for the globe Version 4, available from the CIAT-CSI SRTM 90m Database (http://srtm.csi.cgiar.org). (accessed July 2017)
[9] USGS 2009, Global Land Survey, 2000, LandSat ETM+, 30m scene p169r060 dx19991002, USGS, Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
[10] Dijkshoorn. J A, 2007, Soil and terrain database for Kenya (ver. 2.0) (KENSOTER) http://library.wur.nl/WebQuery/wurpubs/452214 (accessed July 2017)
[11] Lavers, D. A., Villarini, G., Allan, R. P., Wood, E. F. and Wade, A. J. 2012. The Detection of Atmospheric Rivers in Atmospheric Reanalysis and Their Links to British Winter Floods and the Large-Scale Climatic Circulation. Journal of Geophysical Research 117(D20106).
[12] Van Griensven, A., Francos, A. and Bauwens, W. 2002. Sensitivity Analysis and Auto- Calibration of an Integral Dynamic Model for River Water Quality. Water Science and Technology. 45(9): 325-332.
[13] Moriasi, D. N., Wilson, B. N., Doughlas-Mankin, K. R., Arnold, J. G. and Gowda, P. H. 2012. Hydrologic and Water Quality Models: Use, Calibration and Validation. Transactions of the ABE. 55(4): 1241-1247.
[14] Khelifa, W. B., Hermassi, T., Strohmeier, S., Zucca, C., Ziadat, F., Boufaroua, M. and Habaieb, H. 2017. Parameterization of the Effect of bench Terraces on Runoff and Sediment Yield by SWAT Modelling in a Small Semi-Arid Watershed in Northern Tunisia. Land Degradation and Development. 28: 1568-1578.
Author Information
  • Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, University of Eldoret, Eldoret, Kenya

  • Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, University of Eldoret, Eldoret, Kenya

  • Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, University of Eldoret, Eldoret, Kenya

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  • APA Style

    Daniel Kimutai Kiplagat, Julius Kipkemboi Kollongei, Clement Kiprotich Kiptum. (2019). Modelling the Impacts of Land Use Change on Stream Flow in the Kimwarer Catchment Using SWAT. American Journal of Water Science and Engineering, 4(4), 107-116. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajwse.20180404.14

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    ACS Style

    Daniel Kimutai Kiplagat; Julius Kipkemboi Kollongei; Clement Kiprotich Kiptum. Modelling the Impacts of Land Use Change on Stream Flow in the Kimwarer Catchment Using SWAT. Am. J. Water Sci. Eng. 2019, 4(4), 107-116. doi: 10.11648/j.ajwse.20180404.14

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    AMA Style

    Daniel Kimutai Kiplagat, Julius Kipkemboi Kollongei, Clement Kiprotich Kiptum. Modelling the Impacts of Land Use Change on Stream Flow in the Kimwarer Catchment Using SWAT. Am J Water Sci Eng. 2019;4(4):107-116. doi: 10.11648/j.ajwse.20180404.14

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ajwse.20180404.14,
      author = {Daniel Kimutai Kiplagat and Julius Kipkemboi Kollongei and Clement Kiprotich Kiptum},
      title = {Modelling the Impacts of Land Use Change on Stream Flow in the Kimwarer Catchment Using SWAT},
      journal = {American Journal of Water Science and Engineering},
      volume = {4},
      number = {4},
      pages = {107-116},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ajwse.20180404.14},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajwse.20180404.14},
      eprint = {https://download.sciencepg.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajwse.20180404.14},
      abstract = {The Kimwarer River basin covers 138.2 km2. It has experienced ecosystem degradation due to extensive farming that has impacted on water yield. This study was undertaken to assess the impacts of land use changes on river flow using SWAT, a mathematical model that has the potential to predict the impact of land management practices on water at catchment scale. Current and historic flow data were collected for model calibration and validation. The model was then used to simulate stream flow for different land use and land cover scenarios by varying the extend of forest cover and agriculture. The model was successfully calibrated and validated for stream flow, and proved capable of predicting flow with R2 and NSE values of 0.79 and 0.31 respectively. During validation, the model predicted flows with R2 and NSE values of 0.70 and 0.50 respectively. For scenario analysis to determine the effect of land use change on stream flow, it was observed that runoff decreased with increase in forest cover, while base-flow increased. Introduction of terraces as a management operation on agricultural land reduced runoff by 46%. It is evident from the study that the current trend of land use change affects stream flow.},
     year = {2019}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Modelling the Impacts of Land Use Change on Stream Flow in the Kimwarer Catchment Using SWAT
    AU  - Daniel Kimutai Kiplagat
    AU  - Julius Kipkemboi Kollongei
    AU  - Clement Kiprotich Kiptum
    Y1  - 2019/01/03
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    DO  - 10.11648/j.ajwse.20180404.14
    T2  - American Journal of Water Science and Engineering
    JF  - American Journal of Water Science and Engineering
    JO  - American Journal of Water Science and Engineering
    SP  - 107
    EP  - 116
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2575-1875
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajwse.20180404.14
    AB  - The Kimwarer River basin covers 138.2 km2. It has experienced ecosystem degradation due to extensive farming that has impacted on water yield. This study was undertaken to assess the impacts of land use changes on river flow using SWAT, a mathematical model that has the potential to predict the impact of land management practices on water at catchment scale. Current and historic flow data were collected for model calibration and validation. The model was then used to simulate stream flow for different land use and land cover scenarios by varying the extend of forest cover and agriculture. The model was successfully calibrated and validated for stream flow, and proved capable of predicting flow with R2 and NSE values of 0.79 and 0.31 respectively. During validation, the model predicted flows with R2 and NSE values of 0.70 and 0.50 respectively. For scenario analysis to determine the effect of land use change on stream flow, it was observed that runoff decreased with increase in forest cover, while base-flow increased. Introduction of terraces as a management operation on agricultural land reduced runoff by 46%. It is evident from the study that the current trend of land use change affects stream flow.
    VL  - 4
    IS  - 4
    ER  - 

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