Impact of Land-Use Change on Water Resources

A special issue of Land (ISSN 2073-445X).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (22 August 2022) | Viewed by 8132

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Geosciences, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI 02881, USA
Interests: water resources; water quality; climate change; modeling; nutrients transport; forest ecology
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Extreme events due to climate change, when combined with land-use change, have many impacts on hydrological processes in the watershed. The quantity and quality of water available for human consumption and ecosystem processes are affected mainly by land use and climate change. Contaminants from various sources, including agricultural, urban, and industrial areas, are increasing and posing threats locally, regionally, and globally. For this Special Issue, we solicit papers related to any aspects of land use and climate change impacts on hydrologic systems. The following are the topic areas we are particularly interested in:

  1. Application of hydrological models to assess the impact of land use and climate change on surface and groundwater quantity and quality;
  2. Impacts on land-use and climate change on hydrological controls;
  3. Changes in water ecosystem services due to land-use and climate change;
  4. Changes in the biogeochemistry of water resources;
  5. Impacts on water security due to land-use conversions and extreme events.

This Special Issue will provide peer-reviewed papers that will be a valuable resource for students, researchers, educators, planners, and managers.

Dr. Soni M. Pradhanang
Guest Editor

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 3581 KiB  
Article
Attribution Analysis of Seasonal Runoff in the Source Region of the Yellow River Using Seasonal Budyko Hypothesis
by Guangxing Ji, Leying Wu, Liangdong Wang, Dan Yan and Zhizhu Lai
Land 2021, 10(5), 542; https://doi.org/10.3390/land10050542 - 19 May 2021
Cited by 30 | Viewed by 2727
Abstract
Previous studies mainly focused on quantifying the contribution rate of different factors on annual runoff variation in the source region of the Yellow River (SRYR), while there are few studies on the seasonal runoff variation. In this study, the monthly water storage and [...] Read more.
Previous studies mainly focused on quantifying the contribution rate of different factors on annual runoff variation in the source region of the Yellow River (SRYR), while there are few studies on the seasonal runoff variation. In this study, the monthly water storage and monthly actual evaporation of SRYR were calculated by the monthly ABCD model, and then a seasonal Budyko frame was constructed. Finally, the contribution rate of climatic and anthropic factors on the seasonal runoff variation in Tangnaihai hydrological station were quantitatively calculated. It turned out that: (1) The changing point of runoff data at Tangnaihai hydrological station is 1989. (2) The ABCD monthly hydrological model could well simulate the monthly runoff variation of Tangnaihai hydrological station. (3) Anthropic factors play a major role in runoff change in spring, summer, and winter, while climatic factors play a major role in runoff change in autumn. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Land-Use Change on Water Resources)
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21 pages, 4905 KiB  
Article
How Climate Change and Land Use/Land Cover Change Affect Domestic Water Vulnerability in Yangambi Watersheds (D. R. Congo)
by David Ushindi Chishugi, Denis Jean Sonwa, Jean-Marie Kahindo, Destin Itunda, Josué Bahati Chishugi, Fiyo Losembe Félix and Muhindo Sahani
Land 2021, 10(2), 165; https://doi.org/10.3390/land10020165 - 6 Feb 2021
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 4114
Abstract
In the tropics, the domestic water supply depends principally on ecosystem services, including the regulation and purification of water by humid, dense tropical forests. The Yangambi Biosphere Reserve (YBR) landscape is situated within such forests in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Surprisingly, [...] Read more.
In the tropics, the domestic water supply depends principally on ecosystem services, including the regulation and purification of water by humid, dense tropical forests. The Yangambi Biosphere Reserve (YBR) landscape is situated within such forests in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Surprisingly, given its proximity to the Congo River, the YBR is confronted with water issues. As part of its ecosystem function, the landscape is expected to reduce deterioration of water quality. However, environmental consequences are increasing due to conversion of its dense forest into other types of land use/land cover (LULC) in response to human activities. It is therefore important to check how the physicochemical quality parameters of water resources are influenced by landscape parameters—and to know if the population can adapt to this water vulnerability. To do this, we analyzed the watershed typology (including morphometric and LULC characteristics) and the physical and chemical parameters of water within the principal watershed’s rivers. We also analyzed data from surveys and the Yangambi meteorological station. We found that some landscape indices related to LULC significantly influence water quality deterioration in Yangambi. On average, each person in the Yangambi landscape uses 29–43 liters of water per day. Unfortunately, this falls short of World Health Organization standards regarding some parameters. The best fitted simple linear regression model explains the variation in pH as a function of edge density of perturbed forest, edge density of crop land and patch density of dense forest up to 94%, 92% and 90%, respectively. While many researchers have identified the consequences of climate change and human activities on these water resources, the population is not well-equipped to deal with them. These results suggest that water management policies should consider the specificities of the Yangambi landscape in order to develop better mitigation strategies for a rational management of water resources in the YBR in the context of climate change. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Land-Use Change on Water Resources)
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