Impacts of Climate Change on Irrigation Water Management in the Babai River Basin, Nepal

Hydrology

Yogendra Mishra¹  Bhogendra Mishra²  MukandSingh Babel³  Tai Nakamura³ 

[1] Ministry of Energy, Water Resource and Irrigation, Kathmandu 44600, Nepal;Policy Research Institute, Kathmandu, 3rd Floor of Federal Secretariat Construction and Management Building, Sano Gaucharan, Kathmandu 44600, Nepal;School of Engineering and Technology, Asian Institute of Technology, P.O. Box 4, Klong Luang, Pathumthani 12120, Thailand;

关键词: climate change;    GCM;    SWAT;    Babai River Basin;    irrigation water demand;    environmental flow;   

DOI  :  10.3390/hydrology8020085

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

The diminishing spring discharge in the Middle Mountain Zone (MMZ) in Nepal is a matter of concern because it directly affects the livelihoods of low-income farmers in the region. Therefore, understanding the impacts of changes in climate and land-use patterns on water demand and availability is crucial. We investigated the impact of climate change on streamflow and environmental flow, and the demand for spring-fed river water for irrigation using the limited meteorological data available for the Babai River Basin, Nepal. SWAT and CROPWAT8.0 were used to respectively calculate present and future streamflow and irrigation water demand. Three general circulation models under two representative concentration pathways (RCPs 4.5 and 8.5) for the periods of 2020–2044, 2045–2069, and 2070–2099 were used to investigate the impact of climate change. Results indicate that the catchment is likely to experience an increase in rainfall and temperature in the future. The impact of the increment in rainfall and rise in temperature are replicated in the annual river flow that is anticipated to increase by 24–37%, to the historical data of 1991–2014. Despite this increase, projections show that the Babai River Basin will remain a water deficit basin from January to May in future decades.

【 授权许可】

Unknown