Quantifying the Climatic and Anthropogenic Impacts on Streamflow in the
Different Reaches of Wei River, China
Abstract
Wei River is the largest tributary of the Yellow River, and in recent
decades, water resource has changed significantly. Identifying the
characteristics and influencing factors of streamflow change in Wei
River is needed for development of effective management strategies and
economic development for the region and entire Yellow River basin. The
analyzations were based on streamflow records from 1957 to 2018 at five
hydrological stations as well as precipitation and air temperature data
from 22 meteorological stations. Mann-Kendall method and Pettitt test
were used to analyze trends and transition years of hydrometeorological
variables. Double mass curves (DMC) were used to quantify the impact of
climate changes and anthropogenic activities on streamflow change. The
results showed that: the annual average streamflow decreased
significantly in the upper reaches (URWR), middle reaches (MRWR) of the
main Wei River, Jing River Basin (JRB), Beiluo River Basin (BLRB) as
well as the whole Wei River Basin (WWRB). There were transition years
existed in these reaches and concentrated in 1990s. The annual
precipitation showed a significant downward trend in the MRWR, LRWR,
BLRB and WWRB (P<0.01). Air temperature in all reaches rise
significantly (P<0.01). Analysis of land use from 1980 to 2020
indicated that residential land and grassland increased markedly. The
results of DMC showed that anthropogenic activities were the dominant
factors for streamflow reduction, accounting for 52.96%-92.2%. For
different reaches, the intensity of human activities (domestic water,
agricultural irrigation, industrial water, soil and water conservation
measures and reservoirs construction, etc.) was different, resulting in
the difference of contribution rate. Relevant research results provide
basis for scientific regulation of water resources in Wei River Basin.