Deposition and erosion in the fluctuating backwater reach of the Three Gorges Project after upstream reservoir adjustment

Abstract

The construction of hydropower projects, such as Xiluodu and Xiangjiaba Reservoirs, in the upper Yangtze River will lead to variations of the incoming water and sediment conditions and in turn changes in the deposition and erosion processes in the fluctuating backwater reach of the Three Gorges Project (TGP). In this paper, based on the water and sediment characteristics, a 2D mathematical model in the boundary-fitting orthogonal curvilinear coordinate system has been employed to predict the space-time changes of sedimentation in the Chongqing reach, part of the fluctuating backwater reach of TGP, in a period of 100 years with repetition of the 1961–1970 hydrological series with and without the construction of upstream reservoirs. The results show that in the case of natural hydrological series (NHS) without upstream reservoirs, severe deposition occurs in bays with concave bank lines, recirculation flow areas and wide-shallow reaches. In the case with the adjustment of upstream reservoirs, only a little deposition exists in bays with concave bank lines, and the amounts of deposition in the Yangtze River and Jialing River reaches are about 10–20% of those in the case of NHS. Therefore, this is helpful to maintain the effective capacity of the TGP Reservoir and utilize the bank lines of the Chongqing reach.