ENVIRONMENTAL FLOW ASSESSMENT MODEL ON SUSTAINABILITY PLANNING STRATEGIES, KENYIR LAKE BASIN, MALAYSIA

Abstract

The study presents the Environmental Flow Assessment (EFA) model on sustainability planning strategies to reduce damage in the main area of Kenyir Lake Basin. The XPSWMM model have been used to simulate the EFA in this study. Based on simulation in the Terengganu River, which has a most effective discharge of 42.78 m3/s with depth on 3.94 m and a water velocity of 0.54 m/s, which are expected to meet the development needs of fish species, the analysis for both study rivers found the minimum river discharge values with the frequency probability in the period of 20 years needs to be maintained. While, based to the simulation in the Petuang River, the maximum discharge is only 0.08 m3/s, the maximum depth is 0.4 m, and the maximum water speed is 0.04 m/s, which is adequate for a small number of small-sized fish species. With output deficiency of less than 20% from an actual situation, the two lowest values later obtained were adopted as input in low flow analysis. A more effective management approach ensures the ecosystem's sustainability and maintains an optimal equilibrium among the many uses. Environmental flows aren't considered a luxury but instead an integral component of contemporary water management given the global misuse of water resources and the resulting degradation of ecosystems and their functions. It is a strategy that requires widespread adoption.