Modeling Stream Flow Using SWAT Model in the Bina River Basin, India

Fitsum T Teshome,Haimanote K Bayabil,L N Thakural,Fikadu G Welidehanna

doi:10.4236/jwarp.2020.123013

Abstract

Understanding watershed runoff processes is critical for planning effective soil and water management practices and efficiently utilize available water resources. The main objective of this study was to investigate the performance of the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) to simulate streamflow from the Bina basin in the Madhya Pradesh state of India. The SWAT model was calibrated and validated on a daily and monthly basis using historical streamflow and weather data from the Bina basin. The Sequential Uncertainty Fitting (SUFI-2) technique in the SWAT Calibration and Uncertainty Procedures (SWAT-CUP) program was used to assess model uncertainties. The SWAT model performed “satisfactory” and “very good” in simulating streamflow at daily and monthly time steps, respectively. Model calibration results showed that coefficients of determination (R2) values were 0.66 and 0.96; while Nash-Sutcliffe (NSE) values were 0.65 and 0.94 for daily and monthly simulations, respectively. The R2 values of daily and monthly simulations during model validation were 0.65 and 0.72, respectively while the respective NSE values were 0.58 and 0.72. This study demonstrated that the SWAT model could be effectively used to simulate streamflow in the Bina river basin.

Highlights

This study demonstrated that the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model could be effectively used to simulate streamflow in the Bina river basin
Hydrological modeling could be a useful tool for several purposes including water resources planning, development, and management
The performance of the SWAT model was evaluated in simulating streamflow from the Bina basin

Summary

Introduction

Runoff is the water flow that occurs when soil is saturated and excess water from rain, snowmelt, or other sources flows over the land surface and is a major component of the hydrologic cycle [1]. As with all characteristics of the water cycle, the interaction between precipitation and runoff varies according to time and location [2]. Runoff plays a crucial role in the hydrological cycle by discharging excess precipitation to the oceans to control the amount of water flows into streams [3]. The water balance equation describes the hydrological cycle by accounting for the flow of water into and out of a system for a specific period of time [4]

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Conclusion