Check Dam System Research Articles

Relationships between torrent check dam systems and shoreline dynamics in semi-arid Mediterranean area: A sub-regional focus in Calabria, Italy

The work reports the results of investigations on the historical evolution of the shoreline in relation to the presence of check dam systems along streams of the Mediterranean environment. To this end, a survey methodology specifically developed in a previous work, which provided initial indications worthy of more extensive evaluation, was integrated and applied to the watershed-coast system of eight Calabrian streams, six falling on the Ionian side and two on the Tyrrhenian side of the Aspromonte Massif, as the sides present significantly different climatic and geomorphological characteristics. The streams under investigation, with watershed areas ranging from 39.2 to 160.3 km2, have been affected by relevant restoration programmes with transverse control works carried out over four periods from 1954 to today. Overall, about 690 check dams were examined, distributed over the “mountain”, “intermediate” and “valley” reaches that were normalised for comparison purposes. Based on the intensity of intervention with check dams, five watersheds are included in the “medium-high” category and three in the “low” category. The volumes of sediment corresponding to shoreline movements (retreats or, less frequently, advances) and those retained upstream of the check dams, generally silted a few years after construction, were estimated and analysed. The overall results obtained highlight a relationship between the retirement tendency of the shoreline (with observed retreats up to 170 m and affected long shores up to 5 km) and the construction of transverse control works, suggesting that particular attention should be paid to the insertion of transverse works, as well as to their typology, in the valley reaches, in one effort to combine the requirements concerning with the hydrogeological safety and the stability of the shoreline asset, limiting the need of remediation measures for coastal protection, as it actually happens along the widespread urbanized strips.

A procedure for risk assessment of check dam systems: A case study of Wangmaogou watershed.

Flood-based hydrodynamic damage to check dam systems on the Loess Plateau of China occurs frequently, and there is a strong desire to carry out risk assessments of such check dam systems. This study proposes a weighting method that combines the analytic hierarchy process, entropy method, and TOPSIS to assess the risk of check dam systems. The combined weight-TOPSIS model avoids weight calculation only considers the influence of subjective or objective preference and the bias of the single weighting method. The proposed method is capable of multi-objective risk ranking. It is applied to the Wangmaogou check dam system located in a small watershed on the Loess Plateau. The result of risk ranking matches the reality of the situation. The gray correlation theory model is utilized to rank the risks in the same research area and compared with the results of the combined weight-TOPSIS model. The combined weight-TOPSIS model is more favorable to risk assessment than the gray correlation theory model. The resolution level and decisive judgment of the combined weight-TOPSIS model are more advantageous. These results are in line with the actual conditions. It proves that the combined weight-TOPSIS model can provide a technical reference for the risk assessment of check dam systems in small watersheds.

Regulation of Flood Dynamics by a Check Dam System in a Typical Ecological Construction Watershed on the Loess Plateau, China

The check dam is the most important engineering measure in place for controlling water and preventing soil loss in the gully on the Loess Plateau. This study assesses Jiuyuangou, a typical governance watershed of the Loess Plateau, and studies the influence that the check dam system has on the dynamics of sub-storm floods over different return periods by coupling the one-dimensional hydrodynamic MIKE 11 model with the distributed hydrological MIKE SHE model. This research demonstrates the following: The check dam system significantly reduces a flood’s peak flow and total volume in the basin and also increases the flood duration. The former effects are greater than the latter effect. The flood peak’s rate of reduction, the flood volume’s rate of reduction and the flood duration’s rate of increase all increase linearly as the number of check dams increase. Of all dam systems, the check dam has the best linear response to a flood peak’s rate of reduction. The check dam system reduces the flow rate of flood runoff in the basin. After the dam is built, the average flow rate in the basin decreases by 54%. The runoff velocity of the flood is reduced by different degrees over different return periods and the average peak value decreases compared with a scenario lacking any kind of dam. The check dams have a greater impact on the runoff velocity over a shorter return period, with the velocity being 58.56% slower. Finally, the check dam system significantly reduces the intensity of erosion in the middle and lower reaches of the watershed, and it changes the distribution of the intensity compared to the original channel runoff. These findings are expected to provide a scientific basis for guiding the construction and high-quality development of check dams on the Loess Plateau. In addition, check dam construction in basins can trap water, sediment and nutrients, and it can also contribute to ecosystem diversity and maintaining ecosystem imbalances around the world.

Combining Deep Learning and Hydrological Analysis for Identifying Check Dam Systems from Remote Sensing Images and DEMs in the Yellow River Basin.

Identifying and extracting check dams is of great significance for soil and water conservation, agricultural management, and ecological assessment. In the Yellow River Basin, the check dam, as a system, generally comprises dam locations and dam-controlled areas. Previous research, however, has focused on dam-controlled areas and has not yet identified all elements of check dam systems. This paper presents a method for automatically identifying check dam systems from digital elevation model (DEM) and remote sensing images. We integrated deep learning and object-based image analysis (OBIA) methods to extract the dam-controlled area's boundaries, and then extracted the location of the check dam using the hydrological analysis method. A case study in the Jiuyuangou watershed shows that the precision and recall of the proposed dam-controlled area extraction approach are 98.56% and 82.40%, respectively, and the F1 score value is 89.76%. The completeness of the extracted dam locations is 94.51%, and the correctness is 80.77%. The results show that the proposed method performs well in identifying check dam systems and can provide important basic data for the analysis of spatial layout optimization and soil and water loss assessment.

Soil conservation at the gully plot scale in the tropical volcanic landscape of Sumbing

<abstract> <p>Gully erosion has the ability to transport enormous amounts of soil material, which can degrade tropical volcanic landscapes as the highest potential of agricultural land. It is critical to understand gully erosion control activities in order to reduce the initiation and development of gully erosion. The goals of this study were to: 1) classify the different forms of gully control; 2) pinpoint the advantages and disadvantages of the gully control system; and 3) suggest forthcoming changes to gully erosion control systems in tropical volcanic landscapes. Field surveys employing random sampling were used to collect data on gully erosion points and control system. The findings of the study were explained using exploratory descriptive analysis. The research findings demonstrate that gully erosion control was accomplished through biological (vegetative), mechanical and combination methods, which were classified into nine categories. While mechanical methods have benefits in terms of strength in slowing the rate of gully growth, biological systems have advantages in terms of cost and energy. Adopting a continuous live wicker and wicker check dam system might assist in preventing cracks in the gully dimension. This study's findings can potentially reduce gully erosion susceptibility for local communities and are expected to be implemented globally in settings with similar features. Further research could be conducted on multiple tropical volcanoes with comparable issues in order to improve the performance of research results.</p> </abstract>

Runoff and sediment simulation of terraces and check dams based on underlying surface conditions

In the past few decades, the Loess Plateau has undergone large-scale underlying surface changes. A large number of soil and water conservation measures have been constructed, which have affected the runoff and sediment status in the region. How runoff and sediment status respond to underlying surface changes is the key to quantitatively evaluate the effect of water and sediment reduction by soil and water conservation measures in flood events. We selected check dams and terraced fields, which account for a large proportion of soil and water conservation measures as assessment objects and constructed a runoff-sediment model combining traditional physical mechanisms and deep learning to simulate and analyze flood events in a typical basin of the Loess Plateau. The results show that the simulation effect of model is good. The relative error of runoff is within 15%, average Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient is 0.86, and the relative error of soil loss is within 30%. Check dam system in the Chenggou River Basin can intercept 55.61% of the runoff and 47% of the soil loss in the basin on average, and terracing can reduce the runoff by 10.54% and the soil loss by 33.8%.

Designing water-saving-ecological check dam sites by a system optimization model in a region of the loess plateau, Northwest China

Check dams are the most widespread structures for successfully retaining water and checking erosion on the semiarid portions of China's Loess Plateau. However, in the process of check dam planning and construction, difficulties in identifying the weights of influential factors, balancing all factors and making decisions are common problems that seriously restrict rapid socioeconomic development. With the goals of determining potential check dam construction sites and holistically maximizing a projected check dam array's water resource, ecosystem and socioeconomic benefits (taking into account the water shortage and ecological fragility in semiarid areas), a water-saving-ecological check dam site optimization model (WCSOM) was developed. The WCSOM, with newly added water-saving factors, was applied to the selection of check dam sites in the Sijiagou Basin. The model showed that the ecological and the water-saving factors were the top two weights, accounting for 59.88% of the total weight. The top three influencing elements were conservation of water sources, flood prevention capacity and check dam control area, which were part of the ecological, socioeconomic and economic factors, respectively, accounting for 37.77% of the total weight. The scores of larger-scale check dam sites in the basin were generally higher, while the scores of smaller-scale sites were generally lower. The use of the WCSOM in watershed planning will allow a more efficient use of water and soil resources and greatly alleviate water crises in this semiarid area. The WCSOM can be further applied in other regions by adjusting the criterion and index hierarchies, and it can provide technical support for both the planning and rapid development of a check dam system.

Shoreline change and coastal erosion: The role of check dams. First indications from a case study in Calabria, southern Italy

Currently, most of the world’s coastal territories are subject to erosive processes, often caused by an alteration of sediment balance due to both natural and anthropogenic factors. This issue is relevant in many Mediterranean territories such as Calabria region, in southern Italy. Here, considerable anthropogenic pressures affect about 750 km of coast on which debouch short torrential rivers locally termed ‘fiumare’. The regional climate, hydrology and geomorphology leads to intensive fiumare catchment erosion and high fluvial solid loads.The work focuses on the Gallico fiumara, chosen as case study affected by an intense hydraulic regulation programme in order to investigate the poorly studied effects of engineering control works on shoreline changes.The paper has considered the effects of the 264 check dams (completely filled a few years after their realization) only investigating the relationships between the volume retained by the structures and shoreline change during the several arrangement campaigns. Although the work does not consider the other processes that explain the complexity of the watershed-coast sediment balance, it has been clearly demonstrated an influence of check dam system on the evolution of the shoreline, especially due to the hydraulic works installed in the lower part of the watershed. In the light of the results obtained, it would be desirable to promote a debate on the opportunity to convert or demolish the check dams in the torrent reaches closest to the coast, where, moreover, the engineering control most reduced the already limited natural riverbed slope.

A method for estimating stored sediment volumes by check dam systems at the watershed level: example of an application in a Mediterranean environment

PurposeIn this paper a quick, easy and accessible methodology to estimate the sediment volume trapped behind a fully filled check dam system is proposed. As it is well known, check dams play an important role in the sediment balance between watershed and coastline. However, on a large scale, especially in those contexts where a great number of structures was installed, detailed surveys and measurements of sediment storage capacity would be extremely time-consuming and costly in terms of both economic efforts and human resources.MethodsTo this aim, the proposed method considers only four easy-to-obtain morphometric parameters to combine with the number of check dams. The method was calibrated on a sample of 912 check dams located in seven long-term studied watersheds and, therefore, validated in a sample of three regulated Spanish catchments with an independent dataset.ResultsAt watershed level, the comparison between the calculated and estimated values showed a good capability of the method in evaluating the sediment volume trapped by the 912 studied check dams (RMSE ≈ 16,900 m3; R2 > 0.9). The validation revealed encouraging results with estimation errors below 25%.ConclusionThe use of this accessible and easily usable method could represent a supporting tool for planning, monitoring and assessment of the environmental effects of control works. Moreover, these results are useful to carry out actions aimed to mitigate natural hazard and environmental as well as socio-economic problems of the watershed-coast system (e.g. shoreline retreat and morphological instability of the urban and tourist areas).

Evolution of historical sediment yield using check-dam systems as carriers: A case study in a restored agricultural catchment on the Loess Plateau, China

It is critical to determine soil erosion rates and sediment yields under ecological restoration conditions on the Loess Plateau. Sediments retained in check-dams document the soil erosion history in a small watershed. We selected the check-dam systems to reconstruct the long-term sediment yield in a restored agricultural catchment on the Loess Plateau. The storage capacity curve method was applied to estimate the total sediment deposition of check-dam systems, and 725.82 thousand tons of sediment was trapped in the check-dams systems from 1975 to 2013. Two abrupt change points were detected in 1987 and 2003 using the double mass curve method; the average catchment sediment yields were 5,273.63 t/(km2·a) in Stage-1 (1975–1987), 1,734.09 t/(km2·a) in Stage-2 (1988–2003), and 2,653.10 t/(km2·a) in Stage-3 (2004–2013), represented intense erosion, mild erosion, and moderate erosion, respectively. In Stage-2, the sediment yield variation in the Fangta catchment was mainly affected by human activities, and its contribution reached 97%. According to the hierarchical cluster analysis, the soil erosion intensity changed gradually from mild to moderate and then to intense when the average annual erosive rainfall reached approximately 300, 350, and 400 mm in the Fangta catchment of the loess hilly-gully region. Approximately 6.1–42.6 % of the sediment was deposited along the way since 2003 when the sediments generated by erosion in small watersheds were gradually transported to the downstream river network. Therefore, check-dam systems are important carriers for reconstructing the historical sediment yield in small and ungauged watersheds. The results of this study not only serve as a basis for obtaining reliable information on erosion and sediment yield in small dam-controlled catchments, but also provide a useful reference for implementing sustainable ecological restoration in the future.

Reconstruction and effects of a failure of a typical check dam system under an extreme rainstorm on the Loess Plateau, China

Reconstruction and effects of a failure of a typical check dam system under an extreme rainstorm on the Loess Plateau, China

Simulation of Rainfall-Runoff Process in a Catchment with a Check-Dam System Equipped with a Perforated Riser Principal Spillway on the Loess Plateau of China

Check dams are applied worldwide as an effective approach for soil and water conservation. To improve the simulation accuracy of the hydrological processes in a catchment with a check-dam system, this study analyzed the applicability and accuracy of a formula for the drainage process of a perforated riser principal spillway based on observational experiments. The rainfall-runoff processes in a catchment with a check-dam system were also simulated with the recommended formulas for the drainage process of a perforated riser principal spillway. The deviations in the calculated discharge from the observed values of the experiment with the recommended formulas under normal and abnormal working conditions were within ±15% and ±5%, respectively. The hydrologic model used in this study needed only a few parameters to achieve a satisfactory simulation accuracy. The recommended formulas for the drainage process of a perforated riser principal spillway can improve the simulation accuracy of a flood peak by 7.42% and 19.58% compared with the accuracies of the technical code formula scenario and no drainage scenario, respectively. The results of this study are expected to provide a reference for flood warnings and safe operations of check-dam systems.

Effects of a check dam system on the runoff generation and concentration processes of a catchment on the Loess Plateau

As an important soil and water conservation engineering measure, more than 100,000 check dams are constructed across the Loess Plateau; these dams play a vital role in reducing floods and sediment in the region. However, the effects of check dams on hydrologic process are still unclear, particularly when they are deployed as a system for watershed soil and water management. This study examined the watershed hydrologic process modulated by the check dam system in a typical Loess Plateau catchment. By simulating scenarios with various numbers of check dams using a distributed physically-based hydrological model, the effects of the number of check dams on runoff generation and concentration were analyzed for the study catchment. The results showed that the presence of check dams reduced the peak discharge and the flood volume and extended the flood duration; the reduction effect on peak discharge was most significant among the three factors. The system of check dams substantially decreased the runoff coefficient, and the runoff coefficient reduction rate was greater for rainstorms with shorter return periods than for rainstorms with longer return periods. The check dams increased the capacity of the catchment regulating and storing floods and extended the average runoff concentration time in the catchment that flattened the instantaneous unit hydrograph. This study reveals the influencing mechanism of check dam system on the watershed hydrological process under heavy rainstorm conditions and provides a theoretical basis for evaluating the effects of numerous check dams on regional hydrology and water resources on the Loess Plateau.

Numerical investigation of the mechanism of granular flow impact on rigid control structures

Baffles and check-dam systems are often used as granular flow (rock avalanches, debris flows, etc.) control structures in regions prone to dangerous geological hazards leading to massive landslides. This paper explores the use of numerical modelling to simulate large volume granular flow and the effect of the presence of baffles and check dam systems on granular flow. In particular, the paper offers a solution based on the smoothed particle hydrodynamics numerical method, combined with a modified Bingham model with Mohr–Coulomb yield stress for granular flows. This method is parallelised at a large scale to perform high-resolution simulations of sand flowing down an inclined flume, obstructed by rigid control structures. We found that to maximise the flow deceleration ability of baffle arrays, the design of baffle height ought to reach a minimum critical value, which can be quantified from the flow depth without baffles (e.g. 2.7 times for frictional flows with friction angle of 27.5°). Also, the check-dam system was found to minimise run-out distances more effectively but experiences substantially higher forces compared to baffles. Finally, flow-control structures that resulted in lower run-out distances were associated with lower total energy dissipation, but faster kinetic energy dissipation in the granular flows; as well as lower downstream peak flow rates.

Extracting check dam areas from high‐resolution imagery based on the integration of object‐based image analysis and deep learning

AbstractSoil loss is a global environmental problem that can intensively damage surrounding ecosystems. To control soil loss and secure agricultural activities, check dams are constructed for soil conservation. However, due to ineffective management, many check dams are abandoned and are highly prone to be damaged due to rainstorms. Such a phenomenon would cause more serious damage to surrounding environments than that associated with common soil loss. The similar basic signatures of check dam areas and their surroundings can blur the boundaries of these structures in images and negatively affect boundary identification, thereby limiting the effectiveness of traditional check dam area extraction techniques based on the pixel level or visual inspection. To facilitate the extraction of check dams, we propose a method that integrates deep learning and object‐based image analysis. We select the Loess Plateau, on which several effective check dam systems have been constructed in recent years to address intense soil loss, as the study area on which to perform high‐resolution imagery experiments to determine the influences of different sample combinations. The parameters influencing the segmentation algorithm are also examined to determine the best parameter combination for the extraction of check dams. Four test areas comprising 12 check dams across different environments were selected with which to test the accuracy of the proposed method. In addition, we compared the check dam extraction capabilities of our proposed method with those of the random forest and deep learning approaches. The results show that the proposed method can achieve a classification accuracy and kappa coefficient that signify good performance in detecting the boundaries and areas of check dams. The proposed method generally outperforms the random forest and deep learning techniques. The extraction results can support the efficient soil management and guide future studies on gully erosion.

Quantitative assessment of check dam system impacts on catchment flood characteristics – a case in hilly and gully area of the Loess Plateau, China

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of check dams on catchment hydrological response in a small catchment on the hilly and gully area of Chinese Loess Plateau by applying a numerical model at 2 m resolution DEM. The results showed that check dams significantly increase the so-called runoff lag times (lag to generation, lag to peak and lag to end of runoff) at the channel outlet compared to catchments without check dams. Furthermore, the peak runoff discharge at the catchment outlet without check dams decreased by 93.0% compared to with check dams. The total outlet discharge, surface water stored, and infiltration were, respectively, 20.1%, 74.9% and 5.0% of the total precipitation in the check dam catchment, while 75.4%, 22.6% and 2.0% in the system without check dams. Installation of check dams also altered the spatial water distribution of maximum discharge, moving the occurrences of maximum discharge further upstream and, thus, increasing safety downstream. In conclusion, implementing check dams significantly and effectively mitigated flood processes and increased runoff infiltration upstream.

Building check dams systems to achieve water resource efficiency: modelling to maximize water and ecosystem conservation benefits

Abstract Among the most widespread structures for successfully retaining water and checking erosion on the semi-arid portions of China's Loess Plateau, check dams retain silt at slower than projected rates, leading to flood control issues. Meanwhile, the shortage and the uneven distribution of time and space of water resources in semi-arid areas can easily cause droughts and floods, which seriously restricted the rapid development of the socioeconomic. However, some of the high-quality rain and flood resources accumulated in the check dams can be used to alleviate part of the water resources crisis instead of causing flood. With the goal of holistically maximizing a projected check dam array's water resource, ecosystem and socioeconomic benefits, a Check Dam Benefit Maximization Model (CDBMM) was first developed. The CDBMM was first applied to the Si Jiagou Basin, and the model showed the total costs represent 7.07% of the total and rather significant benefits. Water resources benefits accounting for 45.40% of the total benefits, indicating that the water resources benefits were substantial and should be considered as the main influencing factors in the basin's ecosystem-friendly design and construction. Use of the CDBMM in watershed planning will allow a more efficient use of water and soil resources and greatly alleviate water crises in the semi-arid area. It can further provide a reference for both check dam system planning and the system benefits analysis.

Risk analysis for clustered check dams due to heavy rainfall

Check dams are commonly constructed around the world for alleviating soil erosion and preventing sedimentation of downstream rivers and reservoirs. Check dams are more vulnerable to failure due to their less stringent flood control standards compared to other dams. Determining the critical precipitation that will result in overtopping of a dam is a useful approach to assessing the risk of failure on a probabilistic basis and for providing early warning in case of an emergency. However, many check dams are built in groups, spreading in several tributaries in cascade forms, comprising a complex network. Determining the critical precipitation for dam overtopping requires a knowledge of its upstream dams on whether they survived or were overtopped during the same storm, while these upstream dams in turn need the information for their upstream dams. The current paper presents an approach of decomposing the dam cluster into (1) the heading dam, (2) border dams, and (3) intermediate dams. The algorithm begins with the border dams that have no upstream dams and proceeds with upgraded maps without the previous border dams until all the dams have been checked. It is believed that this approach is applicable for small-scale check dam systems where the time lag of flood routing can be neglected. As a pilot study, the current paper presents the analytical results for the Wangmaogou Check Dam System that has 22 dams connected in series and parallel. The algorithm clearly identified 7 surviving dams, with the remaining ones being overtopped for a storm of 179.6 mm in 12 h, which is associated with a return period of one in 200 years.

Optimizing Height and Spacing of Check Dam Systems for Better Grassed Channel Infiltration Capacity

The check dams in grassed stormwater channels enhance infiltration capacity by temporarily blocking water flow. However, the design properties of check dams, such as their height and spacing, have a significant influence on the flow regime in grassed stormwater channels and thus channel infiltration capacity. In this study, a mass-balance method was applied to a grassed channel model to investigate the effects of height and spacing of check dams on channel infiltration capacity. Moreover, an empirical infiltration model was derived by improving the modified Kostiakov model for reliable estimation of infiltration capacity of a grassed stormwater channel due to check dams from four hydraulic parameters of channels, namely, the water level, channel base width, channel side slope, and flow velocity. The result revealed that channel infiltration was increased from 12% to 20% with the increase of check dam height from 10 to 20 cm. However, the infiltration was found to decrease from 20% to 19% when a 20 cm height check dam spacing was increased from 10 to 30 m. These results indicate the effectiveness of increasing height of check dams for maximizing the infiltration capacity of grassed stormwater channels and reduction of runoff volume.

Impacts of Filled Check Dams with Different Deployment Strategies on the Flood and Sediment Transport Processes in a Loess Plateau Catchment

As one of the most widespread engineering structures for conserving water and soil, check dams have significantly modified the local landform and hydrologic responses. However, the influences of sedimentary lands caused by filled up check dams on the runoff and sediment transport processes were seldom studied. Employing an integrated hydrologic-response and sediment transport model, this study investigated the influences of filled check dams with different deployment strategies in a Loess Plateau catchment. Six hypothetical deployment strategies of check dams were compared with no-dam scenario and the reality scenario. Results showed that filled check dams were still able to reduce Flood peak (Qp) by 31% to 93% under different deployment strategies. Considerable delays of peak time and decreases were also found in scenarios, which were characterized as having larger and more connective sedimentary lands on the main channel. Reduction rates of Sediment yield (SY) and the total mass of Eroded sediment (ES) ranged from 4% to 52% and 2% to 16%, respectively, indicating that proper distributions of check dams can promote sediment deposition in the channel and reduce soil erosion. The results of this study indicate that (1) check dam systems could still be useful in flood attenuation and sediment control even when they were filled, and (2) optimizing the deployment strategies of check dams can help reduce erosion.