| Title |
Analysis of Impact of Climate Change on River Flows in an Agricultural Watershed Using a Semi-distributed Watershed Model STREAM |
| Authors |
정의상 ( Euisang Jeong ) ; 조홍래 ( Hong-lae Cho ) |
| DOI |
https://doi.org/10.15681/KSWE.2019.35.2.131 |
| Keywords |
Agriculture; Climate Change; Irrigation; Watershed Model |
| Abstract |
Climate Change affects the hydrological cycle in agricultural watersheds through rising air temperature and changing rainfall patterns. Agricultural watersheds in Korea are characterized by extensive paddy fields and intensive water use, a resource that is under stress from the changing climate. This study analyzed the effects of climate change on river flows for Geum Cheon and Eun-San Choen watershed using STREAM, a semi-distributed watershed model. In order to evaluate the performance and improve the reliability of the model, calibration and validation of the model was done for one flow observation point and three reservoir water storage ratio points. Climate change scenarios were based on RCP data provided by the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) and bias corrections were done using the Quantile Mapping method to minimize the uncertainties in the results produced by the climate model to the local scale. Because of water mass-balance, evapotranspiration tended to increase steadily with an increase in air temperature, while the increase in RCP 8.5 scenario resulted in higher RCP 4.5 scenario. The increase in evapotranspiration led to a decrease in the river flow, particularly the decrease in the surface runoff. In the paddy agricultural watershed, irrigation water demand is expected to increase despite an increase in rainfall owing to the high evapotranspiration rates occasioned by climate change. |