Hydrologic flow regimes in humid tropics river basin

Abstract

The study is carried out to understand the impact of the land-use change in terms of alteration in flow regimes, which are understood to be a leading cause of ecological and environmental deterioration in riverine systems. Meenachil river in the humid tropical region of Kerala, India, is one of a kind river with human settlement along the banks for all its 78 kms of flow through the Kottayam District. The analysis of streamflow from four stream gauge stations was done using Range Variability Approach. The analysis was down as a two-time period analysis with the parametric approach with the period separation taken according to prior studies on land-use change. The analysis shows a high degree of alteration, which can be attributed to the land-use change and can be understood as the root cause for the deterioration of water quality and also the ecological distress, which is well documented in the downstream and watershed regions of the river. HIGHLIGHTS Anthropogenic changes in tropical river basins.; Extreme water conditions.; Modification Indicators Hydrological study.; Environmental flow components.; Flooding and its repercussions.;

Keywords

• environmental flow
• humid tropics
• hydrologic alterations
• land-use change
• range variability