Your search found 6 records
1 Bharati, Luna; Gurung, Pabitra; Jayakody, Priyantha. 2012. Hydrologic characterization of the Koshi Basin and the impact of climate change. Hydro Nepal: Journal of Water, Energy and Environment, April:18-22. (Special issue on "Proceedings of National Conference on Water, Food Security and Climate Change in Nepal" with contributions by IWMI authors).
Hydrology ; River Basins ; Climate change ; Precipitation ; Temperature ; Simulation models ; Water balance ; Water yield ; Assessment ; Evapotranspiration ; Runoff ; Ecology / Nepal / Koshi Basin
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H044827)
Assessment of surface and groundwater resources and water availability for different sectors is a great challenge in Nepal mainly due to data limitations. In this study, the Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) was used to simulate the hydrology and to calculate sub-basin wise water balances in the Koshi Basin, Nepal. The impacts of Climate Change (CC) projections from four GCMs (CNRM-CM3, CSIRO-Mk3.0,ECHam5 and MIROC 3.2) on the hydrology of the basin were also calculated. This paper summarizes some of the key results. The full report of the study is in preparation. The basin can be divided into the trans-mountain, central mountain, eastern mountain, eastern hill and central hill regions. Results show that current precipitation is highest in the central mountain and eastern mountain regions during both the dry and wet seasons. Water balance results showed that Actual ET as well as Runoff is also highest in the central and eastern mountain regions followed by the mid-hills. Results from climate change projections showed that average temperature will increase in the 2030’s by 0.7-0.9° Celsius. Results for 2030s projections also show that during the dry season, precipitation increases in the trans-mountain but decreases in the other regions for both A2 and B1 scenarios. During the wet season, the MarkSim projections show a decrease in precipitation in all the regions. Net water yields also increased for the trans-mountain zone during the dry season but show varying results during the monsoon. Assessment of projected future fl ow time series showed that there will be an increase in the number of extreme events; i.e., both low fl ows and large fl oods. There is however; a high degree of uncertainty in the projected climate data as the relative standard deviation was quite high.
2 Bharati, Luna; Gurung, Pabitra; Jayakody, P.; Smakhtin, Vladimir; Bhattarai, Utsav. 2014. The projected impact of climate change on water availability and development in the Koshi Basin, Nepal. Mountain Research and Development, 34(2):118-130. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1659/MRD-JOURNAL-D-13-00096.1]
Climate change ; Water availability ; Water resources development ; Climatic data ; River basins ; Hydrology ; Precipitation ; Models ; Calibration ; Mountains ; Land use ; Soils ; Rain / Nepal / Koshi Basin / Himalayan Region
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H046487)
http://www.bioone.org/doi/pdf/10.1659/MRD-JOURNAL-D-13-00096.1
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H046487.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H046487.pdf
(19.36 MB) (19.3 MB)
Water has been identified as a key resource for Nepal's economic growth. Although the country has 225 billion cubic meters of water available annually, less than 7% has been utilized. Climate change is a frequent topic in national development discussions in part because of its possible impact on future water availability. This study assessed the likely impact of climate change on water resources development in the Koshi River basin, Nepal, using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool to generate projections for the 2030s and 2050s. Results suggested that the impacts are likely to be scale dependent. Little impact is projected at annual, full-basin scales; but at sub-basin scale, under both the IPCC's A2 and B1 scenarios, precipitation is projected to increase in the upper transmountain subwatersheds in the 2030s and in most of the basin in the 2050s and to decrease in the lower sub-basins in the 2030s. Water yield is projected to increase in most of the basin except for the A2 scenario for the 2030s. Flow volumes are projected to increase during the monsoon and postmonsoon but decrease during the winter and premonsoon seasons. The impacts of climate change are likely to be higher during certain seasons and in some sub-basins. Thus, if infrastructure is in place that makes it possible to store and transfer water as needed, the water deficit due to any changes in rainfall or flow patterns could be managed and would not be a constraint on water resources development. The risks associated with extreme events such as floods and droughts should, however, also be considered during planning.
3 Price, G.; Mittra, S. 2016. Water, ecosystems and energy in South Asia making cross-border collaboration work. London, UK: The Royal Institute of International Affairs. 54p.
Water resources ; Water management ; Water power ; Electricity generation ; Ecosystems ; Energy resources ; Early warning systems ; Flooding ; Disaster risk management ; Environmental protection ; Nongovernmental organizations ; State intervention ; Community involvement ; Cooperation ; Rivers ; River basins ; Research projects ; Action plans ; Political aspects ; Stakeholders ; Case studies / South Asia / Bangladesh / India / Bhutan / Pakistan / China / Nepal / Himalayas / Karnali River / Ghaghara River / Koshi Basin
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H047923)
https://www.chathamhouse.org/sites/files/chathamhouse/publications/research/2016-06-30-water-south-asia-price-mittra.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H047923.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H047923.pdf
(368 KB)
4 Hussain, A.; Rasul, G.; Mahapatra, B.; Tuladhar, S. 2016. Household food security in the face of climate change in the Hindu-Kush Himalayan region. Food Security, 8(5):921-937. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-016-0607-5]
Climate change adaptation ; Household food security ; Food consumption ; Farming systems ; Agricultural production ; Cash crops ; Livestock ; Income ; Environmental effects ; Flooding ; Landslides ; Temperature ; Drought ; Rain ; Socioeconomic environment ; Living standards ; Migration ; Mountains ; River basins / India / Nepal / Pakistan / China / Hindu-Kush Himalayan Region / Upper Indus Basin / Koshi Basin / Eastern Brahmaputra Basin / Salween Basin / Mekong Basin
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H047993)
http://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007%2Fs12571-016-0607-5.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H047993.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H047993.pdf
(1.09 MB) (1.09 MB)
This study attempts to understand local people’s perceptions of climate change, its impacts on agriculture and household food security, and local adaptation strategies in the Hindu-Kush Himalayan (HKH) region, using data from 8083 households (HHs) from four river sub-basins (SBs), i.e. Upper Indus (Pakistan), Eastern Brahmaputra (India), Koshi (Nepal) and Salween and Mekong (China). The majority of households in SBs, in recent years, have perceived that there have been more frequent incidences of floods, landslides, droughts, livestock diseases and crop pests, and have attributed these to climate change. These changes have led to low agricultural production and income, particularly in Eastern Brahmaputra (EB) where a substantial proportion of HHs reported a decline in the production of almost all staple and cash crops, resulting in very low farm income. Consequently, households’ dependency on external food items supplied from plain areas has increased, particularly in the Upper Indus (UI) and EB. After hazards, households face transitory food insecurity owing to damage to their local food systems and livelihood sources, and constrained food supply from other areas. To cope with these, HHs in SBs make changes in their farming practices and livestock management. In EB, 11 % of HHs took on new off-farm activities within the SB and in SM, 23 % of HHs chose out-migration as an adaptation strategy. Lastly, the study proposes policy instruments for attaining sustainable food security, based on agro-ecological potential and opportunities for increasing agricultural resilience and diversity of livelihoods.
5 Bastakoti, Ram C.; Bharati, Luna; Bhattarai, U.; Wahid, S. M. 2017. Agriculture under changing climate conditions and adaptation options in the Koshi Basin. Climate and Development, 9(7):634-648. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/17565529.2016.1223594]
Climate change adaptation ; Water availability ; Water scarcity ; Agricultural practices ; Agricultural production ; Cultivated land ; Highlands ; Households ; Floodplains ; Drought ; Crop yield ; Land use ; Living standards ; Risk management ; Diversification ; Communities ; Upstream ; Downstream ; River basins ; Temperature / Nepal / Koshi Basin / Himalayas
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048038)
Using biophysical and social analysis methods, this paper evaluated agricultural practices under changing climate in the Koshi Basin and assessed adaptation options. Agricultural trend analysis showed that in the recent three to four decades, the total cultivated area had declined in all parts of the basin except in the Nepal Mountain Region. Household survey results also confirmed such decline and further revealed shifts towards non-agricultural activities. Climate trend analysis showed changes in the frequency of wet and dry days in study districts, implying an increasing chance of flood and drought events. Household surveys further revealed that, in general, people perceived a decline in agricultural water availability and an increase in drought and flood events. The direct impacts of these changes were reduced crop yield, increased fallow lands, displacement of people from settlement areas, sedimentation of cultivable land and damage to properties. Household surveys showed that despite the perceived impacts on agriculture and livelihoods, only limited adaptation options are currently practised. Adaptation efforts are constrained by several factors, including: finance; technical knowledge; lack of awareness about adaptation options; lack of collective action; unclear property rights; and ineffective role of state agencies.
6 Shrestha, N. K.; Qamer, F. M.; Pedreros, D.; Murthy, M. S. R.; Wahid, S. M.; Shrestha, M. 2017. Evaluating the accuracy of Climate Hazard Group (CHG) satellite rainfall estimates for precipitation based drought monitoring in Koshi Basin, Nepal. Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies, 13:138-151. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejrh.2017.08.004]
Meteorological observations ; Satellite observation ; Drought ; Rain ; Monitoring techniques ; Evaluation ; Precipitation ; Weather data ; Estimation ; Meteorological stations ; Mountains ; River basins / Nepal / Koshi Basin
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048329)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214581817300563/pdfft?md5=a0555e8065605f69522a60b59a4520d2&pid=1-s2.0-S2214581817300563-main.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H048329.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H048329.pdf
(1.64 MB) (1.64 MB)
Study region: Koshi basin, Nepal.
Study focus: While rainfall estimates based on satellite measurements are becoming a very attractive option, they are characterized by non-negligible biases. As such, we assessed the accuracy of two satellite products of the Climate Hazard Group (CHG) – (a) a satellite-only Climate Hazards Group InfraRed Precipitation (CHIRP) product, and (b) a CHIRP blended with ground-based station data (CHIRPS) – at a monthly time scale from 1981 to 2010 in the Koshi basin of Nepal using ground-based measurements. A separate analysis was also made for the data set after 1992, as the number of stations used in the blending has significantly reduced since 1992. Next, both CHG data sets were used to calculate one of the most popularly-used precipitation-based drought indicators – the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI).
New hydrological insights for the study region: The accuracy of the CHG data set was found to be better in low-lying regions, while it was worse in higher-elevation regions. While the CHIRPS data set was better for the whole period, the CHIRP data set was found to be better for the period after 1992. Physiographic region-wise bias correction has improved the accuracy of the CHG products significantly, especially in higher-elevation regions. In terms of SPI values, the two CHG data sets indicated different drought severity when considering the whole period. However, the SPI values, and hence the drought severity were comparable when using the data from after 1992.
Study focus: While rainfall estimates based on satellite measurements are becoming a very attractive option, they are characterized by non-negligible biases. As such, we assessed the accuracy of two satellite products of the Climate Hazard Group (CHG) – (a) a satellite-only Climate Hazards Group InfraRed Precipitation (CHIRP) product, and (b) a CHIRP blended with ground-based station data (CHIRPS) – at a monthly time scale from 1981 to 2010 in the Koshi basin of Nepal using ground-based measurements. A separate analysis was also made for the data set after 1992, as the number of stations used in the blending has significantly reduced since 1992. Next, both CHG data sets were used to calculate one of the most popularly-used precipitation-based drought indicators – the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI).
New hydrological insights for the study region: The accuracy of the CHG data set was found to be better in low-lying regions, while it was worse in higher-elevation regions. While the CHIRPS data set was better for the whole period, the CHIRP data set was found to be better for the period after 1992. Physiographic region-wise bias correction has improved the accuracy of the CHG products significantly, especially in higher-elevation regions. In terms of SPI values, the two CHG data sets indicated different drought severity when considering the whole period. However, the SPI values, and hence the drought severity were comparable when using the data from after 1992.
Powered by DB/Text WebPublisher, from
