Assessing the long-term impact of cascade hydropower development on the inundation patterns of floodplain wetlands

Jing Li; Xiaorong Lu; Xuelei Wang; Vijay P Singh; Chao Yang; Liang Chen; Yihang Zhang

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118948

Assessing the long-term impact of cascade hydropower development on the inundation patterns of floodplain wetlands

J Environ Manage. 2023 Nov 15:346:118948. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118948. Epub 2023 Sep 15.

Authors

Jing Li¹, Xiaorong Lu², Xuelei Wang³, Vijay P Singh⁴, Chao Yang⁵, Liang Chen⁶, Yihang Zhang⁷

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory for Environment and Disaster Monitoring and Evaluation of Hubei, Innovation Academy for Precision Measurement Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430077, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
² Key Laboratory for Environment and Disaster Monitoring and Evaluation of Hubei, Innovation Academy for Precision Measurement Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430077, China. Electronic address: xrlu@apm.ac.cn.
³ Key Laboratory for Environment and Disaster Monitoring and Evaluation of Hubei, Innovation Academy for Precision Measurement Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430077, China. Electronic address: xlwang@apm.ac.cn.
⁴ Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering & Zachry Department of Civil Engineering, Texas A&M University, 2117, College Station, TX, 77843, USA.
⁵ Ecological Environment Monitoring and Scientific Research Center, Yangtze River Basin Ecological Environment Supervision and Administration Bureau, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, Wuhan, 430010, China.
⁶ School of Tourism, Xinyang Normal University, Xinyang, 464000, China.
⁷ Key Laboratory for Environment and Disaster Monitoring and Evaluation of Hubei, Innovation Academy for Precision Measurement Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430077, China.

PMID: 37717396
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118948

Abstract

The inundation process of floodplain wetlands plays a crucial role in maintaining the balance of river ecosystems, which are highly sensitive to hydrological alteration. Nevertheless, the specific mechanisms through which these hydrological changes affect the inundation patterns of floodplain wetlands are still unclear. This study aimed to investigate the impact mechanism of cascade hydropower development on the inundation process of floodplain wetlands. Multitemporal remote sensing datasets and long-term hydrometeorological data series were utilized in this study. By employing the water appearance frequency (WAF) index, wetland hydrological stability assessment, and wavelet analysis, the inundation changes in floodplain wetlands and the underlying hydrological driving mechanisms were examined. The results revealed significant alterations in the inundation frequency of floodplain wetlands due to the construction of upstream dams. Specifically, the construction of the Danjiangkou and Wangfuzhou dams led to an increase in the total inundated area of Part A (16.09 km²) and Part B (76.93 km²), respectively. Conversely, the moderate frequency inundation zone in Part C decreased (26.7 km²) after the construction of the Cuijiaying Dam. The typical floodplain wetland 7 shifted from high to low (8.94 km²) stability after the construction of the Cuijiaying Dam. Furthermore, the cascade hydropower dam construction resulted in increased fluctuations in downstream water discharge. This study provides an effective approach to understanding the impact of cascade hydropower dams on the inundation process of floodplain wetlands.

Keywords: Cascade hydropower development; Floodplain wetlands; Inundation patterns; Wetland hydrological stability.