Author(s): Fei Ye
Linked Author(s):
Keywords: No Keywords
Abstract: Since most of the world's large rivers are under regulation, it is imperative to quantify the impact of the flow modification on the associated riparian and aquatic ecosystem. Spatially-explicit ecological models provide a powerful tool to understand the dynamics of ecosystem. However, in this case, integration between ecological and hydrodynamic models is needed so as to effectively handle the interrelating physical and biological processes. This study developed an integrated model which combined spatially-explicit simulation of vegetation succession and numerical simulation of two-dimensional flow field to investigate the riparian vegetation dynamics under reservoir operations. The model was then applied to a compound channel of the Lijiang River in the Southwest China, which has been affected by the flow regulations for navigation purpose. Through the simulation, the previous evolutions of the riparian vegetation were recaptured and its future developments under further regulations were predicted. Finally, environmental friendly operation schemes were proposed based on the simulation results, and the pros and cons of this kind of models were discussed.
Year: 2009