Author(s): Pallav Kumar Shrestha; Manish Shrestha; Sangam Shrestha

Linked Author(s):

Keywords: Dyna-CLUE; InVEST; Water yield; Land use change; Hydrology

Abstract: The Songkhram River Basin (SRB), a wetland region and the largest Mekong tributary in the upper northeast region, is undergoing several changes. Understanding the impact of land use change on the hydrological cycle is very important for ensuring sustainable development and management of water resources in any watershed. This research aims to analyse the past land use change, forecast the future land use maps under various scenarios and finally analyse the impact of this change on the water availability of SRB. The analysis of past land use maps reveals a rapid conversion of crops, paddy and natural forest into rubber farms. The land use change model Dyna-CLUE, coupled with the water yield module of InVEST (Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs Tool) model, was used to evaluate the impact of land use change on the water availability on the basis of different policy scenarios. Land use maps up to the year 2100 were generated on the basis of three future scenarios focused on economy, conservation and agriculture. The results of this study show an increase in water yield under economic scenario as a result of an increase in urban areas and rubber plantations, whereas a small decrease in water yield is seen under conservation scenario. However, no significant changes are seen under agriculture scenario. This study presents the utility of land use model analysis in foreseeing future land use change impact on water availability. Thus, the results serve as a model-backed reference to decision makers to formulate new policies or adjust the existing ones regarding land use in SRB.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/15715124.2019.1566239

Year: 2020