Author(s): Yahia Osman; Amr Fleifle; Nesma Abdel Meged; Mohammed Abourohiem

Linked Author(s): Yahia Osman

Keywords: Blue Nile; Water balance; Climate change; Land use change; And SWAT

Abstract: The Blue Nile basin is the main source of water for Egypt and Sudan. Most of the population in the basin depend on the water in their incomes and livelihood aspects. In the recent years, the water resources in the basin are experiencing many challenges due to climate and land use changes impacts, poor land management, and population growth. Consequently, the study of the water balance has become an urgent issue throughout the basin, especially associated with climate and land use changes as well as impacts on natural and human systems. This study was conducted to evaluate the water resources in the Blue Nile basin using water balance technique. To achieve this objective, the water balance has been established and analyzed using the semi-distributed hydrological model, via the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT). The model was built using ArcSWAT software. The calibration and the validation of the SWAT model have been carried out utilizing observed data and the Sequential Uncertainty Fitting version 2 (SUFI-2) which is embodied in SWAT_CUP software was used to calculate the coefficient of determination (R²) and Nash and Sutcliffe (NS) as likelihood measures. The findings showed the difference in the water balance components with using different evaluating approach and weather datasets resolutions and sources. In addition, adopting the advanced methodologies and data acquisition technologies have significantly contributed to improve the quality of the hydrological models’ outcomes. These results in turn will assist in resolving water management and planning problems in the basin. The used methodology could be used for similar basins in evaluation of their water resources.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3850/IAHR-39WC2521711920221487

Year: 2022