An investigation into hydrological response to urbanization in the Loess Plateau, China: Does urban expansion only boost flow?
Study region: The upper and middle reaches of the Wei River basin (U&M-WR) in Loess Plateau of China. Study focus: This research applies the modified Patch-generating Land Use Simulation (PLUS) model to simulate urbanization dynamics, particularly the conversion from Agricultural Land (AGRL) to...
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| Format: | Article |
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Elsevier
2025-10-01
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| Series: | Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214581825004884 |
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| author | Congcong Yao Hongbo Zhang Vijay P. Singh Xiaowei Zhao Fengguang Lyu Yu Zhang Shangdong Liu Chiheng Dang |
| author_facet | Congcong Yao Hongbo Zhang Vijay P. Singh Xiaowei Zhao Fengguang Lyu Yu Zhang Shangdong Liu Chiheng Dang |
| author_sort | Congcong Yao |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Study region: The upper and middle reaches of the Wei River basin (U&M-WR) in Loess Plateau of China. Study focus: This research applies the modified Patch-generating Land Use Simulation (PLUS) model to simulate urbanization dynamics, particularly the conversion from Agricultural Land (AGRL) to High-density Urban Residential Land (URHD), and the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) to investigate multi-dimensional hydrological impacts of urban expansion in river valley regions, focusing on quantifying urbanization-induced runoff depth changes and identifying the geospatial drivers, assessing shifts in streamflow quantiles and extreme streamflow, and examining impacts on streamflow components and generation mechanisms. New hydrological insights for the region: Urbanization increases the watershed's multi-year average runoff depth. The change in runoff depth caused by per-unit URHD increase (RDC_PU) decreases with higher regional topographic relief, average slope, and maximum elevation. Shifting from discrete to intensive urban expansion increases RDC_PU. Urbanization increases daily/monthly streamflow below the 60 %/65 % quantile but decreases them above those thresholds. It also exacerbates extreme events, with maximum urbanization boosting 100-year floods by 46 % and reducing 95 % dry flows by 26 %. Higher surface flow, alongside reduced lateral flow and groundwater flow, shifts runoff generation toward over-infiltration. These findings emphasize geomorphology's role in shaping hydrological responses to urbanization and offer vital insights for water management, flood and drought disaster mitigation, and urban land use planning in global river valley regions. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-b14534bbecdb45a59160a8f464809ae8 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2214-5818 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-10-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies |
| spelling | doaj-art-b14534bbecdb45a59160a8f464809ae82025-08-20T03:56:14ZengElsevierJournal of Hydrology: Regional Studies2214-58182025-10-016110265910.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102659An investigation into hydrological response to urbanization in the Loess Plateau, China: Does urban expansion only boost flow?Congcong Yao0Hongbo Zhang1Vijay P. Singh2Xiaowei Zhao3Fengguang Lyu4Yu Zhang5Shangdong Liu6Chiheng Dang7School of Water and Environment, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, China; Key Laboratory of Subsurface Hydrology and Ecological Effect in Arid Region of Ministry of Education, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, ChinaSchool of Water and Environment, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, China; Key Laboratory of Eco-hydrology and Water Security in Arid and Semi-arid Regions of the Ministry of Water Resources, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, China; Corresponding author: School of Water and Environment, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, China.Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering & Zachry Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station 77843, USASchool of Water and Environment, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, China; Key Laboratory of Subsurface Hydrology and Ecological Effect in Arid Region of Ministry of Education, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, ChinaSchool of Water and Environment, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, China; Key Laboratory of Subsurface Hydrology and Ecological Effect in Arid Region of Ministry of Education, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, ChinaSchool of Water and Environment, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, China; Key Laboratory of Subsurface Hydrology and Ecological Effect in Arid Region of Ministry of Education, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, ChinaSchool of Water and Environment, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, China; Key Laboratory of Subsurface Hydrology and Ecological Effect in Arid Region of Ministry of Education, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, ChinaSchool of Water and Environment, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, China; Key Laboratory of Subsurface Hydrology and Ecological Effect in Arid Region of Ministry of Education, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, ChinaStudy region: The upper and middle reaches of the Wei River basin (U&M-WR) in Loess Plateau of China. Study focus: This research applies the modified Patch-generating Land Use Simulation (PLUS) model to simulate urbanization dynamics, particularly the conversion from Agricultural Land (AGRL) to High-density Urban Residential Land (URHD), and the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) to investigate multi-dimensional hydrological impacts of urban expansion in river valley regions, focusing on quantifying urbanization-induced runoff depth changes and identifying the geospatial drivers, assessing shifts in streamflow quantiles and extreme streamflow, and examining impacts on streamflow components and generation mechanisms. New hydrological insights for the region: Urbanization increases the watershed's multi-year average runoff depth. The change in runoff depth caused by per-unit URHD increase (RDC_PU) decreases with higher regional topographic relief, average slope, and maximum elevation. Shifting from discrete to intensive urban expansion increases RDC_PU. Urbanization increases daily/monthly streamflow below the 60 %/65 % quantile but decreases them above those thresholds. It also exacerbates extreme events, with maximum urbanization boosting 100-year floods by 46 % and reducing 95 % dry flows by 26 %. Higher surface flow, alongside reduced lateral flow and groundwater flow, shifts runoff generation toward over-infiltration. These findings emphasize geomorphology's role in shaping hydrological responses to urbanization and offer vital insights for water management, flood and drought disaster mitigation, and urban land use planning in global river valley regions.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214581825004884Urban expansionHydrological changePLUS modelSWAT modelThe Wei River Basin |
| spellingShingle | Congcong Yao Hongbo Zhang Vijay P. Singh Xiaowei Zhao Fengguang Lyu Yu Zhang Shangdong Liu Chiheng Dang An investigation into hydrological response to urbanization in the Loess Plateau, China: Does urban expansion only boost flow? Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies Urban expansion Hydrological change PLUS model SWAT model The Wei River Basin |
| title | An investigation into hydrological response to urbanization in the Loess Plateau, China: Does urban expansion only boost flow? |
| title_full | An investigation into hydrological response to urbanization in the Loess Plateau, China: Does urban expansion only boost flow? |
| title_fullStr | An investigation into hydrological response to urbanization in the Loess Plateau, China: Does urban expansion only boost flow? |
| title_full_unstemmed | An investigation into hydrological response to urbanization in the Loess Plateau, China: Does urban expansion only boost flow? |
| title_short | An investigation into hydrological response to urbanization in the Loess Plateau, China: Does urban expansion only boost flow? |
| title_sort | investigation into hydrological response to urbanization in the loess plateau china does urban expansion only boost flow |
| topic | Urban expansion Hydrological change PLUS model SWAT model The Wei River Basin |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214581825004884 |
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