Impacts of climate change on hydrological patterns and implications for hydroelectric power generation in Khimti River Basin, Nepal
Abstract Climate change has considerable influence on mountain environments and the related hydrological processes, in turn affecting hydropower. Climatic unpredictability and rising temperatures cause soil water depletion, leading to unpredictable downstream runoff. This study examines the conseque...
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Springer
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Discover Applied Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1007/s42452-025-07304-7 |
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| author | Deepak Chaulagain Ram Lakhan Ray Abdulfatai Olatunji Yakub Noel Ngando Same Jaebum Park Jong Wook Roh Dongjun Suh Jeong-Ok Lim Jeung-Soo Huh |
| author_facet | Deepak Chaulagain Ram Lakhan Ray Abdulfatai Olatunji Yakub Noel Ngando Same Jaebum Park Jong Wook Roh Dongjun Suh Jeong-Ok Lim Jeung-Soo Huh |
| author_sort | Deepak Chaulagain |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Climate change has considerable influence on mountain environments and the related hydrological processes, in turn affecting hydropower. Climatic unpredictability and rising temperatures cause soil water depletion, leading to unpredictable downstream runoff. This study examines the consequences of climate change on hydrological regimes and their effect on hydropower production in Khimti River basin of Nepal. This study used the soil and water assessment tool (SWAT) in the shared socioeconomic pathway (SSP2 4.5 and SSP5 8.5) emission scenarios of three climate models (CanESM5, MIROC6, and MRI-ESM2-0) from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6). The study encompassed recorded temperature and rainfall data to correct errors. River discharge data were utilized for calibration and validation the SWAT model, leveraging 21 hydrological parameters. The result revealed that the projected stream flow is higher than the observed flow in all seasons except CanESM5 for the monsoon season from 2023 to 2074. Results showed the average annual flow increased by 0.2–54% in all time intervals for both scenarios. The excess energy power generation and economic benefits increase extensively in the future, with the greatest contribution during the spring season followed by the winter season. The information obtained from this study can be useful for policymakers, planners, and investors for hydropower generation in Nepal. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-df99ed26973e4969b1be1852c45fc431 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 3004-9261 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Springer |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Discover Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-df99ed26973e4969b1be1852c45fc4312025-08-20T03:03:41ZengSpringerDiscover Applied Sciences3004-92612025-07-017712110.1007/s42452-025-07304-7Impacts of climate change on hydrological patterns and implications for hydroelectric power generation in Khimti River Basin, NepalDeepak Chaulagain0Ram Lakhan Ray1Abdulfatai Olatunji Yakub2Noel Ngando Same3Jaebum Park Jong4Wook Roh5Dongjun Suh6Jeong-Ok Lim7Jeung-Soo Huh8Department of Convergence and Fusion System Engineering, Graduate School, Kyungpook National UniversityCooperative Agricultural Research Center, College of Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources, Prairie View A&M UniversityDepartment of Convergence and Fusion System Engineering, Graduate School, Kyungpook National UniversityDepartment of Convergence and Fusion System Engineering, Graduate School, Kyungpook National UniversityDepartment of Convergence and Fusion System Engineering, Graduate School, Kyungpook National UniversityDepartment of Nano and Advanced Materials Science and Engineering, Kyungpook National UniversityDepartment of Convergence and Fusion System Engineering, Graduate School, Kyungpook National UniversityInstitute for Global Climate Change and Energy, Kyungpook National UniversityDepartment of Convergence and Fusion System Engineering, Graduate School, Kyungpook National UniversityAbstract Climate change has considerable influence on mountain environments and the related hydrological processes, in turn affecting hydropower. Climatic unpredictability and rising temperatures cause soil water depletion, leading to unpredictable downstream runoff. This study examines the consequences of climate change on hydrological regimes and their effect on hydropower production in Khimti River basin of Nepal. This study used the soil and water assessment tool (SWAT) in the shared socioeconomic pathway (SSP2 4.5 and SSP5 8.5) emission scenarios of three climate models (CanESM5, MIROC6, and MRI-ESM2-0) from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6). The study encompassed recorded temperature and rainfall data to correct errors. River discharge data were utilized for calibration and validation the SWAT model, leveraging 21 hydrological parameters. The result revealed that the projected stream flow is higher than the observed flow in all seasons except CanESM5 for the monsoon season from 2023 to 2074. Results showed the average annual flow increased by 0.2–54% in all time intervals for both scenarios. The excess energy power generation and economic benefits increase extensively in the future, with the greatest contribution during the spring season followed by the winter season. The information obtained from this study can be useful for policymakers, planners, and investors for hydropower generation in Nepal.https://doi.org/10.1007/s42452-025-07304-7Climate modelsPrecipitationProjected stream flowPower generationRiver basinTemperature |
| spellingShingle | Deepak Chaulagain Ram Lakhan Ray Abdulfatai Olatunji Yakub Noel Ngando Same Jaebum Park Jong Wook Roh Dongjun Suh Jeong-Ok Lim Jeung-Soo Huh Impacts of climate change on hydrological patterns and implications for hydroelectric power generation in Khimti River Basin, Nepal Discover Applied Sciences Climate models Precipitation Projected stream flow Power generation River basin Temperature |
| title | Impacts of climate change on hydrological patterns and implications for hydroelectric power generation in Khimti River Basin, Nepal |
| title_full | Impacts of climate change on hydrological patterns and implications for hydroelectric power generation in Khimti River Basin, Nepal |
| title_fullStr | Impacts of climate change on hydrological patterns and implications for hydroelectric power generation in Khimti River Basin, Nepal |
| title_full_unstemmed | Impacts of climate change on hydrological patterns and implications for hydroelectric power generation in Khimti River Basin, Nepal |
| title_short | Impacts of climate change on hydrological patterns and implications for hydroelectric power generation in Khimti River Basin, Nepal |
| title_sort | impacts of climate change on hydrological patterns and implications for hydroelectric power generation in khimti river basin nepal |
| topic | Climate models Precipitation Projected stream flow Power generation River basin Temperature |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1007/s42452-025-07304-7 |
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