Impacts of Inter-Basin Water Transfer Projects on Optimal Water Resources Allocation in the Hanjiang River Basin, China

Jing Tian, Dedi Liu, Shenglian Guo, Zhengke Pan and Xingjun Hong
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Jing Tian: State Key Laboratory of Water Resources and Hydropower Engineering Science, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
Dedi Liu: State Key Laboratory of Water Resources and Hydropower Engineering Science, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
Shenglian Guo: State Key Laboratory of Water Resources and Hydropower Engineering Science, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
Zhengke Pan: State Key Laboratory of Water Resources and Hydropower Engineering Science, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
Xingjun Hong: Changjiang Institute of Survey, Planning, Design and Research, Wuhan 430010, China

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 7, 1-19

Abstract: Inter-basin water transfer project is an effective engineering countermeasure to alleviate the pressure of water supply in water-deficient areas and balance the uneven distribution of water resources. To assess the impacts of inter-basin water transfer projects on optimal water resources allocation, an integrated water resources management framework is proposed, and is applied to the middle and lower reaches of the Hanjiang River Basin in China. Firstly, future water demands are analyzed as inputs. Then, a multi-objective water resources allocation model is formulated mitigating the negative impacts of water transfer projects on downstream water quantity and quality by using the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm-II (NSGA-II). Finally, the indicators of water supply reliability, vulnerability and resilience are evaluated under different scenarios of inter-basin water transfer projects. The results indicate that: (1) the reliability and resilience of the water donor system will be gradually reduced while the vulnerability will be increased with the expansion of water transfer projects and the increase of water demand, (2) water supply risk is likely to increase in all zones (because zones at the boundary cannot obtain sufficient water due to limitations of local inflow and reservoir operation, while the amount of water available in the zones along the mainstream river is directly decreased by the water transfer projects), (3) more water supply measures and compensation measures will need to be implemented in the water donor areas. The framework proposed in this study to evaluate the comprehensive impact of inter-basin water transfer projects is conducive to water resources management.

Keywords: water transfer projects; water resources allocation; NSGA-II; reliability; vulnerability; resilience (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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