A coupled modeling framework for sustainable watershed management in transboundary river basins

There is a growing recognition among water resource managers that sustainable watershed management needs to not only account for the diverse ways humans benefit from the environment, but also incorporate the impact of human actions on the natural system. Coupled natural– human system modeling throug...

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Main Authors: Khan, Hassaan Furqan, Yang, Y. C. Ethan, Xie, Hua, Ringler, Claudia
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Copernicus GmbH 2017
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/95863
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author Khan, Hassaan Furqan
Yang, Y. C. Ethan
Xie, Hua
Ringler, Claudia
author_browse Khan, Hassaan Furqan
Ringler, Claudia
Xie, Hua
Yang, Y. C. Ethan
author_facet Khan, Hassaan Furqan
Yang, Y. C. Ethan
Xie, Hua
Ringler, Claudia
author_sort Khan, Hassaan Furqan
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description There is a growing recognition among water resource managers that sustainable watershed management needs to not only account for the diverse ways humans benefit from the environment, but also incorporate the impact of human actions on the natural system. Coupled natural– human system modeling through explicit modeling of both natural and human behavior can help reveal the reciprocal interactions and co-evolution of the natural and human systems. This study develops a spatially scalable, generalized agent-based modeling (ABM) framework consisting of a process-based semi-distributed hydrologic model (SWAT) and a decentralized water system model to simulate the impacts of water resource management decisions that affect the food–water–energy–environment (FWEE) nexus at a watershed scale. Agents within a river basin are geographically delineated based on both political and watershed boundaries and represent key stakeholders of ecosystem services. Agents decide about the priority across three primary water uses: food production, hydropower generation and ecosystem health within their geographical domains. Agents interact with the environment (streamflow) through the SWAT model and interact with other agents through a parameter representing willingness to cooperate. The innovative twoway coupling between the water system model and SWAT enables this framework to fully explore the feedback of human decisions on the environmental dynamics and vice versa. To support non-technical stakeholder interactions, a web-based user interface has been developed that allows for role-play and participatory modeling. The generalized ABM framework is also tested in two key transboundary river basins, the Mekong River basin in Southeast Asia and the Niger River basin in West Africa, where water uses for ecosystem health compete with growing human demands on food and energy resources. We present modeling results for crop production, energy generation and violation of ecohydrological indicators at both the agent and basin-wide levels to shed light on holistic FWEE management policies in these two basins.
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spelling CGSpace958632025-11-12T04:47:26Z A coupled modeling framework for sustainable watershed management in transboundary river basins Khan, Hassaan Furqan Yang, Y. C. Ethan Xie, Hua Ringler, Claudia hydrological modelling models water management sustainability watershed management watersheds river basins ecosystem services There is a growing recognition among water resource managers that sustainable watershed management needs to not only account for the diverse ways humans benefit from the environment, but also incorporate the impact of human actions on the natural system. Coupled natural– human system modeling through explicit modeling of both natural and human behavior can help reveal the reciprocal interactions and co-evolution of the natural and human systems. This study develops a spatially scalable, generalized agent-based modeling (ABM) framework consisting of a process-based semi-distributed hydrologic model (SWAT) and a decentralized water system model to simulate the impacts of water resource management decisions that affect the food–water–energy–environment (FWEE) nexus at a watershed scale. Agents within a river basin are geographically delineated based on both political and watershed boundaries and represent key stakeholders of ecosystem services. Agents decide about the priority across three primary water uses: food production, hydropower generation and ecosystem health within their geographical domains. Agents interact with the environment (streamflow) through the SWAT model and interact with other agents through a parameter representing willingness to cooperate. The innovative twoway coupling between the water system model and SWAT enables this framework to fully explore the feedback of human decisions on the environmental dynamics and vice versa. To support non-technical stakeholder interactions, a web-based user interface has been developed that allows for role-play and participatory modeling. The generalized ABM framework is also tested in two key transboundary river basins, the Mekong River basin in Southeast Asia and the Niger River basin in West Africa, where water uses for ecosystem health compete with growing human demands on food and energy resources. We present modeling results for crop production, energy generation and violation of ecohydrological indicators at both the agent and basin-wide levels to shed light on holistic FWEE management policies in these two basins. 2017 2018-07-04T08:26:04Z 2018-07-04T08:26:04Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/95863 en Open Access application/pdf Copernicus GmbH Khan, Hassaan Furqan; Yang, Y. C. Ethan; Xie, Hua; Ringler, Claudia. 2017. A coupled modeling framework for sustainable watershed management in transboundary river basins. Colombo, Sri Lanka: CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE). 21(12):14 https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-6275-2017
spellingShingle hydrological modelling
models
water management
sustainability
watershed management
watersheds
river basins
ecosystem services
Khan, Hassaan Furqan
Yang, Y. C. Ethan
Xie, Hua
Ringler, Claudia
A coupled modeling framework for sustainable watershed management in transboundary river basins
title A coupled modeling framework for sustainable watershed management in transboundary river basins
title_full A coupled modeling framework for sustainable watershed management in transboundary river basins
title_fullStr A coupled modeling framework for sustainable watershed management in transboundary river basins
title_full_unstemmed A coupled modeling framework for sustainable watershed management in transboundary river basins
title_short A coupled modeling framework for sustainable watershed management in transboundary river basins
title_sort coupled modeling framework for sustainable watershed management in transboundary river basins
topic hydrological modelling
models
water management
sustainability
watershed management
watersheds
river basins
ecosystem services
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/95863
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