Possibilities and challenges of expanding dimensions of waterway downstream of Three Gorges Dam

The waterway in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River has long been known as the Golden Waterway and has served as an important link in the construction of the Yangtze River Economic Belt.Therefore,expanding its dimensions is a significant goal,particularly given the long-range cumulative erosion occurring downstream of the Three Gorges Dam (TGD),which has been concentrated in the dry river channel.With the regulation of the volume from upstream reservoirs and the TGD,the minimum discharge and water level of the river downstream are increasing,and creating favorable conditions for the increase of the depth of the waterway.The discharge compensation effect during the dry season offsets the decline in the water level of the river channel caused by the down-cutting of part of the riverbed,but the minimum navigable water level of the segment near the dam still shows a declining trend.In recent years,several waterway remediation projects have been implemented in the downstream reaches of the TGD and although the waterway depth and width have been increased,the channel dimensions are still insufficient in the Yichang-Anqing reach (with a total length of 1026 km),as compared to the upstream reservoir area and the deep water channel in the downstream tidal reaches.A comprehensive analysis of the water depth and the number and length of shoals in the waterway indicates that its dimensions can be increased to 4.5 m ×200 m and 6.0 m×200 m in the Yichang-Wuhan and Wuhan-Anqing reaches,respectively.This is also feasible given the remediation technologies currently available,but remediation projects need to be coordinated with those for flood prevention and ecological protection.

Factors driving riverbed scouring and sedimentation in the Bayangaole to Toudaoguai reaches of the Upper Yellow River

The Inner Mongolia reaches of the Yellow River face problems of severe sedimen- tation caused by a variety of complex factors. The sedimentation process in those reaches has been characterized using the sediment balance method, and the key factors affecting the process have been analyzed using the correlation analysis method. The results show that during the period 1952-2012 the Bayangaole （Bayan Gol） to Toudaoguai reaches in Inner Mongolia have undergone successive processes of accumulative sedimentation, then relative balance, and then accumulative sedimentation once again. The total annual sedimentation is 12.0341×108 m^3, of which accumulations from July to October account for 95.1% and the reaches from Sanhuhekou to Toudaoguai account for 98.5%. The main factor affecting scouring and sedimentation of the Bayangaole to Sanhuhekou reaches is the combined water and sediment condition. The critical conditions for equilibrium are an incoming sediment co- efficient 〈 0.007 kg·s·m^-6 and a flow discharge 〉 700 m^3·s^-1. The main factor affecting scouring and sedimentation of the Sanhuhekou to Toudaoguai reaches is the incoming sediment from the tributaries on the south bank and the combined water and sediment condition of the main stream. The critical conditions of the main stream for maintaining equilibrium status are a flow discharge of the main stream exceeding 800 m^3·s^-1 and a comprehensive incoming sediment coefficient 〈 0.005 kg^-3·m^-6. The incoming sediment from the tributaries has little impact on the main stream when the annual sediment load is less than 0.1 ×10^8 t. The incoming sediment coefficient of the main stream and the incoming sediment from the tributaries both play vital roles in the riverbed evolution of the Inner Mongolia reaches, but the latter contributes the most.

Fluvial processes of the downstream reaches of the reservoirs in the Lower Yellow River

Evolution of the river channel downstream of reservoirs is a complex process that is closely related to the operational mode of the reservoirs and the channel boundary conditions Numerous studies have been carried out on the fluvial processes of downstream reservoirs. However, only a few of them have focused on the relationship between runoff-sediment con- ditions and channel pattern indicators. Also, the impacts of river training works on fluvial processes are seldom dealt with. In this paper, the evolutionary processes of three sections in the Lower Yellow River, including Tiexie-Yiluo River mouth reach, Huayuankou-Heigangkou reach and Jiahetan-Gaocun reach, were analyzed for variations in the channel boundary line and the mainstream between 1960 and 2015. Channel pattern indicators such as sinuosity, mainstream wandering range and width/depth ratio were analyzed based on field measure- ments obtained by the Hydrological Department of the Yellow River Conservancy Commis- sion. The effects of river training works on the channel evolution are then described. Since 1960, numerous medium- and large-sized reservoirs have been built on the Yellow River, including Longyangxia Reservoir, Liujiaxia Reservoir and Xiaolangdi Reservoir. These res- ervoirs impound the runoff from upstream and retain the sediment, which changes the runoff and sediment conditions in the downstream reach. As a consequence, annual runoff and the frequency and peak of flooding have all decreased. As a result, the flow dynamics and their action on the river channel are also reduced, which changes the dynamic state of the river course. The discrimination results obtained using the single parameter discrimination rule and the discrimination equation show that the degree of wandering is weakened in the reaches studied. The variations in the channel pattern indicators show that the sinuosity in- creases and the wandering range decreases with a reduction in the total annual volume of water. However, the degree of wandering has little relationship to the sediment concentration. In addition, river training works play an important role in controlling the river course. Due to improvements in the river training works, the river course has become more stable under the same runoff and sediment conditions. A new discrimination rule that takes into account the impacts of the river training works is proposed. The discrimination results were found to fit well with the actual river pattern, which shows that the discrimination rule is applicable to the Lower Yellow River. The results show that the runoff and sediment conditions are the most important factors in the evolution of the river course. The river training works have at the same time limited the wandering range of the mainstream and played an important role in the fluvial processes. Both factors combined lead to the stabilization of the river.

Coupling interaction between biodiversity and aquatic habitat area in Western Route Project vicinity

The Western Route of the South-to-North Water Transfer Project will divert water from the upper Yangtze River and its tributaries, the Dadu River and Yalong River, to the upper Yellow River. The project may ease the water shortage in the Yellow River Basin. However, it may also have some effects on the ecosystem in the upper Yangtze River Basin. Benthic invertebrates play an important role in the river ecosystem, particularly in the circulation of materials and nutrition. Benthic invertebrates are widely used to quickly assess river ecosystems because of their rapid response to changes in the water environment. The diversity of benthic invertebrates is closely associated with the aquatic habitat area. This study examined this interaction by sampling the benthic invertebrates in an expanding area. The conclusions are that the diversity of benthic invertebrates begins to decrease when the aquatic habitat area is reduced to 45% of the original area, and decreases dramatically when the aquatic habitat area is reduced to 10% of the original area. The aquatic habitat area should be kept at more than 45% of the original area in order to maintain the significant diversity of benthic invertebrates.