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AIM
The aim of this module is to achieve an understanding of the basic principles of
hydrology and the importance of hydrology in water resources assessment, design and
management.
HYDROLOGY
Hydrology is a multidisciplinary subject dealing with the occurrence, circulation and
the distribution of the water of the earth in the atmosphere, surface rivers, springs and
lakes; seas and oceans; and within the ground.
As will be shown later on, this water exists in a series of compartments that are linked
together in what is generally known as the Hydrological Cycle or Water Cycle.
Understanding hydrology inevitably therefore implies understanding the processes and
linkages in the hydrological cycle.
Irrigation schemes
Navigation schemes
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LEARNING OUTCOMES
On completion of this module, the students should know and understand:
the different physical processes in the hydrological cycle and how they interact;
the concept of catchment and river basin;
how to calculate a catchment annual water balance;
contemporary institutional framework for managing the water cycle in the UK;
raw water sources and their treatment requirements to make them potable;
how to measure rainfall;
how to calculate catchment average rainfall;
how to measure river flow and analyse the data.
Precipitation
Rain
Hail
Snow
Dew
Snow
Glacier
Transpiration
EVAPORATION from
Vegetation soil
Lakes streams
And the sea
Sea
Swamp River
Ground
Water
Aquifer
Flow
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Essentially, the water can be considered to exist in three distinct compartments or subsystems. These compartments and the relevant processes affecting water circulation in
them are as follows:
evaporation and evapotranspiration (E & E) - the transfer of water from the liquid to
the gaseous state to form part of the atmosphere is known as evaporation. When this
water loss takes place from plants and the soil, the process is known as
evapotranspiration. While rainfall is the main input, E & E constitute the main output
of water from the earth surface.
surface runoff - the balance from precipitation which runs off in rivers.
interflow - the lateral movement of water in the soil which eventually emerges as
springs
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groundwater flow - the water existing in aquifers and rocks that is contributed to by
percolating rainfall.
Catchment Outfall
Mainstream (River)
Catchment Area
Catchment Boundary
Indeed, each river catchment (or basin or watershed) is a kind of system, with its
distinct input and output and there exists a natural BALANCE between all these
inputs and outputs.
Table 1 shows estimated world water quantities and Table 2 presents the balance
between the various components of the hydrological cycle on a global scale.
It is important to note from Table 2 that a large proportion of available water is lost
annually through evaporation and this is a major problem for water resources
conservation and management.
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Evaporation
km3/yr
mm/yr
505,000
1400
Land
148,800,000
119,000
800
72,000
484
Runoff to ocean
from:
Rivers
km3/yr
44,700
3
Groundwater
km /yr
2200
Total
km3
47,000
Total
mm/yr
316
*UNESCO (1978): World water balance and water resources of the Earth, Studies &
reports in Hydrology, vol. 25, UNESCO, Paris.
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P = R + E +S
where
P = precipitation (in a given time), mm;
R = runoff in same period, mm;
E = evaporation volume in same period, mm;
ii. The importance of S increases as the time period becomes shorter. For example
over an annual cycle, this term is very small that, for all practical purposes, it can
be ignored. This is obviously not case for monthly or shorter time scales.
iii. The water balance equation is very important in hydrology since, with it, one could
estimate with sufficient degree of accuracy, any element of the equation if
unavailable. One practical example is the estimation of runoff at ungauged sites
from concurrent precipitation and evaporation data.
iv. In hydrology, the sum total of E and S is termed the loss L, i.e.
L = E + S
v. Also, the ratio R/P is termed the Runoff Coefficient, often denoted by C. In
0 C 1
general
. The runoff coefficient is one simple way for
characterising losses in hydrology. As the loss increases, the runoff coefficient
tends towards zero; for very little loss, the runoff coefficient will tend towards one!
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This is the current legislation guiding the protection and improvement of water
environment in England & Wales. Specifically, the Act reflects the requirements
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Act makes it mandatory for water suppliers to have a 25-year water resources plan,
covering how they intend to provide sufficient water to meet their customers
needs.
Scotland
1967 Water (Scotland) Act:
13 source to Tap Regional Water Board
One Bulk Water Supply Board - The central Water Development Board
(CSWDB)
1975
Following Local Government re-organisation, the water supply and sewerage
functions were transferred to 9 REGIONAL and 3 ISLAND councils. The CSWDB
retained its traditional functions of bulk supply
7 River Purification Boards (RPBs)
1996
3 New Water Authorities : West, East and North of Scotland Water Authorities.
These three authorities were later merged in 2002 into a single entity known as
Scottish Water
Scottish Environment Protection Agency, SEPA came into being.
This is the current legislation in Scotland similar to the Water Resources Act 2003
in England & Wales.
Act also reflects the provisions of the EU Water Framework Directive and
empowers Scottish ministers to introduce regulatory controls over activities in
order to protect and improve Scotlands water environment.
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Regulations, CAR, for short). CAR came into force on 1 April 2006 and from this
date CAR authorisation is required for:
1. Discharges to all surface waters, including wetlands, and
groundwaters;
2. Disposal to land;
3. Abstractions from all surface and groundwaters;
4. Impoundments of rivers, lochs, wetlands, etc.,
5. Engineering works in inland waters and wetlands.
Northern Ireland
Water and Sewerage functions are carried out by the DEPARTMENT of
ENVIRONMENT (NI).
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Good chemical status- means compliance with all the quality standards established
for chemical substances at the EU level.
Good ecological quality- means there is only a slight departure from the biological
community that would be expected in conditions of minimum anthropogenic (i.e.
human) impacts.
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Implementation Timetable
15 years- 9 years to prepare management plans and a further 6 years to achieve
targets.
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GROUND WATER - usually water held in aquifers within the earth crust.
In general, most water supply facilities use a combination of ground and surface
water, albeit in varying proportions. For example, in the UK, the national average
proportions are:
Groundwater (25%); Surface Water (75%).
However, Scotland tends to use a lower proportion of groundwater while England &
Wales may use a higher proportion of surface water in some areas.
Treatment Requirements
Groundwater: Relatively purer and hence only requires very minimal treatment,
usually disinfection
Surface Water: Surface water contains a large number of impurities which impart
colour, odour, taste, to the water as well as a variety of pathogenic disease-causing
organisms. Extensive treatment, involving physical, chemical and biological
processes, often required to remove the very many impurities in surface water before
it becomes potable.
(43 %)
(28 %)
(2 %)
(27 %)
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(32%)
(17%)
(12%
(1%)
Demand Forecasting
The objective of water demand forecasting is to obtain best estimates of future trends
in demand growth so that allowances could be made for this in the planning of water
supply facilities. Demand forecasting is an imprecise activity; as a result, most
forecasters prefer to err on the side of caution by over-designing for predicted
increases in demand, which often do not materialise.
Demand forecasting can be accomplished in two basic ways:
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D = a + b( p ) + c(lsi ) + d (T )
(1)
where D is the demand, p is price, lsi is a living standard index and T is temperature
(which is an indicator of environmental condition) and a, b, c and d are coefficients or
parameters of the model.
In eq. (1), D is the dependent variable and p, lsi and T are the independent (or
explanatory) variables. If sufficient data about the dependent and corresponding
independent variables are available, then the parameters can be determined by
regression analysis. However, some of the independent variables are difficult to
measure for current and future conditions, thus making the practical application of
analytical demand forecasting methods somewhat problematic.
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