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Evaluation of hydro-meteorological drought indices for characterizing historical droughts in the Mediterranean climate of Algeria

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Abstract

Determining drought indices and characteristics in Algeria is crucial because droughts significantly impact water resources and agricultural production. Additionally, identifying the most suitable drought indicator for the region facilitates effective monitoring of droughts. The study’s main objective is to compare hydro-meteorological droughts, determine their distribution, and assess drought risk. Various drought indices, which are continuous functions of rainfall and other hydro-meteorological variables, are typically used for this purpose. This study calculates seven indices' effectiveness for drought monitoring and assessment in Algeria's Wadi Ouhrane basin. For this purpose, the temporal variation of drought indicators, distribution graphs, weighted Cohen's kappa (Kw), and correlation coefficient values was compared. Among the indices used in the study, four indices, namely SPI, CZI, ZSI, and MCZI, showed high similarity in their behavior. As the time scale increases from 1 to 24 months, the correlation coefficient exceeds 0.97, and Kw becomes greater than 0.57. Furthermore, there is a weak correlation (R < 0.4) between the meteorological and hydrological-based SRI indicators, and the highest correlation was found between the RDI and SRI indices. Therefore, these indices indicate that the precipitation and ET (temperature) ratio is more suitable for hydrological drought studies.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the ANRH agency for the collected data and the General Directorate of Scientific Research and Technological Development of Algeria (DGRSDT).

Funding

No funding was received for conducting this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Nature and Life Sciences, Laboratory of Water and Environment, Hassiba Benbouali University of Chlef, 02180, Chlef, Algeria

    Mohammed Achite

  2. National Higher School of Agronomy, ENSA, 16200, Algiers, Algeria

    Mohammed Achite

  3. Department of Natural Resources Engineering, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources Engineering, University of Hormozgan, Bandar-Abbas, 7916193145, Iran

    Ommolbanin Bazrafshan & Zahra Azhdari

  4. Department of Civil Engineering, Erzincan Binali Yıldırım University, Erzincan, Turkey

    Okan Mert Katipoğlu

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  1. Mohammed Achite
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  3. Okan Mert Katipoğlu
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  4. Zahra Azhdari
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Contributions

MA contributed with data collection, literature review, and writing study area. OB and ZA contributed to the data analysis and writing the methods and findings. OMK contributed to the writing the findings and conclusions and review of the article. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Okan Mert Katipoğlu.

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Achite, M., Bazrafshan, O., Katipoğlu, O.M. et al. Evaluation of hydro-meteorological drought indices for characterizing historical droughts in the Mediterranean climate of Algeria. Nat Hazards 118, 427–453 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-023-06012-y

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