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Impacts of Land Use/Land Cover Changes on the Hydrology of the Fafan Catchment Ethiopia

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Abstract

The study of Land use/land cover change (LULCC) is crucial to understanding its impact on hydrological processes and water resource availability. This research focuses on assessing the effects of LULCC on the hydrology of the Fafan catchment in Eastern Ethiopia from 1990 to 2021. Landsat images from 1990 and 2021 were analyzed using the Random Forest (RF) and Post-Classification (PC) methods. The HBV (Hydrological Byråns Vattenbalansavdelning) light model was employed for hydrological modeling. The findings revealed significant changes in LULC between 1990 and 2021. Forest cover decreased by 65%, while grassland and shrubland decreased by 4.6% and 69%, respectively. Conversely, cropland, settlement, and barren land increased by 385%, 77%, and 43%, respectively. In simpler terms, vegetation zone one (forest, grassland, and shrubland) decreased by 51%, while vegetation zone two (cropland and settlement) and vegetation zone three (barren land) increased by 385%, and 62%, respectively during the same period. The results from the HBV light model indicated significant changes in the hydrological patterns of the catchment. Surface runoff during the annual and kiremt (main rainy) season increased by 17%, and 25%, respectively in 2021 compared to 1990. However, the dry (Bega) season showed a 15%, reduction. Seasonal soil moisture decreased by 32% during the Belg (short rainy) season but increased by 14%, during the summer season. There was no significant difference on an annual time scale during the same period. Additionally, potential evapotranspiration (PET) showed a slight increase on all time scales in 2021 compared to 1990. This implies that the LULCC in the last thirty years have been impacting the hydrology of the catchment, thereby requiring restoration and rehabilitation initiatives.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Geography and Environmental Studies, Haramaya University, Dire Dawa, Ethiopia

    Maereg Teklay Amare, Solomon Tekalign Demissie & Solomon Asfaw Beza

  2. Center for Food and Security Studies, College of Development Studies, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

    Sitotaw Haile Erena

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  1. Maereg Teklay Amare
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  2. Solomon Tekalign Demissie
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  3. Solomon Asfaw Beza
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Correspondence to Maereg Teklay Amare.

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Amare, M.T., Demissie, S.T., Beza, S.A. et al. Impacts of Land Use/Land Cover Changes on the Hydrology of the Fafan Catchment Ethiopia. J geovis spat anal 8, 10 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41651-024-00172-6

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