Level regime of Balkhash Lake as the indicator of the state of the environmental ecosystems of the region

Myrzakhmetov, Akhan; Dostay, Zhakypbay; Alimkulov, Sayat; Tursunova, Aisulu; Sarsenova, Indira

doi:10.1007/s10333-022-00890-x

Cited by 7 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…Lake Balkhash is divided into distinct western and eastern sub-basins by the approximately 3.5 km wide Uzynaral strait (Figure 1). The western part of the lake contains fresh water and is shallow, with depths ranging from 3 to 11 m (Mischke, 2020;Myrzakhmetov et al, 2022). The eastern lake sub-basin is saline and substantially deeper, reaching depths of 26 m.…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The Ile River originates from the partially glaciated high altitude Chinese Tien Shan mountains and flows westward through south-eastern Kazakhstan (Tang et al, 2019). The Ile River delta serves as a natural hydrological regulator through short-lived wet and dry periods and plays a critical role in the ecological balance of the lake system (Dostay et al, 2012;Myrzakhmetov et al, 2022). The eastern lake sub-basin is fed by smaller rivers such as the Karatal, Aksu and Lepsy, which derive from the largely glacierised northern Tien Shan (Zhetysu Alatau) in eastern Kazakhstan (Kaldybayev et al, 2016).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A small amount of freshwater enters the eastern sub-basin from the Ilerecharged western part. The waters of the eastern part of the lake are more saline than the western sub-basin due to a net reduction in water flow (−24.28%) compared to the average between 1936 and 1969 (Mukhitdinov et al, 2020); in particular, the Ayagoz River, which used to enter the lake from the north, as well as inflow from the Alakol lake system to the east, have no surface inflow today (Myrzakhmetov et al, 2022). The difference in water characteristics of the western and eastern Balkhash sub-basins has led to the nickname "One lake with two waters" (Kezer and Matsuyama, 2006;Huang et al, 2022).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The western shoreline of the Lake Balkhash is dominated by clay deposits whereas, the south of the lake shoreline is dominated by flat sandy alluvial and wind-blown sediments deposits, mostly composed of siliceous materials (Sala et al, 2016;Shen et al, 2021). Thus, the overall configuration of the lake shoreline suggests that the lake receives substantial sediment input from the tributary rivers, which drain an actively uplifting catchment containing significant fine-grained unconsolidated sediments, as well as from aeolian transport by the dominant westerly winds which entrain sediment while sweeping across the loess steppe and dune landscapes (Sala et al, 2016;Fitzsimmons et al, 2020;Myrzakhmetov et al, 2022). The high sediment input, particularly in the south of the lake, impacts the turbidity of the water.…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…At the same time, there has been an increase in the amount of sediments, salts, and other solutes entering the system; these remain and become concentrated due to evaporation, increasing salinity and pollution (Kaushal et al, 2021;Abdelbaki, 2022) using point source datasets. Despite these observations, very limited in-situ measurements of suspended-load sediments (Krupa et al, 2020;Mischke, 2020;Myrzakhmetov et al, 2022) provide a limited WQ metric for Lake Balkhash.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Predicting and evaluating seasonal water turbidity in Lake Balkhash, Kazakhstan, using remote sensing and GIS

Mishra,

Choudhary,

Fitzsimmons

2024

Front. Environ. Sci.

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Lake Balkhash is Asia’s third-largest lake and an endorheic basin. The lake and its contributing tributaries provide essential water and ecosystem services to the surrounding population, particularly in the Kazakh region. With approximately 2.5 million people living in the areas such as Almaty oblast, Zhetisu oblast, several districts of Karagandy oblast, and Abay province, monitoring and maintaining the lake’s health and water quality is essential for the sustainable management of water resources. The hydrology of Lake Balkhash has been significantly impacted in recent decades by a warming climate, landuse landcover changes, and water-consuming economic activities, the latter of which are driven by population growth and expansion. Turbidity—the measurement of water clarity—serves as a major indicator of water health. Here, we analyze spatial and temporal variability in turbidity across Lake Balkhash by mapping the normalized difference turbidity index (NDTI) based on Landsat data for 1991–2022. We consider major exploratory variables such as precipitation, near-surface temperature, wind speed and direction, water level, and landuse landcover (LULC) within the catchment. We find an overall decrease in turbidity over interannual and seasonal timescales. We observe significant negative correlations between NDTI, near-surface temperature, and water level at both scales but no clear relationship between turbidity and precipitation or wind variables. Among the LULC variables, grassland and bareland near Lake Balkhash showed a positive correlation with NDTI but have spatially decreased over time. Conversely, shrubland and wetland exhibit a negative correlation with NDTI; however, this has spatially increased with time. Our results highlight the significant impact of rising temperatures, anthropogenically influenced water levels, and the LULC variables on turbidity. The turbidity dynamics, in turn, influence the circulation, oxidation, and overall health of Lake Balkhash’s water. Therefore, the study emphasizes that the warming climate and alterations in the lake’s hydrology have a considerable impact on water quality. This suggests that monitoring water health alone may not suffice to mitigate the impacts of climate change and human activities. However, a more comprehensive approach is needed to sustainably manage and conserve dryland water resources.

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Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Predicting and evaluating seasonal water turbidity in Lake Balkhash, Kazakhstan, using remote sensing and GIS

Mishra,

Choudhary,

Fitzsimmons

2024

Front. Environ. Sci.

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Enhancing the temporal resolution of water levels from altimetry using D-InSAR: A case study of 10 Swedish Lakes

Aminjafari,

Frappart,

Papa

et al. 2024

Science of Remote Sensing

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Evaluating D-InSAR performance to detect small water level fluctuations in two small lakes in Sweden

Aminjafari,

Brown,

Jaramillo

2024

Environ. Res. Commun.

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Monitoring lake water level fluctuations is critical for managing water resources, predicting the impacts of climatic change, and preserving ecosystem services lakes provide. However, traditional gauging stations are insufficient to monitor all lakes worldwide due to the large number of existing lakes, the challenges of installation and maintenance, and the remote locations of some. Although satellite altimetry is an alternative for measuring water levels, it cannot monitor small lakes effectively. This study evaluates the potential of Differential Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (D-InSAR) for tracking minor water level changes in small lakes, a method more typically used in wetland studies. We investigate two Swedish lakes using Sentinel-1A and Sentinel-1B data from 2019, generating six-day interferograms and filtering out those with in situ water level changes exceeding one phase cycle. Our results show that D-InSAR can detect small water level changes with Lin’s correlations up to 0.63 and 0.89 and RMSE values of approximately 9 and 4 mm, respectively. These results evidence the potential of future L-band SAR missions with larger wavelengths, such as the NASA-ISRO SAR (NISAR) of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), to track water level changes in lakes and aid water tracking missions such as the SWOT (Surface Water and Ocean Topography).

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Level regime of Balkhash Lake as the indicator of the state of the environmental ecosystems of the region

Cited by 7 publications

References 3 publications

Predicting and evaluating seasonal water turbidity in Lake Balkhash, Kazakhstan, using remote sensing and GIS

Predicting and evaluating seasonal water turbidity in Lake Balkhash, Kazakhstan, using remote sensing and GIS

Enhancing the temporal resolution of water levels from altimetry using D-InSAR: A case study of 10 Swedish Lakes

Evaluating D-InSAR performance to detect small water level fluctuations in two small lakes in Sweden

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