Testing the Robustness of a Physically-Based Hydrological Model in Two Data Limited Inland Valley Catchments in Dano, Burkina Faso

Abstract

This study investigates the robustness of the physically-based hydrological model WaSiM (water balance and flow simulation model) for simulating hydrological processes in two data sparse small-scale inland valley catchments (Bankandi-Loffing and Mebar) in Burkina Faso. An intensive instrumentation with two weather stations, three rain recorders, 43 piezometers, and one soil moisture station was part of the general effort to reduce the scarcity of hydrological data in West Africa. The data allowed us to successfully parameterize, calibrate (2014–2015), and validate (2016) WaSiM for the Bankandi-Loffing catchment. Good model performance concerning discharge in the calibration period (R2 = 0.91, NSE = 0.88, and KGE = 0.82) and validation period (R2 = 0.82, NSE = 0.77, and KGE = 0.57) was obtained. The soil moisture (R2 = 0.7, NSE = 0.7, and KGE = 0.8) and the groundwater table (R2 = 0.3, NSE = 0.2, and KGE = 0.5) were well simulated, although not explicitly calibrated. The spatial transposability of the model parameters from the Bankandi-Loffing model was investigated by applying the best parameter-set to the Mebar catchment without any recalibration. This resulted in good model performance in 2014–2015 (R2 = 0.93, NSE = 0.92, and KGE = 0.84) and in 2016 (R2 = 0.65, NSE = 0.64, and KGE = 0.59). This suggests that the parameter-set achieved in this study can be useful for modeling ungauged inland valley catchments in the region. The water balance shows that evaporation is more important than transpiration (76% and 24%, respectively, of evapotranspiration losses) and the surface flow is very sensitive to the observed high interannual variability of rainfall. Interflow dominates the uplands, but base flow is the major component of stream flow in inland valleys. This study provides useful information for the better management of soil and scarce water resources for smallholder farming in the area.

From global glacier modeling to catchment hydrology: bridging the gap with the WaSiM-OGGM coupling scheme

“…In this case, the annual glacier outputs generated from OGGM allow to perform model simulations starting at any desired year, hence overcoming dependence on observed outlines. Furthermore, the successful application of both models in water-scarce regions (examples of studies carried out with WaSiM can be found in Cornelissen et al, 2013;Idrissou et al, 2020;Pesci et al, 2023 andwith OGGM, in Dixit et al, 2021;Ross et al, 2023) encourages the use of the coupling scheme in such areas. As a changing climate may significantly impact water availability by the end of the century, the prediction of the catchment's hydrological response becomes crucial.…”

Assessment and Spatial Analysis of Land Use and Land Cover (LULC) Dynamics in the Black Volta Basin

“…A higher-order stream indicates the probability that more water flows within that stream. (Idrissou et al, 2020)The different systems of ordering streams are the Strahler stream order, Classic stream order also known as Hack's stream order, Shreve stream order, Land Cover Map and the Horton stream order and other systems. The Strahler was used because of its simplicity and the wide use of the method across the globe to order stream networks (Barnieh et al, 2020).…”

Heat transport from atmosphere through the subsurface to drinking‐water supply pipes

“…Guo et al (2017) use PCSiWaPro to predict seepage and concentration of pollutants. The tool WASIM is often used to describe catchments, as for example in Burkina Faso (Idrissou et al, 2020), where a successful validation was performed.…”