Application of SWAT model in simulating daily streamflow in large-scale watersheds using gridded weather data

Flooding is a natural phenomenon with disastrous environmental, social, and economic impacts in flood-prone areas. Early warning systems and flood management measures play a crucial role in flood control and damage reduction. A hydrology model capable of predicting the hydrological responses in the watershed and simulating detailed, event-based floods is a necessity of such systems. In the present article, an integrated hydrological model of Iran was built and calibrated using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) program. The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the performance of SWAT and the quality of gridded weather dataset in simulation of daily river discharge in large-scale watersheds of Iran. For the simulation, GPM precipitation records from ۲۰۱۴ to ۲۰۱۹ were used as climate input information, and SWAT calibration and validation were done based on reservoir inflow data. The results were in good agreement with measured streamflows and revealed the potential of the SWAT program as a reliable rainfall-runoff simulator. The results are promising and lay the basis for the setup of an Iranian water framework to monitor precipitation and potential floods in a flood forecasting and early warning system.

کلیدواژه ها:

flood ، flood management ، SWAT ، daily streamflow ، Iran.