Journal of Hydrology-Regional Studies最新文献

{"title":"Relationships between surface water area and hydrologic fluxes in a cold region terminal lake basin","authors":"Md Helal Ahmmed ,&nbsp;Taufique H. Mahmood ,&nbsp;Alexis L. Archambault ,&nbsp;Sharhad Wainty","doi":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102766","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102766","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Study region</h3><div>Northern Great Plains (NGP), North Dakota, USA</div></div><div><h3>Study focus</h3><div>Recent climate shifts have caused a prolonged wet period in the NGP since 1993, significantly expanding surface water area and hydrological connectivity. However, the spatiotemporal links between the water connectivity and hydrologic fluxes remain poorly understood in terminal basins like the Devils Lake Basin (DLB), and accurately estimating open water evaporation (OWE) in this cold region is challenging due to winter ice cover. In this study, we developed a modified framework for estimating OWE in cold regions and investigated the spatiotemporal dynamics of water connectivity and hydrological fluxes.</div></div><div><h3>New hydrologic Insights</h3><div>The modified framework produced an average annual net evaporation of 785 mm (2000–2015), closely matched with the USGS estimation (825 mm). A clear hysteresis loop between OWE and both permanent and summer water areas reflected wetting (1996–2011) and drying (2013–2018) phases, highlighting a nonlinear response to shifting climate conditions. Strong nonlinear correlations were found between water connectivity and streamflow across the DLB (R² = 0.49–0.79). While Random Forest model captured this nonlinearity in training (NSE = 0.37–0.68), predictive performance declined during testing (NSE = 0.15–0.46), underscoring the region’s climatic and geomorphic complexity. Multiple Linear Regression revealed spatial heterogeneity in streamflow drivers: water connectivity in western subbasins, precipitation in the north-central, and temperature in the east. These findings highlight the need to consider nonlinearity and spatial variability in cold-region water modeling under climate change.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48620,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology-Regional Studies","volume":"62 ","pages":"Article 102766"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145046744","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Hybrid heterogeneous ensemble learning framework for flood susceptibility mapping in Balochistan, Pakistan","authors":"Muhammad Afaq Hussain ,&nbsp;Zhanlong Chen ,&nbsp;Biswajeet Pradhan ,&nbsp;Sansar Raj Meena ,&nbsp;Yulong Zhou","doi":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102718","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102718","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Study region</h3><div>The National Highways 85 and 50, key routes of the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in Balochistan, Pakistan.</div></div><div><h3>Study focus</h3><div>Flooding is a natural disaster that is becoming increasingly frequent and severe. The National Highways 85 and 50 are vulnerable, necessitating accurate flood susceptibility mapping (FSM). Current machine learning (ML) models for FSM often suffer from low efficiency and overfitting. This study introduces an innovative hybrid FSM approach using four heterogeneous ensemble learning (HEL) techniques combined with three ML models: Random Forest (RF), Support Vector Machine (SVM), and Light Gradient Boosting Machine (LGBM). The proposed method was tested using satellite data from Sentinel-1, Sentinel-2, and Landsat-8, analyzing 1371 flood locations and 12 contributing variables. RF, variable importance factors (VIF), and information gain ratio (IGR) were applied to assess multicollinearity. The dataset was split (70:30) for model training and testing, with HEL-based models achieving superior performance over single ML models.</div></div><div><h3>New hydrological insights for the region</h3><div>The stacking model yielded the highest AUROC (0.98), Kappa (0.82), accuracy (0.927), precision (0.963), Matthew’s correlation coefficient (0.820), and F1-score (0.950). HEL-based models proved more stable and resistant to overfitting. IGR analysis identified slope and distance from streams as key factors in FSM. The resulting flood-prone maps provide insights for disaster management adaptation strategies, demonstrating the broader applicability of the developed approach to enhance FSM accuracy and reliability.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48620,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology-Regional Studies","volume":"61 ","pages":"Article 102718"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144864540","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Stratification and mixing dynamics of hypersaline Lake Urmia (Iran)","authors":"Peygham Ghaffari ,&nbsp;Jafar Azizpour ,&nbsp;Evgeniy Yakushev ,&nbsp;Hamid A.K. Lahijani","doi":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102697","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102697","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Study region:</h3><div>Lake Urmia, northwestern Iran</div></div><div><h3>Study focus:</h3><div>This study investigates the stratification and vertical mixing dynamics of Lake Urmia, a transboundary hypersaline lake under critical ecological stress. Using multi-year, high-resolution in-situ temperature and salinity measurements (2016–2019), we characterize seasonal mixing patterns and quantify the relative contributions of salinity and temperature to vertical water column stability. A lake-specific density formulation and thermal energy estimates are applied to assess buoyancy structure and overturn dynamics across contrasting seasonal phases.</div></div><div><h3>New hydrogeological insights from the region:</h3><div>Lake Urmia exhibits a dual-phase mixing regime, polymictic during the warm season with recurrent full-depth mixing, and inverse meromictic during the cold season due to salinity-enhanced density stratification. Salinity is shown to be the dominant stabilizing factor, while temperature plays a supporting role, primarily as a long-term tracer. The lake is classified as <em>Hyperhalimictic</em>, where mixing is governed by salinity rather than classical thermal stratification. A seasonal salinity pump mechanism is identified—winter brine rejection deepens stratification, while summer halite re-dissolution erodes it. Thermal inertia in lakebed sediments contributes to persistent cold-phase stratification. Findings indicate a trend toward increasing vertical decoupling, reduced overturning, and elevated risk of ecological stress. These insights support improved understanding of hypersaline lake behavior and can guide monitoring and resilience strategies in similar terminal lakes worldwide.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48620,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology-Regional Studies","volume":"61 ","pages":"Article 102697"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144864541","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Assessment of horizontal shifting errors in open-source DEMs and their impact on 1D hydraulic modeling of meandering river channel","authors":"Md. Ismail Firoz ,&nbsp;Md. Latifur Rahman Sarker ,&nbsp;Janet Nichol ,&nbsp;Eko Siswanto","doi":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102707","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102707","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Study Region</h3><div>The Ganges River, Bangladesh</div></div><div><h3>Study Focus</h3><div>Horizontal shifting error in open-access GDEMs has received very little attention for detecting and assessing its impact on hydraulic modeling. This study uses three integrated techniques to detect horizontal shifting errors in ASTER and SRTM DEMs by comparing DEM river centerlines and real-time river centerlines, measuring river channel dynamics, and analyzing water level elevation profiles. Four strategies were applied to assess the impacts: evaluating DEM-generated river channels, creating a 1D hydraulic model for inundation mapping, assessing inundation accuracy, and visualizing the horizontal shifts.</div></div><div><h3>New Hydrological Insights for the Region</h3><div>The results reveal several significant issues. Firstly, both DEMs exhibited notable horizontal shifting errors, with observed maximum, average, and minimum errors of 3200 m, 1800 m, and 680 m, respectively, though the intensity of these errors varied spatiotemporally. Secondly, the maximum riverbed effectiveness (≥73.38 %) was observed in 2000, but subsequently decreased to ≤ 41.25 %, ≤ 47.94 %, ≤ 46.75 %, and ≤ 54.08 % in 2006, 2010, 2015, and 2020, respectively. Thirdly, the horizontal shifting error was found to have severe implications for 1D inundation mapping accuracy. Lastly, strong negative correlation was observed between river channel dynamics and DEM river channel effectiveness (r ≥ -0.963). The results indicate that both DEMs have horizontal shifting errors, which are expected to produce severe inaccurate results in hydraulic and flood modeling, especially in areas with dynamic topography.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48620,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology-Regional Studies","volume":"61 ","pages":"Article 102707"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144858308","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Identification of inflow sources and pathways to a waste rock dump located in a former river channel in a mountainous abandoned mine of Japan: A case study 60 years post-construction","authors":"Shinji Matsumoto ,&nbsp;Sereyroith Tum ,&nbsp;Tagiru Ogino ,&nbsp;Miu Nishikata ,&nbsp;Tetsuo Yasutaka ,&nbsp;Tomoko Oguri ,&nbsp;Tsuyoshi Shintani","doi":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102645","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102645","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Study region</h3><div>A legacy underground mine located in a mountainous region of Hokkaido, northern Japan.</div></div><div><h3>Study focus</h3><div>The concentrations of dissolved ions and stable water isotopes (δ¹⁸O and δ²H) in surface water from surrounding rivers and groundwater near a waste rock dump (WD) were analyzed. Continuous water quality monitoring was performed using data loggers. Tracer tests using NaCl were also performed in the rivers. Time-series analysis and correlation studies elucidated the origins and pathways of water inflow to the WD.</div></div><div><h3>New hydrological insights for the region</h3><div>Water inflow into the WD predominantly originated from groundwater in the surrounding mountainous terrain and river water, serving as the primary contributors to mining-influenced water (MIW). The inflow volumes and MIW generation increased during precipitation events and snowmelt periods. These processes could have been influenced by the degradation of impermeable structures around the WD, emphasizing the need for continuous water quality monitoring and repair of these structures. This research highlights the necessity of long-term planning for WD management, considering regional climatic and topographic characteristics, to mitigate water pollution risks. It provides new insights into reducing environmental impacts and enhancing the sustainability of mining operations in mountainous regions. Moreover, this study demonstrates that a combination of hydrological approaches—water quality analysis, isotopic studies, and tracer tests—is a valuable tool for gathering critical information on MIW in mountainous mining regions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48620,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology-Regional Studies","volume":"61 ","pages":"Article 102645"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144858307","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Enhanced groundwater potential mapping using a GIS based chaotic sparrow search algorithm optimized weighted broad learning system: A case study of the Guozhuang spring region, northern China","authors":"Dekang Zhao ,&nbsp;Fan Miao ,&nbsp;Yongqi Chen ,&nbsp;Qiang Wu ,&nbsp;Guorui Feng ,&nbsp;Bofeng Chang ,&nbsp;He Su ,&nbsp;Peiyuan Ren ,&nbsp;Chenwei Hao ,&nbsp;Zhenghao Li ,&nbsp;Xiang Li ,&nbsp;Jiaying Cai","doi":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102708","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102708","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Study region</h3><div>Guozhuang spring area, Shanxi, North China.</div></div><div><h3>Study focus</h3><div>This study proposes a Chaotic Sparrow Search Algorithm-enhanced Weighted Broad Learning System (CSSA-WBLS) for groundwater potential assessment. The framework mitigates data imbalance via instance weighting in WBLS and enhances parameter optimization using chaotic operators within CSSA.</div></div><div><h3>New hydrological insights for the region</h3><div>Groundwater is a critical freshwater resource for sustainable water supply management. However, evaluating its potential faces two key challenges: severe data imbalance (fewer spring occurrence samples than non-spring samples) and suboptimal parameter optimization in existing models. Geospatial data were compiled using GIS analysis and field surveys. Eleven predictive factors spanning geology, hydrology, and anthropogenic influences were identified using the frequency ratio, random forest feature importance, and multicollinearity diagnostics. A dataset exhibiting a 1:10 spring/non-spring ratio was split into training (70 %) and testing (30 %) sets. BLS and WBLS models were hybridized with the Sparrow Search Algorithm (SSA) and CSSA to optimize network architecture and node parameters, addressing SVM limitations with imbalanced data. Model performance under imbalance was evaluated using ROC-AUC, accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, balanced accuracy, F1-score, confusion matrices, and Friedman testing. CSSA-WBLS achieved superior performance across over all metrics (AUC = 0.874) and effectively addressed data imbalance. Spatial mapping identified 18.78 % of the area as high-potential groundwater zones. CSSA-WBLS thus provides an efficient framework for groundwater assessment and has significant potential for regional applications.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48620,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology-Regional Studies","volume":"61 ","pages":"Article 102708"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144852756","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effects of slope and upslope inflow rate on black soil ephemeral gully erosion processes in the Northeastern China","authors":"Yazhe Li ,&nbsp;Changjia Li ,&nbsp;Zhongwu Li ,&nbsp;Gaozheng Zhang ,&nbsp;Weihao Hu ,&nbsp;Qianxi Xue ,&nbsp;Chunmei Wang ,&nbsp;Enheng Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102692","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102692","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Study region</h3><div>Black soil region in the Northeastern China</div></div><div><h3>Study focus</h3><div>Ephemeral gullies serve as major sediment sources in Northeast China which can substantially reduce land productivity. Gully erosion processes, hydraulic mechanisms, and threshold values governing the transformation from ephemeral to permanent gullies in black soil regions under water erosion conditions remain insufficiently explained. To address this, laboratory simulations were conducted using an artificial ephemeral gully constructed from black soil, representing conditions in northeastern China. The design incorporated three slope gradients (3°, 6°, and 9°) and five upslope inflow rates (10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 L/min). Data collection involved measuring runoff and sampling sediment to derive hydraulic parameters. Statistical analyses were performed using Spearman rank correlation, multiple regression, and threshold models.</div></div><div><h3>New hydrological insights for the region</h3><div>Sediment yield increases 4 times more from 6°-9° than from 3°-6°, primarily due to the transition from subcritical to supercritical flow. The sediment yield followed a pattern of initial increase to a peak value, then a gradual decline, while the sediment yield rate demonstrated a stepwise rise with increasing upslope inflow rates. Critical hydraulic thresholds for the transformation from ephemeral to permanent gullies were identified across multiple parameters: mean flow velocity (0.44 m/s), flow shear stress (17.45 N/m²), flow power (8.62 W/m²), and unit flow power (0.05 m/s). This research examines key features and processes of ephemeral gully erosion, establishing a theoretical basis for control strategies in black soil regions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48620,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology-Regional Studies","volume":"61 ","pages":"Article 102692"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144842469","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Future drought patterns in Southwest China: A CMIP6-based analysis using multiple drought indices","authors":"Yinping Long ,&nbsp;Yunfei Huang ,&nbsp;Qimin Ma ,&nbsp;Wenli Yu ,&nbsp;Chunping Tan","doi":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102702","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102702","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Study region</h3><div>southwest China</div></div><div><h3>Study focus</h3><div>This study examines future drought patterns in Southwest China—a humid yet drought-prone region—focusing on trends in drought indices, changes in duration, frequency, and intensity, and their impacts on agriculture. Temperature and precipitation from 20 CMIP6 models were downscaled using the high-resolution China Meteorological Forcing Dataset (CMFD), and the multi-model ensemble was used to calculate four drought indices: Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI), China-Z Index (CZI), Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI), and nonstationary SPEI (NSPEI).</div></div><div><h3>New hydrological insights for the region</h3><div>SPI and CZI indicate wetter trends under all SSPs, while SPEI and NSPEI project intensified drought risks, especially under SSP3–7.0 and SSP5–8.5. SPI and CZI show an \"increase-then-decrease\" pattern in frequency and duration, with stable intensity, while SPEI exhibits a \"decrease-then-increase\" trend across metrics. NSPEI reveals higher extremes and sustained increases in frequency and intensity. Over half of the cropland may be exposed to future droughts, particularly single rice (up to 29,446 km²), single maize (26,733 km²), and single wheat (6106 km²). The Sichuan Basin, as a persistent hotspot, may experience drought exposure of up to 17,755 km² for rice and 11,434 km² for maize. The findings highlight critical regional disparities and stress the urgency of drought adaptation strategies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48620,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology-Regional Studies","volume":"61 ","pages":"Article 102702"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144827829","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Suspended material retention in riverine reservoirs: Role of hydropeaking, density currents, and settling velocity","authors":"Siyoon Kwon ,&nbsp;Il Won Seo ,&nbsp;Inhwan Park ,&nbsp;Jun Song Kim","doi":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102706","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102706","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Study Region</h3><div>Paldang Lake (PL), a riverine reservoir in South Korea, located at the confluence of three major rivers.</div></div><div><h3>Study Focus</h3><div>This study evaluates the retention and transport mechanisms of suspended materials within PL. We employed calibrated hydrodynamic and temperature models integrated with a Lagrangian particle tracking framework to simulate the behavior of fine and coarse particles under three distinct flow regimes: hydropeaking, non-hydropeaking, and flood events. The analysis highlights the role of hydropeaking operation, density currents, and particle settling in modulating particle pathways and residence times.</div></div><div><h3>New Hydrological Insights for the Region</h3><div>Our simulations reveal that hydropeaking flows significantly enhance lateral mixing and extend the residence times of fine particles, while coarse particles remain less mobile due to interactions with bed roughness. Stratified flow at confluences inhibits mixing between tributary inflows, leading to bimodal residence time distributions that highlight the importance of weak-flow zones as retention hotspots. During flood events, strong advective forces dominate, resulting in uniform particle transport regardless of settling velocity. These findings provide a deeper understanding of how hydrodynamic forces, stratification, and particle properties influence suspended material retention in PL, offering practical insights for optimizing dam operations and reservoir management to improve water quality and ensure long-term sustainability.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48620,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology-Regional Studies","volume":"61 ","pages":"Article 102706"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144827825","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A multi-model study of the subsurface and surface hydrodynamics of a 700 km2 watershed in western Canada (Fox Creek area, Alberta)","authors":"Bárbara Meneses-Vega ,&nbsp;Claudio Paniconi ,&nbsp;Christine Rivard ,&nbsp;Laura Guarin-Martinez","doi":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102637","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102637","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Study region</h3><div>A 700 km² watershed near the town of Fox Creek (west-central Alberta, Canada), a region that has seen intensive oil and gas production since the 1950s, is investigated.</div></div><div><h3>Study focus</h3><div>The overall objective is to improve our understanding of the hydrodynamics of this watershed. The hierarchical multi-model approach uses physically based numerical models and follows a stepwise progression, transitioning from saturated and variably saturated groundwater to integrated surface water–groundwater (SW-GW) models. This progression encompasses 2D and 3D configurations from a deep (∼1 km) hydrogeological multi-layer aquifer system to a shallow (45 m) coupled flow system. This differs from other multi-model studies where the focus is on comparing simple to complex models for a fixed domain.</div></div><div><h3>New hydrological insights for the region</h3><div>The hierarchical modeling approach has led to better insights and estimates of processes including vertical recharge and lateral groundwater contributions. Moreover, it allowed us to corroborate hydraulic conductivity values and groundwater recharge despite the limited dataset. The hydraulic connections between the four non-marine bedrock units were shown to be negligible, allowing us to focus on the Paskapoo Formation. The unsaturated zone was shown to play a significant role in the model response, and accounting for land surface–subsurface dynamics was demonstrated to be critical to properly estimating hydraulic head profiles and land surface saturation patterns.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48620,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology-Regional Studies","volume":"61 ","pages":"Article 102637"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144828568","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}