Application of Water Balance Models to Different Climatic Regions in China for Water Resources Assessment

Uneven precipitation in space and time together with mismanagement and lack of knowledge about existing water resources, have caused water shortage problems for water supply to large cities and irrigation in many regions of China. There is an urgent need for the efficient use and regional planning of water resources. For these purposes, the monthly variation of discharges should be made available. In this paper, a simple water balance modelling approach was applied to seven catchments (385–2000<Superscript>2</Superscript>) for water resources assessment. Six catchments were chosen from the humid region in southern China and one catchment from the semi-arid and semi-humid region in northern China. The results are satisfactory. It is suggested that the proposed modelling approach provides a valuable tool in the hands of planners and designers of water resources. Copyright Kluwer Academic Publishers 1997