Abstract

Study region

: Kathmandu Valley, Capital city of Nepal

Study focus

: This study applied three hydrological models (i.e., SWAT, HBV, and

BTOPMC) to analyze the water balance components and their temporal and
seasonal variations in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. The water balance
components were investigated using the same precipitation, climatic data, and
potential evapotranspiration (PET) as input variables for each model. The
yearly and seasonal variations in each component and the interactions among
them were analyzed. There was a close agreement between the monthly
observed and calibrated runoff at the watershed scale, and all the three models
captured well the flow patterns for most of the seasons.

New hydrological insights for the region

: The average annual runoff in the study watershed calculated by the SWAT,
HBV, and BTOPMC models was 887, 834, and 865 mm, corresponding to
59%, 55%, and 57% of the annual precipitation, respectively. The average
annual evapotranspiration (ET) was 625, 623, and 718 mm, and the estimated
yearly average total water storage (TWS) was 5, −35, and 29 mm, respectively.
The long-term average TWS component was similar in all three models. ET
had the lowest inter-annual variation and runoff had the greatest inter-annual
variation in all models. Predictive analysis using the three models suggested a
reasonable range for estimates of runoff, ET, and TWS.

Although there was variation in the estimates among the different models, our
results indicate a possible range of variation for those values, which is a useful
finding for the short- and long-term planning of water resource
development projects in the study area. The effects of historic