Use of the recession characteristics of snowmelt hydrographs in the assessment of snow water storage in a basin

For a better management of water resources, the information on water stored in a basin in the form of snow is of immense use. Changes in the snow wate r storage with time influence the recession characteristics of the hydrogra phs. Recession is found to be slower in a basin when it contains higher sno w water storage and becomes faster as the volume of stored water reduces. I n other words, the recession coefficient is not constant throughout the mel t season, it changes with time. In the present study, the possibility of as sessing snow water storage at any time during the melt season using recessi on coefficients is examined. The hydrograph analyses have been made for the Glatzbach watershed in the Hohe Tauern region of the Austrian Alps. For th is purpose, a relationship between snow water storage and the recession coe fficients is developed. This study suggests a simple and useful approach to assess the snow water storage in a basin at any time during the snowmelt s eason. The information on the snow water storage of a basin can be obtained using a readily derived single parameter, the recession coefficient. The r esults are based on limited data, but they are sufficient to illustrate how the changes in snow water storage control the recession characteristics of the hydrographs. These investigations set the pace for further research in this area. Copyright (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.