The value of environmental base flow in water-scarce basins: A case study of Wei River Basin, Northwest China

Abstract

In the perennial river, environmental base flow, associated with environmental flow, is the base flow that should be maintained within the river channel throughout the year, especially in the dry season, to sustain basic ecosystem functions and prevent the shrinkage or discontinuity of a river. The functions of environmental base flow include eco-environmental functions, natural functions, and social functions. In this study, we provided a method based on these functions; this method estimated the function values per unit area, introduced the scarcity coefficient, multiplied by the corresponding water area, and summed over to quantify the value of environmental base flow from 1973 to 2015 in the Wei River Basin, the largest tributary of the Yellow River in Northwest China. We observed that there was a positive correlation between the total value of environmental base flow and its water yield, whereas this outcome was completely different in the benefit per unit discharge of environmental base flow, which was closely associated with the shortage of environmental base flow. This method can thus present the considerable value of environmental base flow in monetary terms in a simple and effective way and lay the foundation for further reasonable protection levels of environmental base flow.