i1.nd13 13 gi413.indd 2 P.Dmitry Nesterenko 1* Corresponding author gory,Leninskie 1,1199911, Tel. [email protected] +74959391533,e-mail: e-mail: [email protected] e-mail: State University, , gory, ;Leninskie 1,1199911, Tel. +74959391001, bigger floodplainareas. order, withhigherorder corresponding to average floodplainareas andthe stream theestablishing dependencesbetween allowed wasestimated.along therivers It change oftheaverage floodplainareas For several rivers inthe river basin, map wascompiledusingtheobtainedresults. within theentire were extent calculated anda changesofstream more order than200km, rivers ofthe Volga basin,whichhaslengthof 9907 riversinthe Volga riverbasin.For 96 scheme, were calculated for themouthsof stream order, according to theScheidegger order, to thisorder hasbeenproposed. The of theriverwithaparticular within thepart of thearea ofafloodplainmassif, averaged technique, ofconformity basedonaprinciple of floodingisgreat importance. The whicharethe territories underthethreat greater frequency, depth,anddurationof ecological damage. The lossincreases with considerable social, economic, and and economy. floodscancause River hydroecological safety ofthepopulation season ofayear withagreater to risk isahydrological highwater period Spring regime. ABSTRACT. KEY WORDS: INTRODUCTION RIVER BASIN ALONG SOME RIVERS OF THE VOLGA CHANGE OF THE FLOODPLAIN AREAS Head of the Department ofHydrology, HeadoftheDepartment Faculty ofGeography, Lomonosov Moscow Faculty ofGeography, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia;

The estimationofthearea of

Volga; floodplainareas; water 1* , Nikolay I.Alexeevsky on thefloodplain.Difference located objects and thesocialindustrial level andisnotadangerfor thepopulation stream islimited withthelow-water period flooding ofariversegment withtheinitial water level starts. AtH water level starts. N depends onthesize oftheriver(itsrank of water levels ontheriver segment. It anaturalrangeofchange ΔH characterizes The valueofΔ 2006]. (in cm)ΔH=0,04F+160[Samokhin, or annualfloodingoftheboth sidesofthe floodplain riverchannels, for whichperiodic Volga river basin,there prevail (80%)broad- (broad-floodplain, altered, the orincised). In ofariverchannel geomorphological type example, atF<15 000 км watershed area Let usassumethat,atsomewater level H Russian roubles andmore. in the Volga riverbasincanreach 200million dangerous naturalandsocialphenomenon offlooding,risk annualdamagesfrom this basin includesthezones withrathersmall ofthe Though theterritory Volga river basic assets[Dobrovolsky, Istomina, 2007]. valleys oftherivers, andgrowing costof with growing population,settlingarea in alsoincreases 2000].It flooding [Taratunin, RIVER BASIN FREQUENCY OF FLOODS IN THE VOLGA Sh ) [Nesterenko, Kositsky, 2010]andthe 2 . In the riverbasin,for theOka F. In H mn dependsona

m 2 , thisdifference is H < H H p m , thewater –H mn = H m p 50.049:17:24 9:17:24 15.01.2014 ,

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1 14 GEOGRAPHY 4 of Δ significantly influencethespatialchange basin (according to V.D. doesnot Zajkov) ofwater regimeThe type ofthe Volga flooding. seasonal maximaofwater levels thatcancause are abrupt,andbanksare highandcancontain of thearea becausetheslopesofsuchrivers incised channels, there isnodangerofflooding small orcompletely absentfloodplain.For the withavery incisedchannel type the extended of the Volga belongsto basinchannelnetwork channels changesslightly. Approximately 15% watershed area about 5%oftherivernetwork. Within the basin,alteredriver segments occupy ofrivers the a slopecomposedofsolidrocks). In Volga there isusually side (ontheopposite bank, channels usuallyhave afloodplainonone ischaracteristic. river withalteredThe rivers zones, Δ of theriversthisbasinhave identical H because the overwhelming majority majority becausetheoverwhelming H ofbroad-floodplain andaltered river Fig. 1. The map of the duration of floodplain flooding in the Volga River basin River Volga the in flooding floodplain of duration the of 1. map Fig. The F = const and in the floodplain =constandinthefloodplain (, ) are Mologa) flooded for more than (Vetluga, Only occasionallyfloodplainsofsomerivers islonger(10–30days). Chuvashiya, thisperiod Bashkortostan, Tatarstan, and Udmurtiya, Tver regions, thePerm territory, Republicof Kirov,the , Moscow, and , for lessthan10days) In ischaracteristic. of thefloodplains(onaverage, itproceeds flooding For ofthebasin,short themostparts floodplains doesnotexceed 50days (Fig. 1). the durationofflooding Volga basin anddynamics..., 1999], the data[Morphology occurs onahighfloodplain.According to discharge andwater levels atwhichflooding degree, anddurationofwater thefrequency flowdefines, ofriver distribution to agreater type. The intra-annual to theKazakhstan exception; there, thewater regime belongs represent thesoutheast oftheterritory medium-size riversinthesouthand Small-and flow(EastEuropeanriver type). ofthe oftheintra-annualdistribution type 115.01.2014 9:17:24 5 . 0 1 . 2 0 1 4

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1 of itsflooding. Value of theregime characterizes is mostobjectively Q ofchannel-forming water discharges interval corresponds toThis frequency thehighest conditions ofsteady floodingofafloodplain. water discharge average) (long-term for in thiscaseitispossibleto evaluate daily withthehydrologicalterritories posts. Only floodplains canbeestimated onlyfor the offloodingthe The frequency Volga basin offlooding.as riverswithnorisk fragmentary, them whichallowsconsidering have nofloodplainsortheyare mountain riversofthewestern slopeofthe climatic conditions. The mountainandsemi- not affected hydro- byfloodinginthemodern orare seldom floodedinahighwater periods andtheSamararegions are very 30 days. Floodplains ofsomesmallriversinthe this parameter is characteristic forthis parameter ischaracteristic therivers Chalov,[Vlasov, 1991]. The maximalvalueof discharges doesn’t exceed 27 days. Recurrence ofwater that durationoffloodingfloodplains frombasin inperiod 1877to 1980hasshown Data processing on132postsinriver Volga durationoffloodingfloodplains.period) averagecharacterizes (for thelong-term corresponding durationofthephenomenon Q by thepower equation(Fig. 2): the size oftheriver(itsarea, stream order Recurrence ofthewater discharge 5 Fig. 2. Dependence of the size of the top interval interval top the of size the of Dependence 2. Fig. bff bff on stream order ( of channel-forming water discharges [Vlasov, Chalov, [Vlasov, 1991],which, inlong-term, =

2 1.76 N Q Sh 0.72 bff . varies from varies 0,01%to 7,5% N Sh ) in the Volga river basin river Volga the ) in Q bff is connected with with isconnected Q Q bff bff and N

Sh ) of floodplains thearea(or basin)dependencesbetween to identifyregional purpose, itisnecessary The problem analysisshowsthatfor this and large rivers. located inthevalleysofsmall,territories average, for characteristic large defining thisimportant damages. Nowadays, there are nomethodsof (or nonlinear)increase ofsocialandeconomic increase inthisarea isassociated withalinear flooding control. thingsbeingequal, the Other for oftheinvestments necessary efficiency estimating potential damageandeconomic evalu for the the river valleysisofhighimportance of riverwater discharges, in thesize (stream order) ofthefrequency andKama. With anincrease Oka, , in theuppercoursesofrivers White, the tributaries shorter than10km. shorter the tributaries The information onthearea offlooding adapted andincisedchannels. on broad-floodplain channelscompared to somewhat. ismuchgreaterThe frequency where N A. Scheideggerscheme)usingformula: We estimated thestream order (according to Hydrological scrutiny, 1966]. [The network inthe than10km Volgashorter basinriver the dataonnumberoftributaries order toIn test thisstatement, we used hydrological phenomenon). (and potential damagesfrom thisdangerous Federation regions orindividualriverbasins offloodplainareas withintheRussian parts it possibleto identifypotentially flooded and theirsize (length,stream order) make oftheriverswithinterritory distribution corresponding value for ariversegment with the parameters (average area offloodplain existence ofconsistent dependencesbet ween IN THE VOLGA RIVER BASIN THE CHANNEL NETWORK Sh =1+log ation of flooding damage. Such data allow ation offloodingdamage. Suchdataallow S isthetotal numberof 2 S F , f andthestr N Sh N ) and between the ) andbetween Sh =const eam order. The Q bff increases and the F f in in 115.01.2014 9:17:24 5 . 0 1 . 2 0 1 4

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1 16 GEOGRAPHY 6 similarity. basin to estimate theirhydrographic the mouthsof9907riversin Volga This procedure for wasconducted Value ofstream order N Sh inthemouth Table 1. Distribution of the rivers (according to the value of stream order in the mouth) mouth) the in order stream of value tothe (according rivers the of Table 1. Distribution 01 11573 698 1282 1898 1918 1312 1 695 1–2 384 2–3 3–4 4–5 5–6 6–7 41 7–8 23 9 5 2 2 10–11 0 11–12 1 12–13 13–14 14–15 15–16 16–17 17–18 –08 aai o vial 816 Dataisnotavailable 89 9–10 1 – 158 8–9 1 >18 Fig. 3. The map of stream order in the Volga River basin River Volga the in order stream of map The 3. Fig. with thecorresponding Number oftherivers value ofN in the Volga River basin Sh are associated withanincrease ofthe of thestream order (Fig. 3). The changes we estimated changes (longer than200km), For 96largest riversofthe Volga basin Value ofstream order N Sh inthemouth with thecorresponding Number oftherivers value ofN Sh 115.01.2014 9:17:25 5 . 0 1 . 2 0 1 4

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1 example, from 5,1to 5,7orfrom 12,2 to were defined,(for changed within unity the riversfor whichthe floodplainareas were obtained. If Oka) Pahra,their length(theriversMoskva, and ofthe tributaries Volga riverdependingon The estimates ofthefloodplainareas ofthe the program. the area wascalculated automatically by the floodplainareas were delineated and settlements, ofvegetation, andcharacter featurescharacteristic –relief, borders of graphical coordinates, then,according to map) wasgeoreferenced to thegeo- the program, theraster image(topographic programusing asoftware AcrView GIS3.2.In were used. out The calculationwascarried riverbasinterritory 000 scale, for theOka 1:50 river mouthsinthe Volga basin,rank the Volga delta.For ofthe themajority of the floodplainandVolgo-Ahtubinskaya through riverbranchesischaracteristic Dischargebecause ofinflowingtributaries. rivers from theirbeginnings to mouths hydr of majority size (stream for segments oftheriverswithchanging For thecalculation ofthefloodplainareas not exceeded 10. number oftheriverswith number oftherivershave does notexceed 1). 7(Table The maximal 7 RIVERS FLOODPLAIN AREAS ALONG SOME Fig. 4. Relation between the average area average the between Relation 4. Fig. of floodplains of the Volga basin rivers rivers basin Volga the of floodplains of and their stream order order stream their and order), 67t ological parameters ofthe thestr opographic maps, N N Sh Sh eam orderof N =3 Sh >11does • 5. The

F N f

Sh

at floodplain river average area oftheOka river-segment channels. For example, the ofthe valleys andgeomorphological type on themorphological features oftheriver the dependenceoffloodplainarea existing dispersionofthepointsspecifies with theincrease inthestream order. The of theaverage floodplainarea coincides Fig.function. 4indicates thattheincrease bynonlinearincreasingand isdescribed floodplains dependsonthestream order Change oftheaverage areas ofthe order (e.g., was compared according to thestream 12,6), theiraverage valuewasdefined. It for definingthe streamof order average areas ofthefloodplainsand The the between establisheddependency the changeofchanneltype. N 34.31.0007). and Universities (theprojectno. 11.G. SchoolsScientists intheRussianHigher ofLeadingunder theSupervision of the ScientificResearchState Support Federation GovernmentGrantfor the project no. 12-05-00069)andtheRussian Foundation for BasicResearch (the bytheRussianThe studyissupported the populationinareas offloodingrisk. thevalueofbasicassetsandconsidering of floodplainfloodingandpotential damage basin through assessingthefrequency indifferentofthe actions parts Volga river possible to planflood-control objectively potentially affected is byflooding. It altered intheriver valleys territories possible to estimate theareas ofman- dependence channel geomorphologicalUsing type. information anddataontheriver oftheriver valleyswithhydrographicparts CONCLUSION ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Sh N =13,isequalto 7,3km Sh =12isequalto 13,5km 5 or12)(Fig. 4).  F the riversopensprospects f =f F f ( for theunstudied N Sh 2 ) itwould be , whichisdueto 2 , andfor 115.01.2014 9:17:25 5 . 0 1 . 2 0 1 4

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18 GEOGRAPHY REFERENCES .Vlasov, B.N, ofRussiabased R.S.Chalov. division oftheEuropean territory (1991).Districts 9. Taratunin, oftheRussianFederation. A.A.(2000).Flooding intheterritory Yekaterinburg. 8. M.A.(2006).Geneticfeatures Samokhin, ofthelevel regime formation oftherivers invari- 7. water resources oftheUSSR. Surface The hydrological study. (1966). Vol. 12. The Lower Volga re- 6. water resources oftheUSSR. Surface The hydrological study. (1966). Vol. Ural 11.Middle 5. water resources oftheUSSR. Surface The hydrological study. (1966). Vol. 10. The Upper 4. Nesterenko, D.P., oftheriver A.G.Kositskiy. (2010).Channelnetwork Volga anditsindica- 3. ofRussiaand oftheEuropean anddynamicsofchannelstherivers part Morphology 2. Dobrovolsky, S.G.,M.N.Istomina. (2006). World flooding. Moscow: “GUOS” Publishing 1. State University Bulletin. Series 5.Geography.State Bulletin.Series University N6. on theflowconditionsofchannel-forming water discharges ontherivers. The Moscow “Aerokosmoekologiya” Publishing House, 375p. M.V. Lomonosov State University, Moscow 31p. ingeographical sciences.ous regions ofthePhD Moscow: dissertation ofRussia.Abstract gion andthe Part. 1. WesternThe Lower Kazakhstan. Volga region. Leningrad: Gidrometeoizdat. andPriural’e.Mountains Leningrad: Part. 1.. Gidrometeoizdat. Volga area. Leningrad: Gidrometeoizdat. State 21–24,2010). (April University Moscow Council onproblems processessity oferosion, attheLomonosov channel, andestuary tion features. ofthe Materials VIII Scientificseminarofyoung scientistsattheInteruniver- educational institutions.” RussianFederal for GeodesyandCartography. Service the adjacentstates. (1999). ofscale1:2000000from The Map aseries for“Maps higher House, 255p. Nikolay I.Alexeevsky Dmitry P. Dmitry Nesterenko studiedattheLomonosov State Moscow river channelandmouthprocesses. ofhydrologyresearch and hydroecology, isinthetheory and (Faculty ofGeography, Lomonosov State His University). Moscow 1995, heisProfessor ofHydrology andHeadoftheDepartment DSc degree in1994(from State Since University). theMoscow University, graduated in1978, andreceived hisPhD in1981and his research isonwater regime ofriversandfloodplains. Geography, Lomonosov State University). Moscow The focus of ofHydrology (Facultyhe isEngineer attheDepartment of University, graduated in2009withaMaster’s degree. Since2010, studiedatLomonosov State Moscow 50.049:17:26 9:17:26 15.01.2014