Sediment yield assessment and identification of check dam sites for Rawal Dam catchment

Sediment yield is the amount of erosional debris from drainage basin deposited in reservoirs. The economic life of storage reservoir depends upon the estimation of the time it takes for the reservoir to be filled with the deposition of sediments. This research is based on assessing the sediment yield in Rawal Dam catchment by using Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model. Digital Elevation Model (DEM), land use maps, soil maps, and weather data of the study watershed were used as input to SWAT model. Monthly sedimentation data of year 2010 and discharge data from 1998 to 2005 is being used for model calibration and validation, respectively. Whereas simulations are being generated from 1998 to 2011 for both sedimentation and discharge. Modified Universal Soil Loss Equation (MUSLE) was used for the estimation of sediment yield. The Nash and Sutcliffe coefficient of the model was found to be 0.79 which depicts its effectiveness. After the estimation of the sediment yield and discharge by using SWAT model, double mass curve was used to evaluate the sedimentation rate. The rate of sediment transport can be reduced by the construction of check dams. Various sites have also been proposed for check dams construction to prevent the sediments transported into the Rawal Catchment.