Quantifying the Impact of Changes in Sinuosity on River Ecosystems

To quantitatively study the hydrodynamic changes in different river morphologies and clarify the impact of morphological changes on river ecosystems, this study examined a section of the Nansha River near Laoniuwan in the Haidian District, Beijing, and characterized different river morphologies by river sinuosity. The River 2D model was used for simulation and analysis, and the depth and velocity diversity indices were introduced to quantify the distribution of depth and velocity under different sinuosities. Cyprinus carpio was selected as the target fish in this study, and its suitability curve was determined using literature and field surveys. Combined with the simulation results, a weighted usable area curve was established to identify its inflection point and maximum value and determine the ecological flow in the river under different sinuosities, that is, to clarify the relationship between sinuosity and ecological flow. The results showed that the lower the sinuosity, the worse the depth and velocity diversity, but a greater sinuosity did not lead to better depth and velocity diversity. The depth and velocity diversity of a sinuosity of 1.5 were better than those of 1.89 in general, except for low flow conditions (Q = 5 m(3)/s). For rivers with water use restricted by nature and society and where ecological needs exist, ecological engineering that appropriately changes the planform of rivers can be considered to increase the diversity of river/channel geometry and provide a basis for the ecological restoration of rivers.

Automated summary

This study quantitatively investigated the hydrodynamic changes in different river morphologies and their impact on river ecosystems. By characterizing different river morphologies using sinuosity, the researchers used a River 2D model to simulate and analyze these changes. The results showed that a lower sinuosity led to worse depth and velocity diversity, while a higher sinuosity did not necessarily result in better depth and velocity diversity. This study highlights the importance of ecological engineering in adjusting river planform to increase the diversity of river/channel geometry and support ecological restoration efforts.