Abstract
The paper presents the analysis of anthropogenical modifications of the landscape in relation to the course and consequences of floods. The research was conducted in the Otava river basin which represents the core zone of the extreme flood in August 2002 in Central Europe. The analysis was focused on the key indicators of landscape modification potentially affecting the runoff process – the long-term changes of land-use, changes of land cover structure, land drainage, historical shortening of the river network and the modifications of streams and floodplains. The information on intensity and spatial distribution of modifications was derived from different data sources – historical maps, available GIS data, remote sensing and field mapping. The results revealed a high level of spatial diversity of anthropogenical modifications in different parts of the river basin. The intensive modifications in most of indicators were concentrated in the lowland region of the river basin due to its agricultural use; however important changes were also recorded in the headwater region of the basin. The high spatial diversity of the modifications may result in their varying effect on the course and consequences of floods in different parts of the river basin. This effect is demonstrated by the cluster analysis based on the matrix of indicators of stream and floodplain modification, physiogeographical characteristics and geomorphological evidences of the flood in August 2002, derived from the individual thematic layers using GIS.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Baena, E. R., Guerrero, A. I., & Janský, B. (2006). Comparative analysis of the floods in Prague (Czechia) and in Seville (Spain): Seed from the geographical viewpoint. Geografie – Sborník ČGS, 111(3), 326–340.
Baker V. R., & Costa J. E. (1987). Flood power. In L. Mayer & L. Nash (Eds.), Catastrophic flooding (pp. 1–21). Boston, London: Allen and Unwin.
Brath, A., Montanari, A., & Moretti, G. (2006a). Assessing the effect on flood frequency of land use change via hydrological simulation (with uncertainty). Journal of Hydrology, 324(1–4), 141–153.
Brath, A., Montanari, A., & Moretti, G. (2006b) Assessing the effect on flood frequency of land use change via hydrological simulation (with uncertainty). Journal of Hydrology, 324, 141–153.
Camorani, G., Castellarin, A., & Brath, A. (2005). Effects of land-use changes on the hydrologic response of reclamation systems. Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Parts A/B/C Assessment of Anthropogenic Impacts on Water Quality, 30(8–10), 561–574.
Cheng, J. D., Lin, L. L., & Lu, H. S. (2002). Influences of forests on water flows from headwater watersheds in Taiwan. Forest Ecology and Management, 165, 11–28.
CHMI (2003). Hydrologické vyhodnocení katastrofální povodně v srpnu 2002. Prague: CHMI [Hydrological assessment of the catastrophic flood in August 2002, in Czech]
Crooks, S., & Davies, H. (2001). Assessment of land use change in the thames catchment and its effect on the flood regime of the river. Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Part B: Hydrology, Oceans and Atmosphere, 26, 583–591.
De Roo, A., Odijk, M., Schmuck, G., Koster, E., & Lucieer, A. (2001) Assessing the effects of land use changes on floods in the Meuse and Oder catchment. Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Part B: Hydrology, Oceans and Atmosphere, 26, 593–599.
Dolezal, F. (2005). Functioning of drainage systems, their usefulness or harmfulness. In Z. Kulhavý, F. Doležal & M. Soukup (Eds.), Drainage of agricultural lands in the context of cultural landscape (pp. 19–22). VÚMOP: Praha.
Dolezal, F., Kulhavy, Z., Soukup, M., & Kodesova, R. (2001). Hydrology of tile drainage runoff. Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Part B: Hydrology, Oceans and Atmosphere, 26, 623–627.
Fohrer, N., Haverkamp, S., Eckhardt, K., & Frede, H. G. (2001) Hydrologic Response to land use changes on the catchment scale. Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Part B: Hydrology, Oceans and Atmosphere, 26, 577–582.
Hladný, J., Krátká, M., & Kašpárek, L. (2005). August 2002 – Catastrophic flood in the Czech republic. Prague: Water Research Institute TGM.
Křížek, M., & Engel, Z. (2003). Geomorphological consequences of the 2002 flood in the Otava river drainage basin. Acta Universitatis Carolinae – Geographica, 38(2), 125–138.
Křížek, M., Hartvich, F., Chuman, T., Šefrna, L., Šobr, M., & Zádorová, T. (2006). Floodplain and its delimitation. Geografie – Sborník ČGS, 111, 260–273.
Langhammer, J. (2003). Geoinformatic assessment of the consequences of extreme flood in August 2002 in Otava river basin. Acta Universitatis Carolinae – Geographica, 38, 185–202.
Langhammer, J., & Matoušková, M. (2006). Mapping and analysis of anthropogenic transformation of river network and floodplain as a factor of flood risk. Geografie – Sborník ČGS, 111, 274–291.
Magilligan, F. J., Phillips, J. D., James, L. A., & Gomez, B. (1998). Geomorphic and sedimentological controls on the effectiveness of an extreme flood. The Journal of Geology, 106, 87–95.
Maidment, D. R. (1993). Handbook of hydrology. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Naef, F., Scherrer, S., & Weiler, M. (2002). A process based assessment of the potential to reduce flood runoff by land use change. Journal of Hydrology, 267, 74–79.
Niehoff, D., Fritsch, U., & Bronstert, A. (2002). Land-use impacts on storm-runoff generation: scenarios of land-use change and simulation of hydrological response in a meso-scale catchment in SW-Germany. Journal of Hydrology, 267, 80–93.
Robinson, M., et al. (2003). Studies of the impact of forests on peak flows and baseflows: A European perspective. Forest Ecology and Management, 186, 85–97.
Shi, P.-J., et al. (2007). The effect of land use/cover change on surface runoff in Shenzhen region, China. Catena, 69(1), 31–35.
Stover, S. C., & Montgomery, D. R. (2001). Channel change and flooding, Skokomish River, Washington. Journal of Hydrology, 243, 272–286.
Tu, M., Hall, M. J., de Laat, P. J., & de Wit, M. J. (2005). Extreme floods in the Meuse river over the past century: Aggravated by land-use changes? Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Parts A/B/C Dealing with Floods within Constraints, 30(4–5), 267–276.
United Nations (2005). Know risk. Tudor Rose, United Nations, Geneva, 369 p.
Vaishar, A., Hlavinková, P., & Kirchner, K. (2000). Long-Term impacts of the 1997 floods in the Morava River Basin. Geografie, Sborník ČGS, 105(2), 141–154.
Vilímek, V., Langhammer, J., Šefrna, L., Lipský, Z., Křížek, M., Stehlík, J., et al. (2003). Posouzení efektivnosti změn ve využívání krajiny pro retenci a retardaci vody jako preventivní opatření před povodněmi. Prague, PřF UK [Assessment of effectiveness of the landuse changes as a preventive flood protection measure].
Wiskow, E., & van der Ploeg, R. R. (2003). Calculation of drain spacings for optimal rainstorm flood control. Journal of Hydrology, 272, 163–174.
Yang, X., Zhou, Q., & Melville, M. (2000). An Integrated drainage network analysis. System for agricultural drainage management: Part 1, 2. The system. Agricultural Water Management, 45(1), 73–100.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Langhammer, J., Vilímek, V. Landscape changes as a factor affecting the course and consequences of extreme floods in the Otava river basin, Czech Republic. Environ Monit Assess 144, 53–66 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-007-9941-6
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-007-9941-6