Practice and prospect of water and sediment transfer in the Yellow River flood season in 2024

Wei Xiangyang; Ren Wei; Yang Huiying; Han Han; Wang Peng

doi:10.3969/j.issn.1000-1123.2025.04.003

Abstract：Water and sediment regulation during flood season plays a key part in the Yellow River Basin.In the flood season of 2024,floods frequently occurred in the middle reaches of the river posed a number of challenges to water and sediment regulation.Yellow River Conservancy Commission of the Ministry of Water Resources conducted an in-depth analysis of water storage and sources of water and sediment,adjusted the strategy of reservoir scheduling,and implemented joint operation of the Sanmenxia and the Xiaolangdi reservoirs.Water and sediment regulation was carried out for three times in order to realize multiple purposes of flood control,sediment reduction,and ecological improvement.During the first scheduling,an approach of"control first,open later"was adopted by the Sanmenxia Reservoir,with consideration to low sediment concentration of the incoming water from the south bank of the Weihe River and high initial water level in the Xiaolangdi Reservoir.During the second and third scheduling,the discharge flow was increased in advance until fully released in response to high sediment floods.Thanks to these measures,siltation of river channel has been reduced,and capabilities of flood discharge and sediment carrying of the water course in the downstream maintained.It also helped to achieve win-win and benefits of flood control,siltation reduction,and ecological improvement,by means of ensuring safety of the reservoir and river course and preventing siltation and blockage of downstream culverts and gates that diverts water from the Yellow River,safeguarding water supply and power generation,and improving ecology and environment of the estuary.In the future,more attention needs to be paid on studies of water and sediment sources,optimization of scheduling strategy,measures of forecasting,early warning,rehearsal,and contingency plans,so as to provide strong support for ecological protection and high-quality development of the basin.