This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 642224
The case study of the Bakumivka river catchment is aimed at seeking the optimal ways of water and land management in the areas heavily modified by the hydro-melioration. The catchment area is located at the North of Ukraine and represents the part of the larger Trubizh river irrigation-drainage system. Its total area of about 64 sq. km encompasses 1 main channel (16 km length) and 30 secondary channels (34 km). Hydro-melioration system constructed in 1970-80s have changed dramatically the water regime of the catchment, turned wetlands into the peatlands, particularly causing the peat fires. Additionally, commercialization of agriculture since the beginning of the 2000s has changed the crop composition and destroyed the crop rotation schemes, causing the soil erosion and dehumification. These changes are typical for the vast area of Northern and Central Ukraine. Main objectives of the rural water management case study within FREEWAT are as follows: 1. better understanding of the water balance and its human induced changes; 2. to describe quantitatively dependencies between the water balance and land cover pattern, crop spatial and temporal composition; 3. to explore relations between the water balance components and climate variables (temperature, precipitation). The case study will help to develop and quantify future scenarios for changes in the land use, water management, and climate.
