A mobile bed 1D numerical model to support Red River (VietNam) basin management

Large-scale river basin management in developing countries so far has commonly neglected river morphology evolution as a driving factor dramatically influencing river system services. To fill this gap, a 1D finite-volume hydrodynamic mobile bed numerical model, able to cope with natural channel geometry and suitable for the integration in optimization algorithms devoted to river system management strategies, has been implemented and applied to a 80 km long reach of the Red (Hong) River (VietNam), suffering from severe bed degradation. The effects of different sand mining rates and response to upstream reservoir releases policies can be assessed. Preliminary tests results and a validation of the model on the decade 2000-2009, together with a sensitivity analysis to sand mining and flow control through dams are presented and discussed. © 2014 Taylor & Francis Group, London