109. Runoff Forecasting and Estimates of Suspended Sediment for Sustainable Development of Hydropower Schemes in the Himalayan Region

Himalayas have the huge potential of hydropower in our country because of availability of water in the perennial rivers and suitable head for generating hydropower. The contribution of snow and glaciers in annual runoff of some important Himalayan rivers at specific sites has been presented. It has been pointed out that hardly any hydropower station in our country uses hydrological model for forecasting of total runoff accounting for snow and glacier contributions. An understanding of runoff generating processes and sediment delivery pattern in the Himalayan region are key issues for sustainable development and operation of hydropower schemes. Suspended sediment concentration and its distribution over the year, suspended sediment load, sediment yield and erosion rates are reported and their importance with respect to hydropower schemes is discussed. These results would be useful for planning and designing for hydropower projects as well as for the management of water resources for different purposes like power generation, flood protection and irrigation and domestic water supply. Further, availability of water for the hydropower projects under changed climatic scenarios has to be studied.