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Calculating point runoff in the arid catchment areas of the Western Saharan Atlas: Case of Rhouiba wadi catchment area (Ksour Mountains) in south-western Algeria
 
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Laboratory of Management and Water Treatment, Faculty of Architecture and Civil Engineering, University of Science and Technology of Oran-Mohamed Boudiaf, BP 1505, El M’Naouer, Oran 31000, Algeria
 
 
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Zoulikha Benbouziane   

Laboratory of Management and Water Treatment, Faculty of Architecture and Civil Engineering, University of Science and Technology of Oran-Mohamed Boudiaf, BP 1505, El M’Naouer, Oran 31000, Algeria
 
 
Ecol. Eng. Environ. Technol. 2025; 3:378-392
 
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ABSTRACT
In Algeria, frequent peak flows are currently estimated using empirical or analytical formulas established under geographical and climatic conditions other than those of Algeria, which is known for its spatial and climatic diversity. As a result, the errors committed by these extrapolated formulas can reach considerable values, leading to poorly dimensioned and erroneous flood protection structures. In this context, we shed light on the calculation of frequency flows and their appropriate adjustment tests in one of the arid to desert regions of the Oued Rhouiba basin, part of the Western Saharan Atlas (Ksour Mountains region), south-west Algeria, based on instantaneous flow data measured at the Ain Hadjadj hydrometric station and empirical models. In this study, we'll confine ourselves to the general characteristics of floods, such as their genesis, power and frequency, and to the hydrological potential and risks they represent. The catchment area covers a surface area of 2945.74 km2, perimeter of 389.23 km, elongated shape (Kc=2), very steep slopes exceeding 35%, favoring strong, rapid runoff, with a runoff concentration time (Tc= 21.21 h). All these conditions have contributed to classifying the basin as an arid to desert bioclimatic zone, offering a favorable environment for the development of heavy floods. Surface runoff in this arid region is closely associated with local rainfall patterns, on the one hand, and the specificity that the region is landlocked between a series of barren mountains, on the other. Peak flows are considerably higher than average flows. These cures are rapid, characterized by an abrupt rise in water levels during the flood phase and a slower decrescence with a prolonged drying-up. Autumn is identified as the season with the greatest risk of flooding. Discharge during low-water periods bears witness to the phreatic potential generated by the Atlasic nature of the study region, highlighting a significant hydrological relationship between surface water and groundwater. The Exponential law gave the best fit of the maximum daily rainfall series from the Wadi Rhouiba watershed station, which are close and satisfactory to those of the flows calculated by Sokolovsky's empirical formula, which can then be readily exploited for the sizing of protection structures in arid to desert regions.
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