The Sediments Flow of the Main Baikal Rivers and Its Sensitivity to the Environmental Change (East Siberia, Russia)

Abstract

The results of the analysis of water and sediments flows’ changes of main inflowing Baikal rivers over the observation period are presented. Long-term observation record of sediments flow is divided into two periods differ with average values and a scale fluctuations of annual averages values. During the first period dynamics of sediments flow of rivers is determined by hydro-climatic factors, i.e. fluctuations of sediments flow, in general, are synchronous to fluctuations of water flow. During the second period (from the second half of 1970s) there is the downward trend of sediments flow’s change (decrease by 48 – 81%) against the background of increased water content of rivers. This trend is caused by both anthropogenic influence in basins of rivers under review and natural processes, connected to global and regional changes of climatic characteristics. In general, natural processes of sediments flow’s changes in the different areas of Baikal basin are adjusted by anthropogenic factors to a greater or lesser extent. The present article can be used as information and analytical material for the further research and forecast of sediments flow’s changes in Baikal basin as well as in other rift-valley lakes of the world.

Keywords: Lake Baikal, water and sediments flow, trends, antropogenic factor, climate change