Articles | Volume 20, issue 7
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2841-2016
© Author(s) 2016. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2841-2016
© Author(s) 2016. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Model-based study of the role of rainfall and land use–land cover in the changes in the occurrence and intensity of Niger red floods in Niamey between 1953 and 2012
Claire Casse
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Géoscience Environnement Toulouse (UMR5563 CNRS, IRD,
Université Toulouse III), Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées, Toulouse,
France
Géoscience Environnement Toulouse (UMR5563 CNRS, IRD,
Université Toulouse III), Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées, Toulouse,
France
Théo Vischel
Laboratoire des Transferts en Hydrologie et Environnement
(UMR5564, CNRS, IRD, Université Grenoble I), France
Guillaume Quantin
Laboratoire des Transferts en Hydrologie et Environnement
(UMR5564, CNRS, IRD, Université Grenoble I), France
Bachir Alkali Tanimoun
Autorité du Bassin du Niger (ABN), Niamey,
Niger
Related authors
No articles found.
Gabrielle Sorini, Juliette Blanchet, Gérémy Panthou, Théo Vischel, and Yves Tramblay
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1176, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1176, 2026
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Hydrology and Earth System Sciences (HESS).
Short summary
Short summary
This study investigates regional flood trends across West Africa using time-varying extreme-value distributions. While most catchments show declining flood magnitudes up to the 1970s–1990s, recent trends diverge, ranging from decrease to intensification, revealing an original typology of regional hydrosystems. These results refine the narrative of hydrological changes in West Africa and provide clues to their attribution.
Cited articles
Aich, V., Liersch, S., Vetter, T., Andersson, J., Müller, E., and Hattermann, F.: Climate or Land Use? – Attribution of Changes in River Flooding in the Sahel Zone, Water, 7, 2796–2820, https://doi.org/10.3390/w7062796, 2015.
Albergel, J.: Sécheresse, désertification et ressources en eau de surface – Application aux petits bassins du Burkina Faso, in: The Influence of Climate Change and Climatic Variability on the Hydrologic Regime and Water Resources, vol. 168, 355–365, IAHS PUBLICATION, Vancouver, 1987.
Amani, A. and Nguetora, M.: Evidence d'une modification du régime hydrologique du fleuve Niger à Niamey, in 4th FRIEND 2002 – Regional Hydrology?: Bridging the Gap between Research and practice, vol. 274, 449–456, IAHS PUBLICATION, Cape Town, South Africa, 2002.
AMMA-CATCH database, available at: http://bd.amma-catch.org/amma-catch2/main.jsf, last access: 7 July 2016.
Amogu, O., Descroix, L., Yéro, K. S., Le Breton, E., Mamadou, I., Ali, A., Vischel, T., Bader, J.-C., Moussa, I. B., Gautier, E., Boubkraoui, S., and Belleudy, P.: Increasing River Flows in the Sahel?, Water, 2, 170–199, https://doi.org/10.3390/w2020170, 2010.
Ashouri, H., Hsu, K.-L., Sorooshian, S., Braithwaite, D. K., Knapp, K. R., Cecil, L. D., Nelson, B. R., and Prat, O. P.: PERSIANN-CDR: Daily Precipitation Climate Data Record from Multisatellite Observations for Hydrological and Climate Studies, B. Am. Meteorol. Soc., 96, 69–83, https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-13-00068.1, 2015.
Boone, A., Calvet, J.-C., and Noilhan, J.: Inclusion of a third soil layer in a land surface scheme using the force-restore method, J. Appl. Meteorol., 38, 1611–1630, 1999.
Briquet, J. P., Mahé, G., Bamba, F., and Olivry, J. C.: Changements climatiques recents et modification du regime hydrologique du fleuve Niger Koulikoro (Mali), in: L'hydrologie tropicale?: géoscience et outil pour le développement, vol. 238, 157–166, IAHS PUBLICATION, Paris, 1996.
Camberlin, P., Beltrando, G., Fontaine, B., and Richard, Y.: Pluviométrie et crises climatiques en Afrique Tropicale?: changements durables ou fluctuations interannuelles?, Histoire et Géographes, 379, 263–273, 2002.
Casenave, A. and Valentin, C.: A runoff capability classification system based on surface features criteria in semi-arid areas of West Africa, J. Hydrol., 130, 231–249, 1992.
Casse, C. and Gosset, M.: Analysis of hydrological changes and flood increase in Niamey based on the PERSIANN-CDR satellite rainfall estimate and hydrological simulations over the 1983–2013 period, Proc. IAHS, 370, 117–123, https://doi.org/10.5194/piahs-370-117-2015, 2015.
Casse, C., Gosset, M., Peugeot, C., Pedinotti, V., Boone, A., Tanimoun, B. A., and Decharme, B.: Potential of satellite rainfall products to predict Niger River flood events in Niamey, Atmos. Res., 163, 162–176, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosres.2015.01.010, 2015.
Chen, M., Shi, W., Xie, P., Silva, V. B. S., Kousky, V. E., Wayne Higgins, R., and Janowiak, J. E.: Assessing objective techniques for gauge-based analyses of global daily precipitation, J. Geophys. Res., 113, D04110, https://doi.org/10.1029/2007JD009132, 2008.
Climate Prediction Centre (CPC) Gauged-based Analysis of Global Daily Precipitation, available at: http://ftp.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/precip/CPC_UNI_PRCP/GAUGE_GLB/, last access: 7 July 2016.
Collinet, J. and Valentin, C.: Analyse des différents facteurs intervenant sur l'hydrodynamique superficielle, Nouvelle perspectives – Applications agronomiques, ORSTOM, Centre d'Adiopodoume, B.P V-51 Abidjan (Côte d'Ivoire), 1979.
Dai, A., Lamb, P. J., Trenberth, K. E., Hulme, M., Jones, P. D., and Xie, P.: The recent Sahel drought is real, Int. J. Climatol., 24, 1323–1331, https://doi.org/10.1002/joc.1083, 2004.
Decharme, B. and Douville, H.: Introduction of a sub-grid hydrology in the ISBA land surface model, Clim. Dynam., 26, 65–78, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-005-0059-7, 2005.
Decharme, B. and Douville, H.: Global validation of the ISBA sub-grid hydrology, Clim. Dynam., 29, 21–37, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-006-0216-7, 2007.
Decharme, B., Douville, H., Boone, A., Habets, F., and Noilhan, J.: Impact of an exponential profile of saturated hydraulic conductivity within the ISBA LSM: Simulations over the Rhône basin., J. Hydrometeorol., 7, 61–80, 2006.
Desconnets, J. C., Taupin, J. D., Lebel, T., and Leduc, C.: Hydrology of the HAPEX-Sahel Central Super-site: surface water drainage and aquifer recharge through the pool systems, J. Hydrol., 188–189, 155–178, 1997.
Descroix, L., Mahé, G., Lebel, T., Favreau, G., Galle, S., Gautier, E., Olivry, J.-C., Albergel, J., Amogu, O., Cappelaere, B., Dessouassi, R., Diedhiou, A., Le Breton, E., Mamadou, I., and Sighomnou, D.: Spatio-temporal variability of hydrological regimes around the boundaries between Sahelian and Sudanian areas of West Africa: A synthesis, J. Hydrol., 375, 90–102, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2008.12.012, 2009.
Descroix, L., Genthon, P., Amogu, O., Rajot, J.-L., Sighomnou, D., and Vauclin, M.: Change in Sahelian Rivers hydrograph: The case of recent red floods of the Niger River in the Niamey region, Global Planet. Change, 98–99, 18–30, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2012.07.009, 2012.
Descroix, L., Niang, A. D., Dacosta, H., Panthou, G., Quantin, G., and Diedhiou, A.: Evolution des pluies de cumul élévé et recrudescence des crues depuis 1951 dans le bassin du Niger Moyen (Sahel), Climatologie, 10, 37–50, 2013.
D'Orgeval, T. and Polcher, J.: Impacts of precipitation events and land-use changes on West African river discharges during the years 1951–2000, Clim. Dynam., 31, 249–262, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-007-0350-x, 2008.
Eldridge, R. H.: A synoptic study of West African disturbance lines, Q. J. Roy. Meteor. Soc., 83, 303–314, 1957.
Favreau, G., Cappelaere, B., Massuel, S., Leblanc, M., Boucher, M., Boulain, N., and Leduc, C.: Land clearing, climate variability, and water resources increase in semiarid southwest Niger: A review, Water Resour. Res., 45, W00A16, https://doi.org/10.1029/2007WR006785, 2009.
Galle, S., Ehrmann, M., and Peugeot, C.: Water balance in a banded vegetation pattern: a case study of tiger bush in western Niger, Catena, 37, 197–216, 1999.
Gandin, L. S.: Objective Analysis of Meteorological Fields. Leningrad, Gidromet; Translated from Russian, Jerusalem, Israel Program for Scientific Translations, 1965, 242 pp., 1965.
Gardelle, J., Hiernaux, P., Kergoat, L., and Grippa, M.: Less rain, more water in ponds: a remote sensing study of the dynamics of surface waters from 1950 to present in pastoral Sahel (Gourma region, Mali), Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 14, 309–324, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-14-309-2010, 2010.
Gosset, M., Viarre, J., Quantin, G., and Alcoba, M.: Evaluation of several rainfall products used for hydrological applications over West Africa using two high-resolution gauge networks, Q. J. Roy. Meteor. Soc., 139, 923–940, https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.2130, 2013.
Hiernaux, P. and Le Houérou, H. N.: Les parcours du Sahel, Sécheresse, 17, 51–71, 2006.
Houze, R. A.: Cloud dynamics, International Geophysics Series, 53, Academic Press Inc., San Diego, 1993.
Huffman, G. J., Alder, R. F., Arkin, P., Chang, A., Ferraro, R., Gruber, A., Janowiak, J., McNab, A., Rudolf, B., and Schneider, U.: The Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) Combined Precipitation Dataset, B. Am. Meteorol. Soc., 78, 5–20, 1997.
Huffman, G. J., Adler, R. F., Bolvin, D. T., and Gu, G.: Improving the global precipitation record: GPCP Version 2.1, Geophys. Res. Lett., 36, L17808, https://doi.org/10.1029/2009GL040000, 2009.
Kirstetter, P.-E., Viltard, N., and Gosset, M.: An error model for instantaneous satellite rainfall estimates: evaluation of BRAIN-TMI over West Africa, Q. J. Roy. Meteor. Soc., 139, 894–911, https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.1964, 2012.
Lamb, P. J.: Persistence of Subsaharan drough, Nature, 299, 46–48, 1982.
Laurent, H., d'Amato, N., and Lebel, T.: How important is the contribution of the mesoscale convective complexes to the Sahelian rainfall?, Phys. Chem. Earth, 23, 629–633, 1998.
Le Barbé, L. and Lebel, T.: Rainfall climatology of the HAPEX-Sahel region during the years 1950–1990, J. Hydrol., 188–189, 43–73, 1997.
Le Barbé, L., Lebel, T. and Tapsoba, D.: Rainfall variability in West Africa during the years 1950–90, J. Climate., 15, 187–202, 2002.
Lebel, T. and Ali, A.: Recent trends in the Central and Western Sahel rainfall regime (1990–2007), J. Hydrol., 375, 52–64, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2008.11.030, 2009.
Lebel, T., Diedhiou, A., and Laurent, H.: Seasonal cycle and interannual variability of the Sahelian rainfall at hydrological scales, J. Geophys. Res., 108, 8389, https://doi.org/10.1029/2001JD001580, 2003.
Lebel, T., Parker, D. J., Flamant, C., Bourlès, B., Marticorena, B., Mougin, E., Peugeot, C., Diedhiou, A., Haywood, J. M., Ngamini, J. B., Polcher, J., Redelsperger, J.-L., and Thorncroft, C. D.: The AMMA field campaigns: multiscale and multidisciplinary observations in the West African region, Q. J. Roy. Meteor. Soc., 136, 8–33, https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.486, 2010.
Leblanc, M. J., Favreau, G., Massuel, S., Tweed, S. O., Loireau, M., and Cappelaere, B.: Land clearance and hydrological change in the Sahel: SW Niger, Global Planet. Change, 61, 135–150, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2007.08.011, 2008.
Leduc, C., Favreau, G., and Schroeter, P.: Long-term rise in a Sahelian water-table: The Continental Terminal in south-west Niger, J. Hydrol., 243, 43–54, 2001.
L'Hote, Y., Mahé, G., Somé, B., and Triboulet, J. P.: Analysis of a Sahelian annual rainfall index from 1896 to 2000; the drought continues, Hydrolog. Sci. J., 47, 563–572, 2002.
Mahé, G.: Surface/groundwater interactions in the Bani and Nakambe rivers, tributaries of the Niger and Volta basins, West Africa, Hydrolog. Sci. J., 54, 704–712, https://doi.org/10.1623/hysj.54.4.704, 2009.
Mahé, G. and Paturel, J.-E.: 1896–2006 Sahelian annual rainfall variability and runoff increase of Sahelian Rivers, Comptes Rendus Geoscience, 341, 538–546, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crte.2009.05.002, 2009.
Mahé, G., Olivry, J.-C., Dessouassi, R., Orange, D., Bamba, F., and Servat, E.: Relations eaux de surface – eaux souterraines d'une rivière tropicale au Mali, Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences-Series IIA-Earth and Planetary Science, 330, 689–692, 2000.
Mahé, G., Leduc, C., Amani, A., Paturel, J. E., Girard, S., Servat, E., and Dezetter, A.: Augmentation récente du ruissellement de surface en région soudano-sahélienne et impact sur les ressources en eau, in Hydrology of the Mediterranean and Semiarid Region, vol. 278, 215–222, IAHS PUBLICATION, Montpellier, 2003.
Mahé, G., Paturel, J.-E., Servat, E., Conway, D., and Dezetter, A.: The impact of land use change on soil water holding capacity and river flow modelling in the Nakambe River, Burkina-Faso, J. Hydrol., 300, 33–43, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2004.04.028, 2005.
Mamadou, I., Gautier, E., Descroix, L., Noma, I., Bouzou Moussa, I., Faran Maiga, O., Genthon, P., Amogu, O., Malam Abdou, M., and Vandervaere, J.-P.: Exorheism growth as an explanation of increasing flooding in the Sahel, Catena, 131, 130–139, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2015.03.017, 2015.
Masson, V., Champeaux, J.-L., Chauvin, F., Meriguet, C., and Lacaze, R.: A global database of land surface parameters at 1-km resolution in meteorological and climate models, J. Climate, 16, 1261–1282, 2003.
Masson, V., Le Moigne, P., Martin, E., Faroux, S., Alias, A., Alkama, R., Belamari, S., Barbu, A., Boone, A., Bouyssel, F., Brousseau, P., Brun, E., Calvet, J.-C., Carrer, D., Decharme, B., Delire, C., Donier, S., Essaouini, K., Gibelin, A.-L., Giordani, H., Habets, F., Jidane, M., Kerdraon, G., Kourzeneva, E., Lafaysse, M., Lafont, S., Lebeaupin Brossier, C., Lemonsu, A., Mahfouf, J.-F., Marguinaud, P., Mokhtari, M., Morin, S., Pigeon, G., Salgado, R., Seity, Y., Taillefer, F., Tanguy, G., Tulet, P., Vincendon, B., Vionnet, V., and Voldoire, A.: The SURFEXv7.2 land and ocean surface platform for coupled or offline simulation of earth surface variables and fluxes, Geosci. Model Dev., 6, 929–960, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-6-929-2013, 2013.
Mathon, V., Laurent, H., and Lebel, T.: Mesoscale convective system rainfall in the Sahel, J. Appl. Meteorol., 41, 1081–1092, 2002.
Millot, J. A.: Les crues du Niger, Annales de Géographie, 22, 68–93, https://doi.org/10.3406/geo.1913.8385, 1913.
Narisma, G. T., Foley, J. A., Licker, R., and Ramankutty, N.: Abrupt changes in rainfall during the twentieth century, Geophys. Res. Lett., 34, L06710, https://doi.org/10.1029/2006GL028628, 2007.
Nicholson, S. E., Some, B., and Kone, B.: An analysis of recent rainfall conditions in West Africa, including the rainy seasons of the 1997 El Niño and the 1998 La Niña years, J. Climate, 13, 2628–2640, 2000.
Nka, B. N., Oudin, L., Karambiri, H., Paturel, J. E., and Ribstein, P.: Trends in floods in West Africa: analysis based on 11 catchments in the region, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 4707–4719, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-4707-2015, 2015.
Noilhan, J. and Planton, S.: A Simple Parametrization of Land Surface Processes for Meteorological Models, Mon. Weather Rev., 117, 536–549, https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0493(1989)117<0536:ASPOLS>2.0.CO;2, 1989.
Panthou, G., Vischel, T., and Lebel, T.: Recent trends in the regime of extreme rainfall in the Central Sahel, Int. J. Climatol., 34, 3998–4006, https://doi.org/10.1002/joc.3984, 2014.
Paturel, J.-E., Diawara, A., Kong, A., Siou, L., Talin, E., Ferry, L., Mahé, G., Dezetter, A., Muther, N., Martin, D., Rouche, N., L'Aour-Cres, A., Seguis, L., Coulibaly, N., Bahire-Kone, S., and Koite, M.: Caractérisation de la sécheresse hydropluviométrique du Bani, principal affluent du fleuve Niger au Mali, in: Global Change: Facing Risks and Threats to Water Resources, IAHS PUBLICATION, 661–667, Fez, 2010.
Pedinotti, V., Boone, A., Decharme, B., Crétaux, J. F., Mognard, N., Panthou, G., Papa, F., and Tanimoun, B. A.: Evaluation of the ISBA-TRIP continental hydrologic system over the Niger basin using in situ and satellite derived datasets, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 16, 1745–1773, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-1745-2012, 2012.
PERSIANN Precipitation Climate Data Record, available at:https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cdr/atmospheric/precipitation-persiann-cdr, last access: 7 July 2016.
Peltier, R., Bertrand, A., Lawali, E. M., Madon, G., and Montagne, P.: Marchés ruraux de bois-énergie ay Sahel, Bois et Forêts des Tropiques, 245, 3ème Trimestre, 1995.
Pradé, M.: Fleuves et rivières, Les Études rhodaniennes, 10, 97–100, 1934.
Roca, R., Chambon, P., Jobard, I., Kirstetter, P.-E., Gosset, M., and Bergès, J.-C.: Comparing Satellite and Surface Rainfall Products over West Africa at Meteorologically Relevant Scales during the AMMA Campaign Using Error Estimates, J. Appl. Meteorol. Clim., 49, 715–731, https://doi.org/10.1175/2009JAMC2318.1, 2010.
Rowell, D. P. and Milford, J. R.: On the Generation of African Squall Lines, J. Climate, 6, 1181–1193, 1993.
Seghieri, J., Galle, S., and Rajot, J. L.: La brousse tigrée dans le Sahel Nigérien?: étude de la cofluctuation du stock hydrique et de la végétation annuelle, Xe journées hydrologiques, 123–141, ORSTOM, 1994.
Seguis, L., Cappelaere, B., Milesi, G., Peugeot, C., Massuel, S., and Favreau, G.: Simulated impacts of climate change and land-clearing on runoff from a small Sahelian catchment, Hydrol. Process., 18, 3401–3413, 2004.
Sighomnou, D., Descroix, L., Mahe, G., Moussa, I. B., Gautier, E., Mamadou, I., Vandervaere, J.-P., Bachir, T., Coulibaly, B., Rajot, J.-L., Issa, O. M., Dessay, N., Delaître, E., Maiga, O. F., Diedhiou, A., Panthou, G., Vischel, T., Yacouba, H., Karambiri, H., Paturel, J. E., Diello, P., Mougin, E., Kergoat, L., and Hiernaux, P.: La crue de 2012 à Niamey?: un paroxysme du paradoxe du Sahel?, Sécheresse, 24, 3–13, https://doi.org/10.1684/sec.2013.0370, 2013.
Sorooshian, S., Hsu, K., Gao, X., Gupta, H. V., Imam, B., and Braithwaite, D.: Evaluation of PERSIANN System Satellite-Based Estimates of Tropical Rainfall, B. Am. Meteorol. Soc., 81, 2035–2046, 2000.
Valentin, C., Rajot, J.-L., and Mitja, D.: Responses of soil crusting, runoff and erosion to fallowing in the sub-humid and semi-arid regions of West Africa, Agr. Ecosyst. Environ., 104, 287–302, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2004.01.035, 2004.
Vischel, T. and Lebel, T.: Assessing the water balance in the Sahel: Impact of small scale rainfall variability on runoff. Part 2: Idealized modeling of runoff sensitivity, J. Hydrol., 333, 340–355, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2006.09.007, 2007.
Vischel, T., Quantin, G., Lebel, T., Viarre, J., Gosset, M., Cazenave, F., and Panthou, G.: Generation of High-Resolution Rain Fields in West Africa: Evaluation of Dynamic Interpolation Methods, J. Hydrometeorol., 12, 1465–1482, https://doi.org/10.1175/JHM-D-10-05015.1, 2011.
Weedon, G. P., Gomes, S., Viterbo, P., Shuttleworth, W. J., Blyth, E., Österle, H., Adam, J. C., Bellouin, N., Boucher, O., and Best, M.: Creation of the WATCH Forcing Data and Its Use to Assess Global and Regional Reference Crop Evaporation over Land during the Twentieth Century, J. Hydrometeorol., 12, 823–848, https://doi.org/10.1175/2011JHM1369.1, 2011.
Weedon, G. P., Balsamo, G., Bellouin, N., Gomes, S., Best, M. J., and Viterbo, P.: The WFDEI meteorological forcing data set: WATCH Forcing Data methodology applied to ERA-Interim reanalysis data, Water Resour. Res., 50, 7505–7514, https://doi.org/10.1002/2014WR015638, 2014.
Short summary
Since 1950, the Niger River basin has overcome drastic changes. In Niamey city, the highest river levels and the longest flooded period ever recorded occurred in 2003, 2010, 2012 and 2013, with heavy casualties and property damage. The reasons for these changes, and the relative role of climate versus Land Use Land Cover changes are still debated and are investigated in this paper using observations and modelling. We conclude on the successive role of cover and then rainfall variability.
Since 1950, the Niger River basin has overcome drastic changes. In Niamey city, the highest...