Babker et al. (2026) Coupling of hydrological drought and flood extremes under climate change in the Kamp catchment, Austria

Identification

• Journal: Journal of Hydrology Regional Studies
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-09-05
• Authors: Zryab Babker, Mohammed Basheer, Nadir Ahmed Elagib, Tim G. Reichenau, Juraj Párajka, Peter Valent, Karl R. Schneider
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ejrh.2026.103943

Research Groups

• Institute of Geography, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Cologne
• Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering, University of Toronto
• Institute of Hydraulic Engineering and Water Resources Management, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Vienna University of Technology

Short Summary

This study developed a comprehensive framework to assess consecutive hydrological drought-to-flood (D-F) events in the Kamp catchment, Austria. The framework integrates climate projection selection, process-based hydrological modeling with SWAT+, and ensemble-based assessment of D-F events.

Objective

• To evaluate future changes in consecutive hydrological D-F extreme events in the Kamp catchment under different climate change scenarios.
• To identify the frequency, seasonality, and duration of consecutive D-F events.
• To assess how climate change affects drought-flood coupling and transitions between dry and wet periods.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Mesoscale (1729 km²) catchment in northern Austria.
• Temporal Scale: Historical period (1976–2005), near future (2021–2050), and end of the century (EOC; 2070–2099).

Methodology and Data

• Models used: SWAT+ hydrological model, restructured version (61.0.1).
• Data sources: SPARTACUS v2.1 dataset for climate data, bias-corrected Austrian national climate projections (¨OKS15), and observed daily mean streamflow data from the electronic Hydrography platform.

Main Results

• Consecutive D-F events are projected to decline across all scenarios by the end of the century (EOC), with a median reduction of 22–44% relative to the reference period.
• The proportion of D-F events among total flood events is projected to decrease from 18–22% to 10–16% at the EOC.
• Median transition times between drought termination and flood onset are projected to increase from 37 to 49 days in the EOC (RCP8.5).
• A future with a compositional shift towards more independent hydrological extremes is anticipated.

Contributions

• This study provides a comprehensive analytical framework for assessing consecutive D-F events under climate change scenarios.
• The results highlight the importance of considering drought-flood coupling and transitions between dry and wet periods in water resources management.

Funding

• Austrian Science Fund (FWF) project P 32567-N32.
• European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No. 730892.
• University of Cologne's Research Priority Program "Climate Change" (FKZ: 100-419-01).

Citation

@article{Babker2026Coupling,
  author = {Babker, Zryab and Basheer, Mohammed and Elagib, Nadir Ahmed and Reichenau, Tim G. and Párajka, Juraj and Valent, Peter and Schneider, Karl R.},
  title = {Coupling of hydrological drought and flood extremes under climate change in the Kamp catchment, Austria},
  journal = {Journal of Hydrology Regional Studies},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1016/j.ejrh.2026.103943},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejrh.2026.103943}
}