Ansari, Rashid, Agricultural and Biological Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, Shortlidge Road, University Park, PA 16802, abh6005@psu.edu; Cibin, Raj,, Civil and Environmental Engineering/Agricultural and Biological Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, Shortlidge Road, University Park, PA 16802, czr58@psu.edu; Mejia, Alfonso, Civil and Environmental Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, 211 ECoRE Building University Park, PA 16802, aim127@psu.edu.
As climate change intensifies and land development expands, managing flood risks and nutrient pollution in agricultural watersheds is increasingly critical. Nature-based climate solutions offer a promising avenue to integrate into current flood management strategies, addressing both flooding and water quality improvement through nutrient reduction and denitrification. However, the impact of these solutions is scale-dependent, with regional applications offering the most significant benefits. Recognizing the co-benefits of nature-based flood adaptation enhances their economic justification and stakeholder support. To quantify these benefits, we developed an integrative modeling framework combining the Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) and the LISFLOOD-FP hydrodynamic model. SWAT’s streamflow and nutrient outputs drive floodplain delineation and water quality assessments, refined at high resolution using the NHDPlus dataset and an external routing module. This framework was applied in the Susquehanna River Basin, reducing computation time significantly for climate and land use scenario evaluations. Our approach offers a robust tool for regional-scale flood adaptation planning, supporting more effective decision-making for flood risk management and nutrient mitigation.
Adaptation, Flood risk, Nutrient pollution, nature-based solution