An Estimation of Water Deficits considering the Hwanggang Dams on the Imjin River, North Korea

Abstract

Water resources are essential for sustaining economic activities; therefore, water conflicts between nations and regions are common. The Imjin and Bukhan rivers, which are shared by South and North Korea, have been the sources of several disputes related to water usage and management between both nations. This study is intended to investigate such water deficits and provide elementary data for future responses by quantifying the water deficit in the Imjin River according to current water usage criteria. The researchers collected records on river water usage and flow rates in the Imjin River Basin from 2001 to 2023 and estimated the river maintenance flow. They analyzed eight runoff stations to assess the river maintenance flow and hydrological phenomena to determine the presence of a water deficit. Through a comparative analysis of the flow rates of the Imjin and Hantan rivers, using 2008 as the reference year, they determined the cause of the water deficit to be a North Korean dam. At the ten-year return-period drought, the total water deficit in the Imjin River Basin amounted to 114.5 million cubic meters, with 92.8% of the deficit occurring in the middle reaches of the Imjin River and the remaining 7.2% in the Hantan River.