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Water resources are vital to the development of human society, and mastering the law of runoff changes is the basis for achieving sustainable use of water resources. To study the impact of reservoir construction on the changes of downstream river runoff, this paper decomposes the runoff before and after reservoir construction using the CEEMDAN method based on the runoff data from the Huayuankou hydrological station. The fluctuation characteristics of each decomposition series of runoff before and after reservoir construction and the intra-annual variation pattern of runoff are also analyzed by combining multi-time information entropy and coefficient of variation. The results show that after the operation of the Xiaolangdi Reservoir, the annual runoff variation cycle tends to be flat, and the monthly runoff cycle is significantly reduced. After reservoir construction, the entropy values of each IMF and Res of runoff become larger, the complexity and randomness of runoff changes increase, and predictability decreases. Before and after the operation of the Xiaolangdi Reservoir, the coefficient of variation of runoff were 0.28–1 and 0.38–0.83, the distribution of runoff was more uniform, and the percentage of runoff in the flood season was reduced from 51.51 to 39.89%. HIGHLIGHTS Analysis of runoff data using CEEMDAN and multiscale information entropy.; Analysis from several perspectives, including inter- and intra-year perspectives.; Analysis of monthly runoff using dispersion coefficients and monthly runoff process lines.; The influence of the reservoir on the runoff of the lower Yellow River was studied.;

The Yellow River (YR) is famous for its ‘hanging river’ due to the high sedimentation rate in the lower reaches. Reservoir sediment retention (RSR) and water–sediment regulation (WSR) of the Xiaolangdi Reservoir (XLDR) contribute to mitigating the siltation and adjusting the bankfull channel geometry in the lower Yellow River (LYR). However, few studies have been conducted to quantify the contribution of RSR and WSR to medium-sized channel shaping. In this paper, we analyzed the temporal and spatial variations of bankfull discharge (BFD) in the LYR, established empirical expressions between the BFD and the previous five-year average discharge above 2,000 m3/s and the incoming sediment coefficient during flood seasons, and then constructed three different water and sediment scenarios to quantify the contribution of the WSR of the XLDR to medium-sized channel shaping in the LYR. Calculated results indicated that WSR accounted alone for 68%–94% of the medium-sized channel shaping, with RSR contributing 6%–32%. The contribution of WSR to the recovery of medium-sized channels increased with time and became stabilized eventually. Along the LYR, such contribution also increased from 68% to 97% and eventually became stabilized in narrow reaches, reaching over 90%. The results will lay a solid technical foundation for the WSR of the XLDR, river regulation downstream of the reservoir, and sediment disposal of the YR. HIGHLIGHTS The contributions of RSR and WSR to the medium-sized channel shaping of the LYR were 88% and 12% respectively in the period 2002–2015.; Contribution rate of WSR to medium-sized channel shaping increased first and then became stabilized with time.; The influence of WSR on medium-sized channel shaping increased and eventually became stabilized in narrow reaches along the LYR.;

The construction of water conservancy projects not only brings benefits such as flood control and disaster reduction but also has many effects on the habitat and reproduction of local aquatic organisms. Taking the reach from Xuzhuang Station to Gaocun Station in the lower Yellow River as an example, this paper discusses the effect of the Xiaolangdi Reservoir on the habitat of Yellow River carp (Cyprinus carpio). By constructing a two-dimensional hydrodynamic model, coupled with a habitat suitability model of the spawning ground of Yellow River carp, the weighted usable area (WUA) of the Yellow River carp habitat was calculated, and the spatial distribution of the habitat suitability index (HSI) in the reach was analyzed to evaluate habitat quality before and after the construction of the Xiaolangdi Reservoir. The results showed that the Xiaolangdi Reservoir had a negative effect on the habitat of Yellow River carp, resulting in the reduction of the spatial distribution of HSI, a decrease in WUA by 45.53%, and a decrease in habitat quality. The construction of the Xiaolangdi Reservoir reduced or even eliminated flow pulses in the downstream reach, but had little effect on the suitability index of water depth and velocity. However, the suitability index of water level rise was significantly reduced, which is not conducive to the spawning activities of aquatic organisms and has a negative effect on habitat. The results of this study will provide a reference for ecological restoration in this region.

The Xiaolangdi Reservoir has entered the later sediment-retaining period, and new sediment transport phenomena and channel re-establishing behaviors are appearing. A physical model test was used to forecast the scouring and silting trends of the lower Yellow River. Based on water and sediment data from the lower Yellow River during the period from 1960 to 2012, and using a statistical method, this paper analyzed the sediment transport in sediment-laden flows with different discharges and sediment concentrations in the lower Yellow River. The results show that rational water-sediment regulation is necessary to avoid silting in the later sediment-retaining period. The combination of 3 000 m3/s