Analysis of water leakage in the Daugyvenė river basin (Mūša tributary)

Abstract

One of the most important treasures of Lithuania is the water resources located in the territory of the country. The article analyses water resources within the basin of Daugyvenė river, tributary of Mūša.

The theoretical part of the article reviews water resources in Lithuania, the main elements of water resources and the influence of physical-geographical factors on the river leakage. In the research part of the article, topographic maps of scale 1:250 000 and 1:500 000 (based on the length of the river Daugyvenė) are used in the QGIS programme. The maps are used as a base, on which watershed of Daugyvenė is drawn and the area of its basin is calculated. The watershed is drawn by creating new layers in the QGIS programme. Prior to that, cartographic bases are linked to the actual coordinates using the geo-coordinating function. The Quaternary geology map of Lithuania of scale 1:200 000 helped to locate sediments within the Daugyvenė river basin. A new layer is created in the QGIS and areas of the Quaternary sediments are calculated. By using a new layer in the topographic map, based on the Corine Land Cover cartoscheme of 2018, as well as Ortophoto images, following land uses are distinguished: water bodies, urban areas, farmlands, shrublands, coniferous forests, mixed forests, deciduous forests and meadows. The designated areas, as well as the average annual leakage of the Daugyvenė river basin, are calculated. The conducted research helped to assess water resources within the Daugyvenė river basin.

Keywords: Daugyvenė, water resources, river basin district, river leakage, physical-geographical factors.