Estudio comparativo del régimen hidrológico de tres microcuencas de alta montaña con diferente cobertura vegetal

Abstract

The páramo is an important source of water for many cities in Ecuador and in general of the Andes. However, the hydrological process that occurs in these ecosystems is barley known. In addition, there are exist areas with lacustrine systems that have never been studied and high/low periods of rainfall which have not been quantified or identified. In addition the anthropogenic activities such as agriculture, (af)forestation with native species and/ or exotic within others, that is performed without any precaution. This study analyzes the influence of the vegetation cover on the hydrology in the páramo, based on the search for indicators that analyze the data of rainfall-runoff. A series of data from three mircobasins with similar geomorphic characteristics and different vegetation covers: one cover of natural pajonal, another containing pajonal but with a strong anthropogenic alteration in the land use, and the last one with a lacustrine system. The objective was to increase the knowledge of water resource and watershed management. A comparative analysis was performed of rainfall, high/low runoff, reactivity and a hydrological regulation. The results indicated that the páramo contains constant rainfall with only the 2% possibility to have extreme events. High and low streamflows were presented in the altered microbasin that has lost its regulation characteristics, furthermore this shows an utmost reactivity and a runoff coefficient 14% higher than the lacustrine microcatchment. The lacustrine microbasin presented a high regulation similar to the natural pajonal during the dry spells. The results highlight the importance of proctecting the páramo ecosystem.