Purpose: to study the current hydrological regime of the Volga-Akhtuba floodplain during the spring flood on the example of main shallow channels (eriks), depending on the release hydrographs of the Volga Hydroelectric Power Station.
Materials and methods. The water regime condition was assessed on the Pakhotny, Bugay, Bugrovaty and Staraya Akhtuba eriks during various hydrological phases of the Volga Hydroelectric Power Station operation (the “agricultural plateau”, the “fishery plateau” and the low-water period). Instrumentally, using the Yenisei-300 Doppler profiler, the distribution of water runoff from the Akhtuba river into the eriks under consideration was established during the period of maximum discharges through the Volgograd Hydroelectric Complex and during the “fishery plateau”.
Results. It was determined that during the spring flood in 2024, about 3.4 cub. km of water entered the Akhtuba river through the Volga-Akhtuba Canal, with the bulk of the water arriving during the “fishery plateau” phase (70 %) due to its duration. Analysis of the data obtained shows that during the “agricultural plateau” phase, the water flow in the canal is 45 % higher, and the water level is 2 m higher. Field studies have revealed that the most significant water entry into the Volga-Akhtuba floodplain occurs through the Pakhotny, Bugay, Bugrovaty, and Staraya Akhtuba eriks. The largest inflow was recorded through the Pakhotny erik (0.15 cub. km, of which 58 % entered during the “agricultural plateau” phase). The Bugrovaty and Bugay eriks received 0.09 and 0.08 cub. km, respectively, during this period.
Conclusions. During the “agricultural plateau” period, 54 % of the flood volume passed through these channels. The lowest discharges during the spring flood were recorded in the Staraya Akhtuba erik, which discharged 0.02 cub. km of water during the “agricultural plateau” period. Recommendations for further monitoring of the Volga-Akhtuba floodplain's water bodies are provided.
doi: 10.31774/2712-9357-2026-16-1-100-120
the Volga-Akhtuba floodplain flooding, the Pakhotny shallow channel (erik), the Bugrovaty shallow channel (erik), the Bugay shallow channel (erik), Staraya Akhtuba shallow channel (erik), spring flood monitoring, the national project “Ecology”, the national project “Ecological Well-Being”, hydrological mode, hydrograph
Istomin A. P., Istomin S. A. The study of the current hydrological mode of the northern Volga-Akhtuba floodplain. Land Reclamation and Hydraulic Engineering. 2026;16(1):100–120. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.31774/2712-9357-2026-16-1-100-120.
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this research was carried out within the framework of State Assignment FNFE-2025-0004 “Theoretical justification and concept of adaptive solutions for managing agrolandscape phytoecological resources in the arid zone of the Russian Federation at the basin level, using system-dynamic modeling of soil-hydrological processes, multivariate analysis of the impact of climate change and anthropogenic loads”.
