Formation of the Surface Runoff of the Rivers of the Carpathian Region during the Urbanization of Slope Areas

Abstract

Anthropogenic factors cause an increase in the impact on the natural system as a whole and its components. An increase in the intensity of this influence is predicted in the 21st century, and its forms are very diverse and unevenly distributed across the globe. This is most noticeable in industrialized countries, but at the same time this influence largely depends not only on the industrial potential and the level of technology, but also on the population density and urbanization of territories. Currently, much attention is being paid to the ecological problems of river catchments, which are significantly transformed as a result of technogenic influence on the natural environment. Surface runoff of water and sediments is usually formed in the river basin as slope runoff entering the river network. The river basin regulates the surface runoff formed as a result of atmospheric precipitation, which discretely falls on its surface, transferring a significant part of it into the underground runoff. The state of forest landscapes plays an important role in the formation of floods in the Dniester basin. The forest performs important ecological functions, including water protection and soil protection. Forests stabilize soils, preventing their erosion. The presence of a sufficient area of forests contributes to the regulation of surface runoff and the hydrological regime, the prevention of soil erosion and the stabilization of riverbeds. The use of water and mineral resources, construction on the banks of rivers and the laying of engineering communications through them are always different forms of artificial influence on the natural course of channel processes, which change it to varying degrees. Measures that change the channel-forming activity of the river, disrupt the flow of sediments, or radically change the hydraulic characteristics and structure of the flow have a particularly negative impact. The generalization of the dynamics of the channel process and ecological indicators within the territories of the Carpathian region will allow us to assess their impact on the state of the river network, the change in the quality of natural waters, and predict floods.