| Issue |
E3S Web Conf.
Volume 709, 2026
2026 12th International Conference on Environment and Renewable Energy (ICERE 2026)
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Article Number | 04001 | |
| Number of page(s) | 10 | |
| Section | Assessment, Performance, and Trends of Renewable Energy Systems | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202670904001 | |
| Published online | 07 May 2026 | |
Assessment of Small Hydropower Potential Using QGIS, SAGA, and SWAT: A Case Study of the Lijia River Basin
1 National Taitung University, Department of green energy and information technology
2 National Chung Hsing University, Department of Electrical Engineering
* Corresponding author: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Abstract
This study integrates GIS, SAGA, and the SWAT+ model to establish a systematic framework for assessing small hydropower potential in mountainous rivers of Taiwan. Using DEM, soil, land-use, and meteorological data, the Lijia River Basin was delineated into 17 sub-watersheds. Slope and head were calculated with QGIS and SAGA, while SWAT+ simulated daily streamflow for 2024. The results show that Sub-watershed 5, characterized by steep slopes and stable flows, is suitable for turbines such as Francis, Pelton, and Cross-Flow. Turbine–site matching demonstrated how hydrological and topographic attributes can be effectively integrated to identify potential sites. Although demonstrated in a single basin, the framework is scalable and applicable to other rivers with similar characteristics. Overall, the proposed approach provides a cost-effective, replicable, and practical method for supporting decentralized small hydropower development in remote areas.
© The Authors, published by EDP Sciences, 2026
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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