Elevation Dependent Model for Estimating Annual Runoff

Two procedures are developed for decomposing runoff into components corresponding to different elevations. In the first method, the individual proportions of area in each band are regressed against the respective basin runoffs for each year to determine coefficients that represent the runoff contribution from each elevation band. Applying the principles of ridge regression analysis to this model yields stable estimates. The second procedure is an extension of the first which develops a functional relationship between the elevation variable and runoff. The two procedures have been tested on 23 yrs of annual runoff from eight drainages in the upper Green River Basin of the Wind River Range. The procedures give hydrologically interpretable results and are useful in modeling a drainage. The procedures are applicable for estimation of annual runoff for ungaged drainages and at stations where gaging has been discontinued.