{"schema":"https://ver.cy/schemas/card/1.0.0","id":"vr.tr.drainage-basin","code":"thing-q166620","url":"https://ver.cy/models/thing/q166620/","name":"drainage basin","alternateNames":["lake system","endorheic basin","Class B river system","Class A river system","sub-basin","zero-order basin","coastal river basins","experimental watershed","artesian basin","River Basin Management Unit (Indonesia)","Zonation piscicole de Huet","arheic basin"],"kind":"thing","status":"published","version":"0.2.0-wave.2","language":"en","classifiers":{"family":"Thing Registry","category":"Physical world and living systems","entryKind":"thing","plane":"PHY","domain":["PHY.PLC"],"industry":[],"navPath":"","tags":[],"facets":{}},"whatItIs":"The area of land where all surface water drains to a common outlet such as a river mouth, lake or, in endorheic basins, an inland sink, bounded by drainage divides and organised into sub-basins; drainage basins are the units of hydrology, water management and flood risk and often cross political boundaries.","purpose":"Let an agent identify drainage basins and their boundaries, explain hydrology and water balance, support water management and flood risk questions, and describe transboundary governance.","scope":{"in":[],"out":[],"boundaries":[]},"distinguishingFeatures":["Common outlet","Topographically bounded","Nested sub-basins","Management unit"],"structure":{"bundles":[{"id":"identify","name":"Identify","description":"Which basin.","layers":[{"id":"locate","name":"Locate","description":"Basin of a place.","findings":[{"id":"locate-finding","name":"Locate","description":"Basin.","questions":[{"text":"Which drainage basin and sub-basin does this place belong to, according to hydrological data?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Where does its water end up?","kind":"definition"}]}]},{"id":"delineate","name":"Delineate","description":"Boundaries.","findings":[{"id":"delineate-finding","name":"Delineate","description":"Delineation.","questions":[{"text":"How are basin boundaries delineated from elevation data?","kind":"action"},{"text":"How is basin area computed?","kind":"measurement"}]}]}]},{"id":"hydrology","name":"Hydrology","description":"Water in the basin.","layers":[{"id":"balance","name":"Balance","description":"Water balance.","findings":[{"id":"balance-finding","name":"Balance","description":"Water balance.","questions":[{"text":"What are the precipitation, evaporation, runoff and storage of this basin?","kind":"measurement"},{"text":"How does land use affect runoff?","kind":"provenance"}]}]},{"id":"endorheic","name":"Endorheic","description":"Closed basins.","findings":[{"id":"endorheic-finding","name":"Endorheic","description":"Closed basins.","questions":[{"text":"What is an endorheic basin, and why are its lakes sensitive to change?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Which examples are notable?","kind":"provenance"}]}]}]},{"id":"manage","name":"Manage","description":"Water management.","layers":[{"id":"flood","name":"Flood","description":"Flood risk.","findings":[{"id":"flood-finding","name":"Flood","description":"Flood risk.","questions":[{"text":"What is the flood risk in this basin, according to official maps and warnings?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Is a flood warning in force now?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"plans","name":"Plans","description":"Basin management plans.","findings":[{"id":"plans-finding","name":"Plans","description":"Plans.","questions":[{"text":"Which basin management plan applies, and what are its objectives?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"How can the public participate?","kind":"provenance"}]}]}]},{"id":"governance","name":"Governance","description":"Shared basins.","layers":[{"id":"transboundary","name":"Transboundary","description":"Cross-border basins.","findings":[{"id":"transboundary-finding","name":"Transboundary","description":"Transboundary basins.","questions":[{"text":"Which countries share this basin, and which agreements govern it?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Are disputes described neutrally with attribution?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"teach","name":"Teach","description":"Teaching.","findings":[{"id":"teach-finding","name":"Teach","description":"Teaching.","questions":[{"text":"How can drainage basins be taught with maps and models?","kind":"action"},{"text":"Which misconceptions arise?","kind":"provenance"}]}]}]}]},"agentConduct":{"may":["Report the extent, rivers and sub-basins of a drainage basin from hydrological sources.","Relay flood warnings for a basin from the competent authority."],"mustNot":["Alter water flows, dams or diversions it does not have authority over.","Discharge pollutants into any part of a basin.","Misstate basin boundaries in planning or water rights documents.","Downplay downstream effects of upstream abstraction or works."],"requiresHuman":["Approving abstraction, diversion or works that change flows in the basin."]},"ethics":{"considerations":["Upstream actions affect everyone downstream, often across borders.","Water allocation in a basin decides who can farm, drink and live there."],"affectedParties":["Downstream communities","Farmers and water users","River ecosystems"]},"owners":{"steward":"The public: held in common; river basin authorities manage it.","roles":[],"masterSystems":["River basin management plans","Hydrological databases"]},"relations":[{"target":"Q55462971","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"Q813672","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"Q82794","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"fluvial landform","type":"related","note":"category"},{"target":"region","type":"related","note":"category"},{"target":"ocean","type":"related","note":"outlet"},{"target":"alluvial-fan","type":"contains","note":"landforms"}],"interaction":{"identity":{"applicability":"required","items":["Vercy registry: vr.tr.drainage-basin","Wikidata: Q166620 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q166620)"]},"properties":{"applicability":"required","items":["Drainage area:  square kilometres - Measure the area enclosed by the drainage divide for a specified outlet using mapped boundaries or an elevation model.","Basin relief:  metres - Calculate the elevation difference between the highest and lowest points within the delineated basin using a consistent vertical datum.","Mean surface slope:  degrees - Calculate local terrain slopes from an elevation model and average them across the basin while reporting the model resolution.","Drainage density:  kilometres per square kilometre - Divide the total mapped channel length by basin area while stating which permanent and intermittent channels are included."]},"recognition":{"applicability":"required","items":["Bounded by drainage divides","All water flows to one outlet","A river is the channel; the basin is the whole catchment","Land areas defined by divides, visible on topographic maps."]},"capabilities":{"applicability":"required","items":["identify the basin of a place or river","explain water balance and flow","support flood risk and water management questions","describe basin governance"]},"hazards":{"applicability":"required","items":["Flooding","Pollution transport downstream","Upstream-downstream conflicts"]},"interfaces":{"applicability":"required","items":["EU Water Framework Directive basin management","Transboundary water conventions","National flood risk regulations"]},"context":{"applicability":"required","items":["Hydrology and water resource management.","river basins draining to the sea","endorheic basins","lake basins","sub-basins and headwater catchments","transboundary basins"]}},"sources":[{"title":"Wikidata item Q166620: drainage basin","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q166620","note":"identity and sense of the item"},{"title":"Wikipedia: Drainage basin","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drainage_basin","note":"general description of the item"}],"openQuestions":["Should each major basin be a separate entry?","How should hydrological data be linked?","How should governance bodies be linked?"],"resources":{"spec":"/models/things/publications/thing-q166620/spec.json"},"provenance":{"origin":"thing registry research (pass 2)","builtFrom":["models/things/publications/thing-q166620/spec.json"],"providers":["Claude"],"researchStatus":"unreviewed","generatedAt":"2026-09-11T20:24:53Z","builder":"tools/build_cards.py@1.0.0"},"completeness":{"sections":{"classifiers":"filled","whatItIs":"filled","purpose":"filled","distinguishingFeatures":"filled","structure":"filled","agentConduct":"filled","ethics":"filled","owners":"filled","relations":"filled","interaction.identity":"filled","interaction.properties":"filled","interaction.recognition":"filled","interaction.capabilities":"filled","interaction.hazards":"filled","interaction.interfaces":"filled","interaction.context":"filled","sources":"filled"},"notes":{"_gate":"Published through the thing publication gate 1.0 on 2026-10-07T10:10:26+00:00: completeness 1.00; sense: Wikidata description; 2 live sources; review by codex: pass"},"score":1.0}}