Vector dataset of rivers, lakes/reservoirs and their Spatial connectivity in High Mountain Asia

This dataset is a vector dataset of rivers, lakes/reservoirs, and their connectivity in High Mountain Asia (HMA), covering the region between 22°N–46°N and 62°E–110°E, with elevations ranging from 2000 to 8844 m. The dataset was developed by integrating the 2010 Eurasian river system vector dataset and the 2020 European Space Agency (ESA) WorldCover land cover dataset through vector operations, river–lake classification, and waterbody connectivity identification processes. It contains three vector datasets: rivers, lakes/reservoirs, and river–lake connectivity. The dataset effectively enables the separation of river and lake waterbodies within the region and provides systematic information on river–lake spatial connectivity. Compared with the 2020 annual surface water dataset from the Joint Research Centre (JRC), the consistency was evaluated by calculating the ratio between the overlapping vector area of this dataset and the corresponding JRC waterbody area. The overall consistency across HMA reached 89.39%, and exceeded 92% in basins with high proportions of permanent waterbodies in the JRC dataset. The dataset demonstrates reliable quality and can provide important data support for river and lake change analysis, water resource management, ecological and environmental protection, and agricultural and pastoral development in HMA.