Liden applied the HBV model to estimate the riverine transport of three different substances, nitrogen, phosphorus and suspended sediment in four different countries: Sweden, Estonia, Bolivia and Zimbabwe. The relation between internal hydrological model variables and nutrient transport was assessed. A model for nitrogen sources was developed and analysed in comparison with a statistical method. A model for suspended sediment transport in tropical and semi-arid regions was developed and tested. It was shown that riverine total nitrogen could be well simulated in the Nordic climate and riverine suspended sediment load could be estimated fairly well in tropical and semi-arid climates. The HBV model for material transport generally estimated material transport loads well. The main conclusion of the study was that the HBV model can be used to predict material transport on the scale of the drainage basin during stationary conditions, but cannot be easily generalised to areas not specifically calibrated. In a different work, Castanedo et al. applied an evolutionary algorithm to automated watershed model calibration.
The United States EPA developed the DSSAM Model to analyze water quality impacts from land use and wastewater management decisions in the Truckee River basin, an area which include the cities of Reno and Sparks, Nevada as well as the Lake Tahoe basin. The model satisfactorily predicted nutrient, sediment and dissolved oxygen parameters in the river. It is based on a pollutant loading metric called "Total Maximum Daily Load" (TMDL). The success of this model contributed to the EPAs commitment to the use of the underlying TMDL protocol in EPAs national policy for management of many river systems in the United States.
The DSSAM Model is constructed to allow dynamic decay of most pollutants; for example, total nitrogen and phosphorus are allowed to be consumed by benthic algae in each time step, and the algal communities are given a separate population dynamic in each river reach (e.g. based upon river temperature). Regarding stormwater runoff in Washoe County, the specific elements within a new xeriscape ordinance were analyzed for efficacy using the model. For the varied agricultural uses in the watershed, the model was run to understand the principal sources of impact, and management practices were developed to reduce in-river pollution. Use of the model has specifically been conducted to analyze survival of two endangered species found in the Truckee River and Pyramid Lake: the Cui-ui sucker fish  (endangered 1967) and the Lahontan cutthroat trout (threatened 1970).