Science and the desertification debate

Desertification is an environmental issue that has major environmental and social dimensions, and which has been controversial in a number of respects. The recent UN Convention on Desertification and Drought places considerable emphasis on the social dimensions of the problem and the role local peoples and NGOs have to play in tackling it. When desertification first became regarded as a major issue in the 1970s, science was seen to have a major role in understanding and solving the problem, but in some circles has been regarded as failing to contribute usefully. This paper explores the nature of scientific contributions, why science may have been seen to fail to serve the needs of policy-makers, and why scientific findings may have been misinterpreted in broader circles dealing with the issue. It concludes by identifying areas where science has still a valuable role to play in an issue that is now perhaps regarded as more political and social than scientific.     

中国南方湿润区“荒漠化”问题讨论

荒漠化是当今世界所面临的严重的环境与社会经济问题,推进荒漠化研究工作对于保护生态环境,促进区域可持续发展具有重要意义。本文在对荒漠化内涵进行系统回顾的基础上,认为除了人为干扰叠加气候性干旱作用导致的荒漠化之外,南方湿润区因水土流失叠加物理性干旱作用导致的极端土地退化也是一种荒漠化,并从物质基础、气候条件、影响因子、形成营力、核心作用和地表过程方面进行比较,最后以南方红层区特殊的"红层荒漠化"为案例,利用实地调查和TM影像的植被覆盖度指标VFC对1992-2013年红层土地退化进行分析。结果显示,在人为反复干扰和其他自然因素作用下地表植被持续退化、群落干旱趋势明显,表土层流失,岩石风化加剧,以致形成类似"荒漠"景观的现象。红层区的退化过程可类比于喀斯特石漠化、红壤山地丘陵退化,但这类极端土地退化现象可否视为"荒漠化",有待于进一步的深入研究。     

On the role of climate in desertification of the Sahel Belt

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Toward sustainable desertification reversion: A case study in Horqin Sandy Land of northern China

Desertification reversion is an interactive process involving climate, land use change, and water processes. In order to reveal the relationship between desertification reversion and these factors, we analyzed historical data on precipitation, air temperature, desertified land changes, underground water tables, and water body changes in Naiman County in the central part of Horqin Sandy Land. Our analysis showed that during 1961-2010 the annual precipitation fluctuated dramatically and has decreased fairly consistently in recent years. The air temperature increased by 0.50-1.25 °C, and the minimum temperature increased more obviously. The desertified land area increased from 42,300 km2 in 1959 to 62,000 km2 in 1985, and then declined to about 50,000 km2 in 2010. The underground water tables have been lowered by about 10 m in the past 30 years, and declined more rapidly in recent years. Desertified land is significantly related to the amount of total cropland, and underground water tables are significantly correlated with annual precipitation and the amount of irrigated cropland. Therefore, it is necessary to pursue sustainable desertification reversion without compromising the capacity for local development and restoration of degraded land, through application of appropriate management measures for improving water availability in this region.     

The impact of Dunhuang railway construction on land desertification

The area that the railway will cross is a region with the main physiognomies of desert and Gobi, with a most fragile ecological environment. It is also a region that is highly susceptible to man-made disturbance. The construction of railway will intensify soil erosion along the railway line to a certain degree. The map of soil erosion conditions in the section from Liugou to Dunhuang City in the range of 10 km each side along the line was compiled by using the techniques of remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS). Based on analysis of the status of desertification and the influence of the railway construction projects, the changes of the types, intensities and the total amount of the soil erosion caused by the construction were predicted.     

敦煌铁路工程建设的土地荒漠化影响

1 Introduction UNCCD (United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification) defines desertification as land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities (Agenda 21…     

土地利用变化对鄂尔多斯高原周边地区沙尘暴的影响

以鄂尔多斯高原周边地区为例 ,研究土地利用变化对沙尘暴的影响 ,建立了多年平均沙尘暴日数与沙漠化土地面积百分比之间的关系。该关系表明 ,当沙漠化土地面积百分比Rd大于 30 %以后 ,沙尘暴日数随Rd的增大而急剧增加。年均沙尘暴日数与耕地面积和大风日数之间的回归方程 ,结果表明 ,耕地面积减少和大风日数减少对沙尘暴减少的贡献率分别为5 9 7%和 4 0 3%。通过在干旱、半干旱脆弱生态条件下的地区进行土地利用结构调整和退耕还草 ,恢复草原生态系统 ,可以在一定程度上减低沙尘暴发生的频率。     

气候变化和人类活动在沙漠化过程中相对作用评价综述(英文)

Climate change and human activities are the two kinds of driving forces in desertification,and assessing their relative role in desertification is of great significance to deeply understanding the driving mechanisms and preventing desertification expansion.This paper has systematically reviewed the progress of the researches on assessing the relative role of climate change and human activities in desertification from qualitative,semi-quantitative and quantitative aspects respectively.The authors found that there were still some problems in the previous researches.For example,the subjectivity in assessment was obvious,the assessment cannot be easily repeated,and the assessment and its results were always based on administrative regions and less taken and expressed in a continuous space.According to the progress of previous researches and the works conducted by the authors recently,we put forward a quantitative approach by selecting NPP as a common indicator to measure the relative role of climate change and human activities in desertification and dividing the ecological process of "driving force effect-dynamic response of desertified land" into several scenarios.Meanwhile,validation and scale of assessment should be taken into account when quantitative assessment of the relative role of climate change and human activities in desertification are carried out.     

Land degradation and climate change in South Africa

This paper considers the potential impact of future climate change on the nature and extent of land degradation in South Africa. The basis of the assessment is the comprehensive review published by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEA&T) as a contribution to the South African effort in respect of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification. The DEA&T report is founded on information collated from 34 workshops, one in each of the agricultural regions of South Africa, involving some 453 participants consisting mainly of agricultural extension officers and soil conservation technicians. This analysis reveals that land degradation is underpinned by poverty and its structural roots in colonial and apartheid political planning. Nevertheless, future climate change represents a key challenge to the developing economies of countries like South Africa. Regionally downscaled models predicting the nature and degree of rainfall changes in the future are used to assess the possible impact of future change on the South African land degradation situation. It is concluded that the most severely degraded areas of the country, including large areas of the former 'homeland' states, are likely to become even more susceptible under predicted climate change scenarios.     

1975—2018年民勤绿洲沙漠化过程及其驱动机制

根据1975—2018年民勤绿洲土地沙漠化分类体系及遥感影像数据,探究了民勤绿洲沙漠化时空变化过程;选取影响绿洲沙漠化的自然与人为驱动因子,运用主成分分析方法定量评价了民勤绿洲沙漠化过程的主要驱动力。结果表明：1975—2018年沙漠化程度以重度沙漠化为主,轻度、中度、重度和严重沙漠化面积均呈减少趋势,以2000年为界表现为先发展后逆转趋势;1975—2000年,轻度、中度、重度沙漠化重心总体向东北方向迁移,严重沙漠化的重心向西迁移,沙漠化有向绿洲东北部和巴丹吉林沙漠发展的趋势;2000—2018年轻度沙漠化的重心向西北方向迁移,中度、重度和严重沙漠化重心相对稳定,绿洲沙漠化发展得到明显控制。在绿洲沙漠化过程中,人为因素贡献率为39.53%,自然与人为综合贡献率为26.58%,自然因素贡献率为10.77%,人为因素是民勤绿洲沙漠化的主要驱动力。水资源极度匮乏是绿洲沙漠化的决定因素,在以后的防沙治沙工作中,合理调控人类的生产经营活动,优化干旱区水资源配置,可从源头上治理民勤绿洲的沙漠化。     

21世纪初期气候波动下浑善达克沙地荒漠化动态变化分析

基于EOS-MODIS遥感数据,利用GIS计算出归一化植被指数(NDVI)和植被覆盖指数(PV),计算得到荒漠化指数(DI)对浑善达克沙地荒漠化进行识别,根据像元数统计不同荒漠化类型的面积及其变化数据,再分析荒漠化面积与气象要素的相关性,进而得出近13 a在气候波动下浑善达克沙地荒漠化的动态变化。结果表明:浑善达克沙地年平均气温呈下降趋势,年平均降水量呈增加趋势,且平均降水量对荒漠化动态变化的影响比平均气温对荒漠化动态变化的影响大。在气候波动影响下浑善达克沙地以荒漠化面积缩小为主,中度荒漠化,重度荒漠化和极重度荒漠化对荒漠化的演替贡献较大,表现为高程度荒漠化向低程度荒漠化转换。空间分布上,表现为西部极重度荒漠化面积明显减少,主要转化为重度荒漠化类型,东中部重度荒漠化明显减少,主要转化为未荒漠化和轻度荒漠化类型。     

近40年坝上后山地区沙漠化因子主分量的耦合波动

利用EOF (经验正交函数 )方法对河北坝上和内蒙古后山地区近 4 0年降水、年风速、大风日数、气候因子、牲畜头数和气候产量等 6个沙漠化波动因子主分量进行了计算 ,表明沙漠化诸因子尽管受降水的影响有同步波动的一面 ,但又可分解为风、畜、水三个相对独立变化的系列。由此将年大风日数、气候因子、牲畜头数和气候产量确定为影响沙漠化的主要波动因子 ,并以生物学年度将其按牧区和农牧交错区两类进行等权重耦合。结果表明 ,近 4 0年全区沙漠化因子主分量的耦合度经 3年滑动平均后 ,在 2 5 %～ 10 0 %间变化 ,196 5年至今一直维持在 75 %上下波动 ,196 7～ 1977年为耦合度最高的阶段。 80年代中期多雨段沙漠化的持续蔓延 ,充分证明了人类不合理活动在坝上后山地区沙漠化发展中的主导作用。     

农牧交错带近十五年生态环境变化评价——以鄂尔多斯地区为例

农牧交错带是我国生态最为脆弱的地区之一,生态系统极易受内外营力的影响产生扰动和变化,是我国生态状况变化最快最频繁的区域之一。该研究以Landsat的TM/ETM 、Spot的Vegetation数据为数据源,选取我国典型的农牧交错带鄂尔多斯地区为研究区域,根据两种数据的特点,对TM/ETM 影像以研究区域内土地退化、沙化为重点,对Vegetation以反映研究区域生物量变化的植被指数为指标,分析了近十五年来该地区生态环境的变化,并对研究区域近50年来的气候变化进行了研究。认为:该区域在研究时段的前段生态环境在持续退化,土地沙化和草地退化是这一时期的研究区域生态环境变化为主要特点,而后期生态环境出现了比较明显的恢复,时间转折点出现在2001年;气候变暖和降雨量的变化在这种变化过程中起了重要作用。其中,降水量的变化与生态环境的变化吻合良好。     

松嫩平原西部土地利用变化及沙漠化响应——以黑龙江泰来县为例

以松嫩平原西部的典型沙漠化区泰来县为例,利用遥感、地理信息系统和野外调查获取了3期土地利用和沙漠化分布数据,分析了土地利用变化及其沙漠化动态响应。结果表明:①土地利用程度变化大多趋于加重趋势,其中1986~2000年加重趋势迅猛,2000~2005年加重趋势有所减缓;②沙漠化土地面积总体趋势逐渐增加,前期以40.7hm²/a的速度增加,后期以8hm²/a的速度增加,增加速度明显减慢,其中低覆盖度草地和林地发生沙化的几率最高;③土地利用方式未变化的土地以沙漠化减轻为主,而土地利用方式发生变化的土地,前期以沙漠化加重为主,后期以减轻为主,与土地利用程度变化相一致。     

The effects of land-use types and conversions on desertification in Mu Us Sandy Land of China

Based on multi-temporal remotely sensed materials of both 1985 and 2000, we analyzed the effects of land-use types and their conversions on desertification in Mu Us Sandy Land in the agro-pastoral transitional zone of north central China. In this study, the desertified land was classified into five degrees: potential, light, medium, severe and extreme. The results indicate that the extent of desertification expands slightly, while desertification degree is enhanced significantly. About 22.35% of the total land area in the study area is in the desertification course, and the expanded area of both severely and extremely desertified land accounts for 3.67% of the total area of Mu Us Sandy Land. About 9053 km2 of area witnessed changes in land-use types between 1985 and 2000, which accounted for 10.75% of the total. More importantly, the area of conversions among cultivated land, forestland and rangeland added up to 971.6 km2. This research reveals that both improper land-use types and conversions could accelerate the desertification process. Both cultivated land and forestland have more effects on the desertification development than rangeland. Some land-use type conversions, such as rangeland to cultivated land, rangeland to forestland and forestland to cultivated land, are attributed to the acceleration of the desertification development while the opposite can control the desertification development.     

Assessment of sandy desertification trends in the Shule River Basin from 1978 to 2010

Sandy desertification in the Shule River Basin has expanded dramatically during the past 30 years. We evaluated the status, evolution, and main causes of sandy desertification by interpreting Landsat images which were acquired in 1978, 1990, 2000, 2005, and 2010, and analyzing the relevant meteorological data. The results show there was 3,477.95 km2, 3,733.32 km2, 3,620.29 km2, 3,565.65 km2, and 3,557.88 km2 of sandy desertified land in 1978, 1990, 2000, 2005, and 2010, respectively. From 1978 to 1990, not only the area of sandy desertified land （SDL） but also the degree of SDL levels increased. From 1990 to 2010 there was widespread restoration of SDL but the recovery trend of SDL gradually slowed. Although climate change contributes to expanding sandy desertification, human activities can either accelerate or reverse trends of natural sandy desertification. Some detrimental human activities can accelerate sandy desertification, but, conversely, desertification control measures such as the Three-North Shelter Forest Project and watershed rehabilitation programs in areas including the Shule River Basin resulted in many SDL being turned into grasslands or forest lands when shrubs and trees were planted to fix mobile sands at the edges of oases and cities. With population growth, much SDL has been reclaimed as farm land using water-saving agricultural methods or has been turned into built-up land as a result of urbanization.     

毛乌素地区农业用地方式转换与沙漠化

Introduction and the study area Desertification refers to land degradation phenomenon and process in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas (the humid index between 0.05 and 0.65) resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human ac…     

东亚干旱半干旱区沙漠化与气候变化相互影响研究进展

气候系统主要通过气温、降水及风场等因素影响沙漠化过程,但不同区域其影响机制存在较大差异。目前的研究结果表明,总体上,降水对沙漠化的影响较为明确,降水量增加有利于沙漠化逆转。气温和风场变化对沙漠化的影响存在明显区域差异：在季风带沙漠化区,气温升高及高空盛行西南风有利于沙漠化逆转;在非季风带沙漠化区,一方面气温升高导致蒸发量增加,沙漠化发展;另一方面,其增加了冰川、冰雪融水的补给,沙漠化逆转;在高寒带沙漠化区,旱灾和寒冻灾害是沙漠化的主因。此外,沙漠化过程通过植被、地表及土壤特征等的改变影响气候系统。例如沙漠化过程的发生伴随地表植被覆盖的变化,并通过改变地表反照率、潜热通量、粗糙度等来影响气温、降水等气候因子;还通过沙尘释放量的变化来影响降水的发生。虽然沙漠化与气候系统间存在多种反馈机制,但反照率—气温—降水—植被的正反馈及沙尘—降水—植被的正反馈是其主要反馈机制。     

From global politics to local land users: applying the United Nations Convention to combat desertification in Swaziland

This paper explores the relevance of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and its related National Action Programmes (NAPs) to people affected by land degradation and change in Swaziland. Household data collected from three chiefdoms are examined, together with policy analyses and information from interviews with policymakers and NGO representatives, as the barriers that inhibit successful implementation of the UNCCD at the national level are explored. We demonstrate how the issues addressed by Swaziland's NAP do not always match the environmental challenges that most threaten the sustainability of rural livelihoods, despite the 'participatory' and 'consultative' approach taken in developing the policy. This is because the more powerful members of society restricted the public's access to policy space. We argue that local involvement in environmental policy and decision-making as prescribed from the international political arena is insufficient to ensure empowerment and democracy in dealing with land degradation in national and local contexts, particularly within highly centralized political systems. Although the UNCCD represents a useful global framework in which to situate local anti-degradation initiatives, in centralized political systems, its success depends upon changes being made to the ethos of national facilitating organizations. Only when the power balance is challenged and greater moves are made towards decentralization will local land users be able to assume a meaningful role in combating desertification.     

1949年以来中国农村土地制度变迁对土地沙漠化变化的影响

1949年以来我国农村土地制度经历了多次重大变革,每个阶段的土地制度对于沙漠化扩展或逆转有什么影响,是值得深入探讨的理论问题.使用土地制度变化与沙漠化扩展比较的分析方法,得出如下结论:我国沙漠化面积的扩展和逆转,都与我国农村土地制度的变迁紧密相联.集体所有的土地制度,由于缺乏有效的激励机制,造成沙漠化土地的迅速蔓延.而农村土地使用权分配的制度设计,无法兼顾经济发展与生态保护的双重目标.沙漠化治理需要新的制度安排.