Estimating groundwater recharge following land-use change using chloride mass balance of soil profiles: a case study at Guyuan and Xifeng in the Loess Plateau of China

Groundwater recharge is affected by land use in (semi)arid areas. A new application of the chloride-mass-balance approach has been developed to estimate the reduction in groundwater recharge following land-use change by comparing chloride concentrations below the root zone and above the base of the chloride accumulation zone, before and after the land-use conversion. Two sites in the Loess Plateau of central China have been selected for study. Results from the Guyuan terrace region show that groundwater recharge beneath natural sparse small-grass was 100?mm/year, but the conversion to winter wheat about 100?years ago has reduced groundwater recharge to 55?mm/year. At the Xifeng Loess Plain the conversion from winter wheat, with groundwater recharge at 33?mm/year, to apple orchard 7?years ago has led to chloride accumulation to 5?m below land surface, suggesting the recharge rate has been reduced. This is in agreement with previous studies in these areas which have shown that the regional afforestation and other land-use conversions have resulted in deep soil desiccation and have caused an upper boundary to form with low matrix potential, thus preventing the soil moisture from actually recharging the aquifer.     

Modeling and assessing land-use and hydrological processes to future land-use and climate change scenarios in watershed land-use planning

Effective information regarding environmental responses to future land-use and climate change scenarios provides useful support for decision making in land use planning, management and policies. This study developed an approach for modeling and examining the impacts of future land-use and climate change scenarios on streamflow, surface runoff and groundwater discharge using an empirical land-use change model, a watershed hydrological model based on various land use policies and climate change scenarios in an urbanizing watershed in Taiwan. The results of the study indicated that various demand and conversion policies had different levels of impact on hydrological components in all land-use scenarios in the study watershed. Climate changes were projected to have a greater impact in increasing surface runoff and reducing groundwater discharge than are land use changes. Additionally, the spatial distributions of land-use changes also influenced hydrological processes in both downstream and upstream areas, particularly in the downstream watershed. The impacts on hydrological components when considering both land use and climate changes exceeded those when only considering land use changes or climate changes, particularly on surface runoff and groundwater discharge. However, the proposed approach provided a useful source of information for assessing the responses of land use and hydrological processes to future land use and climate changes.     

Monitoring land use change at a small watershed scale on the Loess Plateau, China: applications of landscape metrics, remote sensing and GIS

Rapid land use change has taken place in many arid and semi-arid regions of China including the Loess Plateau. In this study, changes in land use and landscape fragmentation in the small Shanghuang watershed on the Loess Plateau were investigated by the combined use of remote sensing, GIS and landscape metrics. Land use classes were mapped and analyzed from a time series of maps and remotely sensed images that were ground truthed in 2008. Analyses of the data showed that land use had undergone substantial changes in this small watershed from 1982 to 2008, and these changes could be divided into three phases according to the change in the landscape matrix whereby the dominant land use was grassland (1982–1990), cropland (1990–2002) and forestland (2002–2008). During each phase, conversions between different land use types took place frequently, especially among cropland, orchards, grassland and forestland. Landscape fragmentation increased from 1982 to 1990 and then decreased from 1990 to 2008 as indicated by four landscape metrics. These changes in land use and landscape fragmentation in this small watershed were mainly controlled by human factors (land management, construction, population pressure, and government policy) rather than natural factors.     

Submersion simulation in a typical debris flow watershed of Jianzhuangchuan catchment,Loess Plateau

Debris flow is one of the most serious and frequent geological disasters that occur in the Loess Plateau. The outbreak of a debris flow is sudden, ferocious, swift, and destructive. The characteristics and mechanism of debris flow were explored in this study via survey, numerical simulation, and simulation analysis in a Loess Plateau area (Huangling County, Shaanxi Province, China). Numerical models and formulas corresponding to the occurrence and movement mechanism were established based on the HEC-RAS, HEC-GeoRAS, and SWAT results. The range of debris flow deposition was determined through capturing the debris flow free surface. A hydrological model and critical rainfall threshold were determined in order to provide technical support for debris flow forecasting in the Loess Plateau. The results suggest that 10-year floods do not submerge any portion of the basin. One village area was affected by the 100-year flood (total area of 0.648 km²) while four villages areas were submerged by the 1000-year flood (total area of 1.39 km²). The method presented here may provide a reliable scientific basis for mitigating loss due to debris flow hazards.     

Prediction of spatial soil loss impacted by long-term land-use/land-cover change in a tropical watershed

The devastating effect of soil erosion is one of the major sources of land degradation that affects human lives in many ways which occur mainly due to deforestation, poor agricultural practices, overgrazing,wildfire and urbanization. Soil erosion often leads to soil truncation, loss of fertility, slope instability, etc.which causes irreversible effects on the poorly renewable soil resource. In view of this, a study was conducted in Kelantan River basin to predict soil loss as influenced by long-term land use/land-cover(LULC) changes in the area. The study was conducted with the aim of predicting and assessing soil erosion as it is influenced by long-term LULC changes. The 13,100 km~2 watershed was delineated into four sub-catchments Galas, Pergau, Lebir and Nenggiri for precise result estimation and ease of execution. GIS-based Universal Soil Loss Equation(USLE) model was used to predict soil loss in this study. The model inputs used for the temporal and spatial calculation of soil erosion include rainfall erosivity factor,topographic factor, land cover and management factor as well as erodibility factor. The results showed that 67.54% of soil loss is located under low erosion potential(reversible soil loss) or 0-1 t ha~(-1) yr~(-1) soil loss in Galas, 59.17% in Pergau, 53.32% in Lebir and 56.76% in Nenggiri all under the 2013 LULC condition.Results from the correlation of soil erosion rates with LULC changes indicated that cleared land in all the four catchments and under all LULC conditions(1984-2013) appears to be the dominant with the highest erosion losses. Similarly, grassland and forest were also observed to regulate erosion rates in the area. This is because the vegetation cover provided by these LULC types protects the soil from direct impact of rain drops which invariably reduce soil loss to the barest minimum. Overall, it was concluded that the results have shown the significance of LULC in the control of erosion. Maps generated from the study may be useful to planners and land use managers to take appropriate decisions for soil conservation.     

伊通河流域土地利用变化及其生态响应

通过遥感影像解译获取伊通河流域1986、1996、2005和2017年土地利用数据,采用土地利用动态模型、土地利用度和生态系统服务价值等方法,研究伊通河流域土地利用变化特征及其生态响应。研究结果表明,耕地、城镇建筑用地和林地是伊通河流域主要的土地利用类型,1986—2017年间,研究区土地利用综合动态度降低,土地利用度上升,土地利用结构趋于稳定。在31年间,生态系统服务价值整体下降33.97%,林地、草地、湿地和水域面积的减小导致生态系统服务价值显著降低。     

Impact of land-use change on soil properties in a typical karst agricultural region of Southwest China: a case study of Xiaojiang watershed, Yunnan

Xiaojiang watershed is a typical karst agricultural region of Yunan Province, China. A case study of land-use changes documents changes of soil properties from 1982 to 2003. The results are as follows: (1) The total land use transformed covers 610.12 km², of which land use changed from unused land into cultivated land and forestland, and forestland into cultivated land during the past 20 years in Xiaojiang watershed. (2) The rapid growth of population and economic development were the main driving forces of cultivated land increase. (3) Soil properties showed modification owing to different land-use changes. The contents of the soil organic matter, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus in 2003 were significantly lower than that in 1982 after the forestland and unused land were transformed into the cultivated land, but the soil pH increased significantly in 2003. Organic matter, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus for shorter-time reforestation land declined, but the pH increased. Soil properties have improved significantly after cropland was transformed into orchard land. The organic matter, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, available nitrogen, and available phosphorus declined significantly, but pH increased significantly after rock desertification.     

1961—2005年黄土高原地区积温演变

为揭示黄土高原积温区域变化特征,采用EOFS、小波分析和分形分维分析等方法,研究了该区域在近45 a的年正负积温变化.结果表明:黄土高原正负积温变化的区域一致性程度较高;负积温存在以3-4 a为主的年际振荡,正积温存在以2-4 a为主的年际振荡;负积温在1982年左右发生突变,年总量呈明显减少,3 a周期加强;正积温在1985/1986年突变后呈明显增加趋势,2 a周期消逝,4 a周期衰减,3 a周期突出.积温大振幅区集中在黄土高原腹地,变化信息由高原中部向周边传播;负积温分维数大于正积温,负积温变化全程复杂于正积温,这可能与冬夏季大气环流活跃程度和冷暖空气在近地面运动受大地形影响有关.     

密西西比河流域监测、修复管理经验对我国流域生态保护修复的启示

美国流域保护修复的研究与实践开始较早,并在密西西比河的修复与治理上取得了良好成效,对我国流域生态保护修复工作具有一定借鉴意义。介绍了密西西比河的管理模式,并对美国在密西西比河开展的具有代表性的长期生态监测及修复管理工作进行了总结,总结了对我国流域生态保护修复工作的7点启示: ①建立和完善流域生态系统监测与评价指标体系; ②建立流域综合监测网络,进行全流域持续监测; ③建设流域生态信息平台,加强数据共享; ④以流域为单元开展生态状况调查和评估; ⑤建立和完善监测、评估、规划、实施循环体系; ⑥提升对流域生态系统的科学认知; ⑦加强流域协调治理,创新我国流域生态保护修复管理体系。旨在为我国广泛开展流域保护修复工作提供一个覆盖河源头至河口的流域监测与修复管理案例。     

黄土高原北部风沙区土地沙漠化问题及防治对策

本文所研究的黄土高原北部风沙区生态环境脆弱,加上长期以来人类不合理地利用资源,土地沙漠化问题日益严重。沙漠化土地已经以不同的等级类型不连续地散布在整个黄土高原的北部边缘,并有进一步由北向南推进的趋势。其中地表沙性物质基础和干旱多风的动力条件是其发生发展的基本条件,起决定作用;人为因素是外在条件,加速沙漠化的发展。黄土高原北部土地沙漠化的危害,在本区域的表现十分突出。不仅对当地经济的发展和人民生活有严重影响,更为严重的是该地区土地沙漠化的现状、形成及扩展,会使黄河流域土地沙漠化进一步向南推进,对整个黄土高原甚至我国整个北方地区的自然环境都有直接影响。黄土高原北部边缘土地沙漠化问题,不仅是当地经济振兴的严重障碍,而且威胁着整个黄土高原地区资源的开发与利用。因此,如何及时采取有效措施遏制其土地沙漠化势头就成为了一个迫在眉睫,并急需解决的问题。本文在搜集大量原始资料的基础上,对该区土地沙漠化的现状进行了总结,探讨了形成机理,并进一步分析了沙漠化的危害,最后提出了相应的防治对策。     

Dynamics of soil organic carbon following land-use change: insights from stable C-isotope analysis in black soil of Northeast China

Intensive soil tillage is a significant factor in soil organic matter decline in cultivated soils. Both cultivation abandonment and foregoing tillage have been encouraged in the past 30 years to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and soil erosion. However, the dynamic processes of soil organic carbon (SOC) in areas of either continuous cultivation or abandonment remain unclear and inconsistent. Our aims were to assess and model the dynamic processes of SOC under continuous tillage and after cultivation abandonment in the black soil of Northeast China. Soil profiles were collected of cultivated or abandoned land with cultivation history of 0–100 years. An isotope mass balance equation was used to calculate the proportion of SOC derived from corn debris (C₄) and from natural vegetation (C₃) to deduce the dynamic process. Approximately 40% of SOC in the natural surface soil (0–10 cm) was eroded in the first 5 years of cultivation, increasing to about 75% within 40 years, before a slow recovery. C₄ above 30 cm soil depth increased by 4.5%–5% or 0.11–0.12 g·kg^?1 on average per year under continuous cultivation, while it decreased by approximately 0.34% annually in the surface soil after cultivation abandonment. The increase in the percentage of C₄ was fitted to a linear equation with given intercepts in the upper 30 cm of soil in cultivated land. A significant relationship between the change of C₄ and time was found only in the surface soil after abandonment of cultivation. These results demonstrate the loss and accumulation of corn-derived SOC in surface black soil of Northeast China under continuous tillage or cultivation abandonment.     

Parameters optimization based on the combination of localization and auto-calibration of SWAT model in a small watershed in Chinese Loess Plateau

This study simulated the watershed flow and sediment responses based on calibration of the SWAT model in the semi-arid Chinese Loess Plateau (LP) where soil erosion intensively occurs. After the model’s initiation and manual modification, a 7-year inconsecutively observed flow and sediment data from 1984 to 1990 was used to analyze the model’s application in the selected watershed called AJW in the Chinese LP region. The model procedure included sensitivity analysis, parameter calibration and model validation. The best parameter set was finally determined based on the combination of parameter localization and auto-calibration. Then the model was assessed for its accuracy based on the NSE estimation, resulting in 0.77 and 0.67 for calibration and 0.46 and 0.32 for validation on simulations for flow and sediment, respectively, which is a moderately satisfactory accuracy among the applications of the SWAT model. Annual watershed assessment on flow and sediment with the calibrated SWAT model resulted in a multiyear averaged annual runoff coefficient of about 2.7% and an erosion modulus of 797 t/(km²·a⁻¹) in the AJW, indicating a beneficial consequence from the implementation of the historical soil and water conservations.     

四川金川黄土地层

马厂剖面中黄土-古土壤序列共厚15．5m,根据岩性、磁性地层特征、磁化率、CaCO3含量和光释光测年结果,将金川黄土划分为冰后期S0古土壤,末次冰期1-1黄土,末次间冰期S1古土壤、倒数第二冰期L2黄土和倒数第二间冰期S2古土壤等5个地层单位;其中,S1复合型古土壤又可细分为S1LL1、S1LL2黄土和S1SS1、S1SS2和S1SS3古土壤等5个次级地层单位。金川黄土沉积始于中更新世晚期,其底界的年龄人致为200ka BP,其磁化率变化反映了最近200ka来的高原季风演化和气候环境变迁,5个磁化率高值段指示了5个夏季风环流增强的时段,4个磁化率低值段则代表了4次夏季风减弱的时期。     

OSL dating of a Holocene loess-paleosol sequence in the southern Loess Plateau,China

Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of polymineral fine-grained loess samples collected from the southern Loess Plateau of China was conducted using the single-aliquot regenerative-dose (SAR) protocol. A ‘Double-SAR’ procedure in which aliquots are subjected to both infrared (IR) and blue stimulations was used, and two sets of equivalent dose (D _e ) determinations were produced. These doses are assumed to be predominantly related to the feldspathic and quartz fine grain populations, respectively. The results revealed that the OSL ages estimated by infrared stimulated luminescence (IRSL) signals and those estimated by [post-IR] stimulated luminescence ([post-IR] OSL) signals disagreed. Specifically, the ages estimated using the IRSL signals were smaller than those estimated using [post-IR] OSL signals. The results of an anomalous fading test of the two types of OSL signals revealed that the [post-IR] OSL signals from the etched sub-sample (by H₂SiF₆ and HF) and the un-etched sub-sample did not fade significantly. However, the IRSL signals from the un-etched sub-sample showed obvious signs of fading. These findings indicate that the lower age estimated by IRSL is due to the anomalous fading of feldspar IR signals in the polymineral fine grains. For samples collected from greater than 100 cm, the estimates of their OSL ages using two types of luminescence signals generally agreed with their pre-estimated ages, especially those of the [post-IR] OSL signals. However, for the three samples that were collected from a depth of less than 100 cm, their OSL ages were remarkably underestimated, possibly due to the enhanced human activity (such as soil cultivation) that has occurred in the region since 3000 a B.P.     

Soil conservation and sustainable eco-environment in the Loess Plateau of China

The Loess Plateau is well known to the world because of its thick loess and severe soil erosion. Loess is a highly erosion-prone soil that is considerably susceptible to water erosion. The Loess Plateau also has a long cultivation history, hence population growth, vegetation degeneration serious soil and water loss were obviously problems on Loess Plateau. This article analyzes several strategies of soil and water conservation on the Loess Plateau, such as terracing, planting trees, natural vegetation rehabilitation and construction of warp land dams. Different periods had different strategies of soil and water conservation and each strategy had its characteristics and effects. Finally, the research directions and future perspectives of the Loess Plateau were discussed, including the strategies of sustainable eco-environment of Loess Plateau in China.     

A method for the study of quaternary environmental evolution of the Loess Plateau in China

A method for obtaining quantitative information on palaeoenvironmental evolution from the loess stratum is approached in this paper.

1. Twelve typical Holocene loess profiles in Loess Plateau have been studied. A quantitative relation was found between the total ferric oxide content (TFOC) of modern surface loess and modern climate conditions. The increase of TFOC by 1% indicates an increase of annual mean precipitation by 246 mm or a rise of mean January temperature by 5.8 C°.
2. The corresponding relation between the oak(Quercus) forests and the climatic conditions of the Loess Plateau and adjacent mountainous areas to the south has also been studied. A detailed classification of vegetation ecotypes using generic differences in arboreal family differences in herb plants of an oak forest is suggested, which may improve the reliability of palaeoclimatic reconstructions from spore and pollen data.

     

Nutrient Loss from Various Land－Use Areas in Shixia Small Watershed of Miyun County,Beijing China

In the Shixia small watershed,twenty experimental plots and two monitoring channels,the residential area and livestock areas were used to monitor the flow,runoff and erosion,Nitrogen and phosphorous concentrations associated with various land uses were analyzed at the same time.The results are presented as follows:(1)TP ,TN and COD concentrations of runoff samples in the residential area and livestock arease are nearly 10 times those in other land-use areas.High nutrient loads are associated with village land use,which is due to unsuitable livestock rising.These areas should be treated as the critical areas of non-point source pollution.(2)Different land use influences intensity the loss nutrients,especially slope tillings in agricultural land.The amount of nutrient loss from agricultural land per unit is highest,that from forestry is intermediated and that frompastures is lowest,However,in consideration of the variability of land-use areas,agricultural land contributes the greatest to TP and forestry land to TN.(3)The concentrations of TN and TP in sediments from gangues are highest ,those in forestry land are intermediate,and those in agricultural land are lowest.Nutrient loss from hilly areas in much greater than from mountainous areas.     

川西高原甘孜黄土地层学

本文初步研究了甘孜黄土地层，实测了甘孜县城西南郊新市区和满地两剖面，它们分别厚２３．７ｍ和２６．０ｍ。根据岩性、磁性地层特征、磁化率、ＣａＣＯ３质量分数测定和热释光测年结果，甘孜黄土可划分为冰后期Ｓ０复合古土壤，末次冰期Ｌ１复合黄土和末次间冰期Ｓ１复合古土壤等３个地层单位。布莱克反向极性亚时记录于底部Ｓ１ＬＬ１黄土中。甘孜黄土沉积始于晚更新世早期，大约为１２０ｋａＢＰ。甘孜黄土的磁化率变化反映了最近１２０ｋａ来的高原季风演化和气候环境变迁，６个磁化率高值段指示了６个夏季风环流增强的时段，６个磁化率低值段则     

Environmental change and cultural response between 8000 and 4000 cal. yr BP in the western Loess Plateau,northwest China

Two ancient swamps in the western Loess Plateau, northwest China record the climate history between 8000 and 4000 cal. yr BP. Grain size, CaCO₃, organic matter, mollusc fauna and pollen assemblages show that climate was wet between 8300 and 7400 cal. yr BP, distinctly humid and warm between 7400 and 6700 cal. yr BP, semi‐humid from 6700 to 6300 cal. yr BP, and semi‐arid between 6300 and 4000 cal. yr BP. The temporal and spatial distribution of archaeological sites shows that the prosperity of the neolithic cultures in the western part of the Chinese Loess Plateau did not appear until the climate changed to semi‐arid, implying that the semi‐arid climate was more favourable than wet and humid climate to neolithic peoples, whose subsistence was based on cereals adapted to arid environments. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.