Generating soil thickness maps by means of geomorphological-empirical approach and random forest algorithm in Wanzhou County,Three Gorges Reservoir

Soil thickness, intended as depth to bedrock, is a key input parameter for many environmental models. Nevertheless, it is often difficult to obtain a reliable spatially exhaustive soil thickness map in wide-area applications, and existing prediction models have been extensively applied only to test sites with shallow soil depths. This study addresses this limitation by showing the results of an application to a section of Wanzhou County (Three Gorges Reservoir Area, China), where soil thickness varies from 0 to ～40 m. Two different approaches were used to derive soil thickness maps: a modified version of the geomorphologically indexed soil thickness (GIST) model, purposely customized to better account for the peculiar setting of the test site, and a regression performed with a machine learning algorithm, i.e., the random forest, combined with the geomorphological parameters of GIST (GIST-RF). Additionally, the errors of the two models were quantified, and validation with geophysical data was carried out. The results showed that the GIST model could not fully contend with the high spatial variability of soil thickness in the study area: the mean absolute error was 10.68 m with the root-mean-square error (RMSE) of 12.61 m, and the frequency distribution residuals showed a tendency toward underestimation. In contrast, GIST-RF returned a better performance with the mean absolute error of 3.52 m and RMSE of 4.56 m. The derived soil thickness map could be considered a critical fundamental input parameter for further analyses.     

中国东部亚热带丘陵山地土地退化评价指标体系研究*

中国东部亚热带地区流水侵蚀所引起土地退化的形成,是由其生态环境自身的脆弱性决定的。土地退化不仅表现为土壤退化,还表现为植被退化和土地状况恶化,其发展过程是植被退化-土壤退化-地表状况恶化过程多重循环的结果。据此,提出了中国东部亚热带丘陵山地土地退化评价指标。     

基于土体中结构面的岩土工程问题探讨

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Effect of Soil Parameters on Dynamic Cone Penetration Indices of Laterite Sub-grade Soils from India

The focus of this study was on correlating the effect of grain-size, maximum dry-density (MDD), field moisture content, and the void ratios on penetration measured using the dynamic cone penetrometer (DCP) for laterite soils blended with fines. Tests were performed on soil samples compacted to MDD for moulding water contents set to the optimum moisture content (OMC), dry of OMC, and wet of OMC un-soaked condition. The results indicated that an increase in the fines-content caused a decrease in the MDD, and an increase in the OMC and the DCP penetration. Regressions were developed correlating various parameters.     

Soil Organic Carbon mapping of partially vegetated agricultural fields with imaging spectroscopy

Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) is one of the key soil properties, but the large spatial variation makes continuous mapping a complex task. Imaging spectroscopy has proven to be an useful technique for mapping of soil properties, but the applicability decreases rapidly when fields are partially covered with vegetation. In this paper we show that with only a few percent fractional maize cover the accuracy of a Partial Least Square Regression (PLSR) based SOC prediction model drops dramatically. However, this problem can be solved with the use of spectral unmixing techniques. First, the fractional maize cover is determined with linear spectral unmixing, taking the illumination and observation angles into account. In a next step the influence of maize is filtered out from the spectral signal by a new procedure termed Residual Spectral Unmixing (RSU). The residual soil spectra resulting from this procedure are used for mapping of SOC using PLSR, which could be done with accuracies comparable to studies performed on bare soil surfaces (Root Mean Standard Error of Calibration = 1.34 g/kg and Root Mean Standard Error of Prediction = 1.65 g/kg). With the presented RSU approach it is possible to filter out the influence of maize from the mixed spectra, and the residual soil spectra contain enough information for mapping of the SOC distribution within agricultural fields. This can improve the applicability of airborne imaging spectroscopy for soil studies in temperate climates, since the use of the RSU approach can extend the flight-window which is often constrained by the presence of vegetation.     

210Pbex示踪法技术原理及其在土壤侵蚀中的应用

土壤侵蚀是全球性的环境问题之一,严重威胁到资源、环境和社会经济的可持续发展。应用核素示踪技术研究土壤侵蚀已成为当前该领域研究热点,它体现出了很多的优越性,并在今后研究中有着广阔的应用前景。本文介绍了210Pbex的示踪原理,概述了210Pbex在土壤侵蚀示踪研究中的存在的关键性问题及其应用,并对其研究进行了展望。     

地下水有机污染的水文地球化学标志物探讨——以河南油田为例

经过野外现场调查和取样分析及室内研究得知南阳油田地下水已遭受不同程度的有机物污染，且污染范围可能进一步向油田南部扩散。根据近似地下水流线方向上地下水中总油质量浓度和Fe,Mn等无机组分的变化势态，结合含水介质化学分析结果，发现硫酸盐、Fe和Mn可作为地下水有机污染和地球化学标志物。在含水介质中Fe和Mn质量浓度较高的地方，地下水有机污染物降解速度快，含水介质中Fe和Mn的氧化物和氢氧化物的还原作用导致了含水层介质中Fe和Mn的缺乏和地下水中溶解Fe和Mn的积聚；在含水介质中Fe和Mn质量浓度低的地方，地下水中的有机物质量浓度并没有降低，相应地地下水中溶解Fe和Mn的质量浓度也很低。同时，由于有机污染物的存在使地下水中硫酸盐被还原，导致城下水中硫酸盐质量浓度偏低，且地下水中Fe对有机物污染的敏感性比Mn强。     

Evaluation of landscape changes and ecological degradation by GIS in arid regions: a case study of the terminal oasis of the Shiyang River,northwest China

The development and utilization of water and land resources in the Shiyang River basin are the highest among the inland rivers in northwestern China. Using GIS and the landscape structure analysis program FRAGSTATS, landscape metrics of a study area in the lake-district in Minqin Oasis in the lower reaches of Shiyang River basin were calculated and analyzed based on TM images from 1987 to 2001 at class level and landscape level, respectively. Transformation matrix of the landscape mosaics was also examined. The driving forces of landscape changes were analyzed, including the dynamics of runoff and groundwater resources and their exploitation, and influences of policies and market economy. The results showed that: (1) Patch number of farmland and desert decreased, but their mean patch area increased, indicating that reclamation and desertification was very serious in the study area. Contagion index for oasis increased and edge density and landscape diversity were reduced. (2) Farmland and desert areas have enlarged by 1,520.46 and 4,941.27 hm², respectively. This increase was at the cost of woodland and grassland, which shrank by 1,520.46 and 4,941.27 hm², respectively. (3) The net utilization of surface water decreased by 50% in the last 10 years, and dropped to 22.3 × 10⁶ m³ in the later 1990s. Exploitation of groundwater increased remarkably, up to 80 × 10⁶ m³ per year in the last 5 years. (4) The capability of the economic structure to withstand pressures of the market economy has depressed distinctly because of the simplified planting pattern, which is dominated by salinity-enduring cash crops, such as cotton. Based on the above analysis, strategies of ecological reconstruction in the lake-district were suggested.     

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674987111001034

A comprehensive methodology that integrates Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation（RUSLE） model and Geographic Information System（GIS） techniques was adopted to determine the soil erosion vulnerability of a forested mountainous sub-watershed in Kerala,India.The spatial pattern of annual soil erosion rate was obtained by integrating geo-environmental variables in a raster based GIS method.GIS data layers including,rainfall erosivity（R）,soil erodability（K）,slope length and steepness（LS）,cover management （C） and conservation practice（P） factors were computed to determine their effects on average annual soil loss in the area.The resultant map of annual soil erosion shows a maximum soil loss of 17.73 t h^-1 y^-1 with a close relation to grass land areas,degraded forests and deciduous forests on the steep side-slopes（with high LS ）.The spatial erosion maps generated with RUSLE method and GIS can serve as effective inputs in deriving strategies for land planning and management in the environmentally sensitive mountainous areas.