Effect of groundwater interception and irrigation on salinity and piezometric levels of an aquifer

The major strategy used to prevent the discharge of highly saline groundwater to the River Murray in southeastern Australia is groundwater interception and disposal. The basic design principle assumes that the extraction of groundwater from an aquifer hydraulically connected to the river, using a line of pumps positioned close and roughly parallel to the river, will decrease piezometric heads thereby reducing the discharge of saline groundwater to the river. The paper considers one of these schemes which was designed for the Mildura area on the basis of a hydrogeological investigation. It analyses the effects on piezometric head and groundwater salinity due to the groundwater interception scheme and adjacent irrigation activity over a period of several years from January 1980. It is shown that piezometric heads have decreased significantly in the stretch close to the river. A slight reduction in groundwater salinity is also apparent in this stretch except for an area between the river and a holding basin used for disposal of the saline effluents emanating from the groundwater interception scheme. This general reduction in groundwater salinity is mainly caused by pumping from the groundwater interception scheme and recharge from irrigation. The exception in the trend in groundwater salinity is due to the movement of a highly saline body of groundwater from the holding basin towards the River Murray. Results of this Australian experience should be helpful to the designers of similar salinity mitigation schemes elsewhere.     

Response of early Ruppia cirrhosa litter breakdown to nutrient addition in a coastal lagoon affected by agricultural runoff

The response of early Ruppia cirrhosa Petagna (Grande) litter decomposition to external nitrogen and phosphorus availability in La Tancada (Ebro River, NE Spain), a coastal lagoon that receives agricultural freshwater runoff from rice fields has been examined. Recently abscised dead R. cirrhosa stems were collected and 25 g of fresh weight was placed in litter bags with a mesh size of 100 μm and 1 mm. These bags were fertilised by adding nitrogen (N), a mixture of nitrogen plus phosphorus (N + P), or phosphorus (P), or were left untreated (CT). Macroinvertebrates were retrieved from the bags and the ash-free dry weight, and carbon, and N and P content of the remaining plant material were measured after 0, 3, 7, 14, 22 and 32 days. Litter decomposition rates, k (day⁻¹), were estimated using a simple exponential model. Litter decay was clearly accelerated by the addition of P in the fine (100 μm) litter bags (0.042), but when N was added alone (0.0099) the decomposition rate was lower than in the CT treatments (0.022). No significant difference was observed between the N (0.0099–0.018) and N + P (0.0091–0.015) treatments in either the fine or the coarse (1 mm) litter bags. These results could be attributed to the relatively high availability of external (environmental) and internal (detritus contents) N. No significant effect of macro invertebrates was observed in the CT treatment or under N or P or N + P addition. The ratio between the decomposition rates in coarse and fine litter bags (k_c/k_f) was lower in disturbed Tancada lagoon (0.82) than in Cesine lagoon (2.11), a similar Mediterranean coastal water body with almost pristine conditions. These results indicate that, in addition to data on macroinvertebrate community structure, decomposition rates could also be used to assess water quality in coastal lagoons.     

淋溶在红树植物秋茄落叶分解失重中的潜在作用

于１９８６年冬－１９８９年秋在福建省九龙江口，连续３年分季节进行红树植物秋茄落叶在林地滩面的分解实验，并在室内测定其落叶和腐叶的可溶性物质含量，定量探讨淋溶在落叶分解失重中的潜在作用。结果表明，可溶性物质平均占落叶干重的２７．２６％，这些可溶性物质中的８７％在分解初期的快速淋溶阶段迅速损失，可导致落叶初始干重损失２４％。快速淋溶阶段持续时间平均分别是，春季３６ｄ，夏季，１３ｄ，秋季，１７ｄ，冬季５     

Leaf litter decomposition in remote oceanic islands: The role of macroinvertebrates vs. microbial decomposition of native vs. exotic plant species

Freshwater communities on remote oceanic islands can be depauperate due to the influence of biogeographic processes that operate over a range of spatial scales, influencing the colonization of organisms, and events that shape local freshwater assemblages. The consequences of this paucity in organism diversity for the functioning of these ecosystems are, however, not well understood.Here, we examine the relative decomposition rate of leaf litter of native vs. exotic origin by aquatic macroinvertebrates and microbial communities in an isolated and depauperate oceanic environment.Bags containing a standard amount of leaf litter of each of 10 tree species (5 native and 5 non-native species) were deployed on two streams. Two types of bags differing in mesh size were used to allow or prevent the access of leaf litter to macroinvertebrates, respectively. Over a period of 28 days, mass loss of leaf litter was similar in the two bag types suggesting that macroinvertebrates had little influence on the break down of leaf litter in this system. In addition, there was no difference in mass loss of leaf litter of native and exotic origin. Decomposition rates were highly species-specific suggesting that decomposition rates were related to inhibitory substance specific of each leaf species. Our results add to the wider literature by showing that in depauperate and isolated ecosystems, and in contrast to temperate continental ecosystems, decomposition of plant litter by aquatic macroinvertebrates is negligible.     

Rainfall interception by an isolated evergreen oak tree in a Mediterranean savannah

Redistribution of ground‐level rainfall and interception loss by an isolated Quercus ilex tree were measured over 2 years in a Mediterranean oak savannah. Stemflow, meteorological variables and sap flow were also monitored. Rainfall at ground level was measured by a set of rain‐gauges located in a radial layout centred on the tree trunk and extending beyond the crown limits. Interception loss was computed as the difference between the volume of rainwater that would reach the ground in the absence of the tree and the volume of water that actually fell on the ground sampling area (stemflow included). This procedure provided correct interception loss estimates, irrespective of rainfall inclination. Results have shown a clear non‐random spatial distribution of ground‐level rainfall, with rainwater concentrations upwind beneath the crown and rain‐shadows downwind. Interception loss amounted to 22% of gross rainfall, per unit of crown‐projected area. Stand interception loss, per unit of ground area, was only 8% of gross rainfall and 28% of tree evapotranspiration. These values reflect the low crown cover fraction of the stand (0·39) and the specific features of the Mediterranean rainfall regime (predominantly with few large storms). Nevertheless, it still is an important component of the water balance of these Mediterranean ecosystems. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

祁连山青海云杉林截留对降水的分配效应

为了评估青海云杉林的水源涵养服务功能,选择祁连山西水林区排露沟流域青海云杉林,定位监测了在2006年中共83次降水事件的截留分配效应,观测期降水总量为394.2 mm,林冠截留、茎流和穿透水量分别是139.1、1.96和253.1 mm,林冠截留率、茎流率、穿透率分别为35.28%、0.50%和64.22%,当林外降水量>0.8 mm时才观测到林内穿透雨,而大于13.60 mm时,才观测到树干茎流。林冠对降水的截留分配与降水量、降水形态以及林分特征密切相关。冠层截留量、茎流量和穿透量与降水量均呈正相关,冠层截留率与降水量呈负相关,而茎流率和穿透率呈正相关;林冠对降雪的截留强于降雨,而降雨的穿透量强于降雪,同一降水事件下树干茎流量随着胸径的增大而增加。青海云杉林冠的几何形态结构(枝叶的分布与排列)不利于形成树干茎流。     

滇石林地质公园喀斯特山地天然林和人工林凋落物与死地被物的动态特征

对云南石林地质公园景区及其保护区内喀斯特山地典型森林类型凋落物组成与数量及其动态,地表死地被物现存量与持水特性等进行了研究。结果表明,本区域保护较好的滇青冈(Cyclobalanopsis glaucoides)林的年凋落量达7.26 t/hm2;而以团花木新姜子(Neolitsea homiantha)为主的次生林只有1.98 t/hm2;云南松(Pinus yun-nanensis)人工林和干香柏(Cupressus duclouxiana)人工林年凋落量分别是2.49 t/hm2和4.07 t/hm2。这些森林的凋落节律相似,都呈明显的“双峰型”。在地表死地被物现存量方面,干香柏林因其叶片难以分解而具有较高的地表现存量,为13.59 t/hm2,随后依次为滇青冈林(7.57 t/hm2),团花新木姜子次生林(5.02 t/hm2)和云南松人工林(4.83 t/hm2),死地被物的持水量与其现存量的大小顺序一致。根据森林年凋落量与死地被物现存量的数量关系,表明保护较好的滇青冈林内枯枝落叶的分解率明显大于次生林和人工林,周转期也短,涵养水分能力也较强。因此,应加强对喀斯特山地自然森林的保护,同时也注意对现有人工林的改造,引进一些阔叶树种,提高群落结构的整体效应。     

不同植被类型对土壤全氮随降雨径流流失的控制研究--以抚仙湖流域磷矿开采区为例

地表径流挟带土壤氮进入水体是造成水体面源污染的主要途径之一。本研究依区域年降雨量的差异，将抚仙湖磷矿开采区年降雨量分别为1200-1300mm和1000-1100min的区域划分为东大河流域磷矿区和帽天山磷矿区两个研究单元，通过设置野外径流小区，在自然降雨状态下对磷矿开采废弃地与矿区现有主要植被类型土壤营养元全氮随径流流失量进行比较研究。研究结果表明：降雨强度是矿山废弃地产流的关键因子，在大、暴雨状态下矿山废弃地土壤TN流失量远大于各植被类型，对抚仙湖水质产生不利的影响。各植被类型土壤TN随径流流失量主要取决于地表径流量，径流中TN含量对其影响不大，流失总量次序与径流总量次序相一致，表现为：灌草丛〉云南松灌丛〉云南松混交林〉华山松林〉竹林〉桉树林，除灌草丛外各植被类型均能对土壤TN流失起到较强的截留作用。     

黄河中游大尺度植被冠层截留降水模拟与分析

大尺度植被冠层截留降水定量模拟与分析是揭示气候变化和人类活动综合作用下区域水沙变化机制的重要研究内容。以黄河中游河口镇—潼关区间为研究区,耦合遥感等空间数据与植被冠层截留估算模型,利用地面监测站点降水数据、GLASS叶面积指数遥感数据和地理信息空间分析技术,定量模拟和分析了黄河中游20 世纪80 年代以来3 个典型年份的地表植被冠层截留降水及其时空变化特征。结果表明：（1） 20 世纪80 年代以来,特别是20 世纪末实施的生态修复政策,使得黄河中游叶面积指数显著提高,植被覆盖明显改善;（2） 20 世纪80 年代以来,黄河中游植被冠层截留降水发生了明显变化,1984 年、1995 年和2010 年研究区植被冠层截留降水量区域年平均值分别为19.57 mm、13.66 mm和22.68 mm,截留率分别为3.24%、3.32%和4.92%;（3） 黄河中游植被冠层截留降水特征及其变化受降水特征和地表植被状况共同影响,其中,降水量是决定植被冠层截留降水特征的控制性因素,而叶面积指数年际变化是影响植被冠层截留降水特征变化的主要因素。     

典型喀斯特植被类型条件下绿水循环过程数值模拟

绿水对于喀斯特地区的生态恢复具有重要意义。从绿水循环过程入手,综合考虑冠层截留过程、土壤水分运动过程和植被蒸散发过程,建立典型喀斯特地区不同植被类型条件下的绿水循环过程模型。模型在小型人工模拟降雨实验和长时段监测数据的验证下,依托遥感和GIS手段,扩展到区域尺度,模拟了研究区2005年10月~2006年3月的绿水循环过程,结果表明:(1)研究区的绿水占了降雨量的87.4%,大部分降水通过冠层截留、蒸散发和入渗转化为绿水,供给生态用水。(2)典型喀斯特地区不同植被类型条件下绿水循环存在重要差异,随着喀斯特生态恢复和植被类型改变,生态系统把更多的降雨转化为绿水,即转化为生态用水。(3)模拟时段内的绿水贮存量呈增大趋势,不易发生干旱,是春旱和夏旱前绿水补充的重要时段。