| Title: | Spatiotemporal response of the water cycle to land use conversions in a typical hilly–gully basin on the Loess Plateau, China |
| Authors: | Qiu, L., Y. Wu, L. Wang, X. Lei, W. Liao, Y. Hui and X. Meng |
| Year: | 2017 |
| Journal: | Hydrology and Earth System Sciences |
| Volume (Issue): | 21(12) |
| Pages: | 6485-6499 |
| Article ID: | |
| DOI: | 10.5194/hess-21-6485-2017 |
| URL (non-DOI journals): | |
| Model: | SWAT |
| Broad Application Category: | hydrologic only |
| Primary Application Category: | land use change |
| Secondary Application Category: | hydrologic assessment |
| Watershed Description: | 7,591 km^2 Yanhe River, located in northern Shaanxi Province in north central China. |
| Calibration Summary: | |
| Validation Summary: | |
| General Comments: | |
| Abstract: | The hydrological effects of the “Grain for Green”
project (GFGP) on the Loess Plateau have been extensively
debated due to the complexity of the water system and its
multiple driving factors. The aim of this study was to investigate
the response of the hydrological cycle to the GFGP
measures based in a case study of the Yanhe Basin, a typical
hilly–gully area on the Loess Plateau of China. First,
we analyzed the land use and land cover (LULC) changes
from 1990 to 2010. Then, we evaluated the effects of LULC
changes and sloping land conversion on the main hydrological
components in the basin using the Soil and Water Assessment
Tool (SWAT). The results indicated that cropland
exhibited a decreasing trend, declining from 40.2% of the
basin area in 1990 to 17.6% in 2010, and that the woodland
and grassland areas correspondingly increased.With the land
use changes from 1990 to 2010, the water yield showed a decreasing
trend which was mainly due to decrease in surface
runoff. In contrast, evapotranspiration (ET) showed an increasing
trend over the same period, resulting in a persistent
decrease in soil water. The conversion of sloping cropland
to grassland or woodland exerted negative effects on water
yield and soil water. Compared with the land use condition
in 2010, the negative effects were most evident where cropland
with a slope >15 % was converted to woodland, with decreases
in surface runoff and soil water of 17.1 and 6.4 %, respectively.
These results suggest that the expansive reforestation
on sloping land in the loess hilly–gully region decreased
water yield and increased ET, resulting in reduced soil water.
The results of this study can be used to support sustainable
land use planning and water resource management on
the Loess Plateau in China. |
| Language: | English |
| Keywords: | |