Soil erosion, conservation, and eco-environment changes in the loess plateau of china
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors reviewed the historical variation of climate, vegetation cover, and environment changes in order to understand the causes of severe soil erosion in Loess Plateau, and found that climate changes and vegetation cover were the dominant natural factors influencing the soil erosion rates during the Holocene.
Abstract: As one of the best-known areas in the world, the Loess Plateau, has long been suffering from serious soil erosion. The present paper reviewed the historical variation of climate, vegetation cover, and environment changes in order to understand the causes of severe soil erosion. Documentary evidence indicated that climate changes and vegetation cover were the dominant natural factors influencing the soil erosion rates during the Holocene. Intensive human activities consisting of warfare, population growth, deforestation, and soil and water conservation measures were responsible for the changes of soil erosion during the anthropogenic period. Spatial and temporal changes of specific sediment yields presented significant decrease within the last several decades, which resulted from decreasing rainfall, large scale soil and water conservation measures, agricultural irrigation, and reservoir construction. Different phase of soil conservation measures demonstrated the development of policies and techniques on soil erosion control. Effective strategies of soil and water conservation, consisting of terracing, afforestation, natural rehabilitation, and check-dams construction, were carried out on the Loess Plateau during the past six decades. The progress of soil conservation measures confirmed that the check-dams systems might be suitable for Loess hilly Plateau, and natural vegetation rehabilitation is the best way for soil erosion control and should be implemented in other regions with emphasis of improving the quality of conservation measures based on natural rehabilitation. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors proposed to balance each ecosystem service, for example, by determining the region's vegetation capacity and its spatial distribution for the sustainable development of the socioecolog...
Abstract: China's Loess Plateau is both the largest and deepest loess deposit in the world, and it has long been one of the most severely eroded areas on Earth. Since the 1970s, numerous soil- and water-conservation practices have been implemented: terracing, planting of vegetation, natural vegetation rehabilitation, and check-dam construction. With the implementation of the Grain-for-Green Project in 1999, the Loess Plateau has become the most successful ecological restoration zone in China. However, these large-scale restoration measures and drought have significantly reduced both runoff and sediment from the Loess Plateau. This situation has both advantages and disadvantages for the lower Yellow River. Some local soil erosion has been successfully controlled, but the whole regional ecosystem remains very fragile. Therefore, it is necessary to balance each ecosystem service, for example, by determining the region's vegetation capacity and its spatial distribution for the sustainable development of the socioecolog...
532 citations
TL;DR: Straw mulch is very effective in reducing soil erodibility and surface runoff, and this benefit was achieved immediately after the application of the straw.
326 citations
Cites background from "Soil erosion, conservation, and eco..."
...…protective cover on the soil surface that can be composed of different materials such as vegetative residues, biological geotextiles, gravel and crushed stones (Cerdà, 2001; Gilley et al., 1986; Jordán et al., 2010; Mandal and Sharda, 2013; Smets et al., 2008; Xu et al., 2012; Zhao et al., 2013)....
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...Mulching involves maintaining a permanent or semi-permanent protective cover on the soil surface that can be composed of different materials such as vegetative residues, biological geotextiles, gravel and crushed stones (Cerdà, 2001; Gilley et al., 1986; Jordán et al., 2010; Mandal and Sharda, 2013; Smets et al., 2008; Xu et al., 2012; Zhao et al., 2013)....
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TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated streamflow variations and evaluated the impacts of climate variability and human activity on the mean annual flow in the middle reaches of the Yellow River basin (MRYRB) and found that human activities, including soil and water conservation projects, the operation of dams and reservoirs, and water consumption, are the dominant factors responsible for the significant decline in the annual streamflow in the MRYRB over the last six decades.
280 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors developed a documented database on splash, sheet and rill erosion rates in Mediterranean vineyards, identifying and, if possible, quantifying the effect of triggering factors such as topography, soil properties, rainfall characteristics and soil conservation techniques on soil water erosion.
Abstract: Soil water erosion on cultivated lands represents a severe threat to soil resources in the world, and especially in Mediterranean areas, due to their topographic, edaphic and climatic conditions. Among the cultivated lands, vineyards deserve a particular attention because, aside representing one of the most important crops in terms of income and employment, they also have proven to be the form of agricultural use that causes one of the highest soil losses. Although the topic of soil water erosion on vineyards has been studied, it still raises uncertainties, due to the high variability of procedures for data acquisition, which consists into different scales of analysis and measurement methods. There is still a great gap in knowledge about the effect of triggering factors on soil water erosion and, so far, an effort to quantify this effect on the Mediterranean viticulture has not been made yet. Therefore, this paper review aims to (i) develop a documented database on splash, sheet and rill erosion rates in Mediterranean vineyards, (ii) identify and, if possible, quantify the effect of triggering factors such as topography, soil properties, rainfall characteristics and soil conservation techniques on soil water erosion, and (iii) provide suggestions for a more sustainable viticulture. Although the large variability of data, some general trends between erosion rates and triggering factors could be found, as long as data were categorized according to the same measurement method. However, no general rule upon which to consider one triggering factor always predominant over the others came out. This paper review supports the importance of monitoring soil water erosion by field measurements to better understand the relationship between the factors. However, protocols should be established for standardizing the procedure of collecting data and reporting results to enable data comparison among different study areas.
267 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, an extensive review of scientific journal articles, case studies and other reports that have assessed soil conservation efforts and the sediment trapping efficacy (STE) of vegetative and structural measures is provided.
Abstract: Preventing the off-site effects of soil erosion is an essential part of good catchment management. Most efforts are in the form of on-site soil and water conservation measures. However, sediment trapping can be an alternative (additional) measure to prevent the negative off-site
effects of soil erosion. Therefore, not all efforts should focus solely on on-site soil conservation but also on the safe routing of sediment-laden flows and on creating sites and conditions where sediment can be trapped. Sediment trapping can be applied on-site and off-site and
involves both vegetative and structural measures. This paper provides an extensive review of scientific journal articles, case studies and other reports that have assessed soil conservation efforts and the sediment trapping efficacy (STE) of vegetative and structural measures. The
review is further illustrated through participatory field observation and stakeholders’ interview. Vegetation type and integration of two or more measures are important factors influencing STE. In this review, the STE of most measures was evaluated either individually or in such
combinations. In real landscape situations, it is not only important to select the most efficient erosion control measures but also to determine their optimum location in the catchment. Hence, there is a need for research that shows a more integrated determination of STE at catchment
scale. If integrated measures are implemented at the most appropriate spatial locations within a catchment where they can disconnect landscape units from each other, they will decrease runoff velocity and sediment transport and, subsequently, reduce downstream flooding and sedimentation problems.
225 citations
Cites background from "Soil erosion, conservation, and eco..."
...…and unabated soil erosion will occur, especially in developing parts of the world (Lal, 2001; Mandal & Sharda, 2013; Thomaz & Luiz, 2012; Zhao et al., 2013), and in other regions where the intensification of agriculture is taking place (Cerdà et al., 2009; Zema et al., 2012) or where…...
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References
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TL;DR: Data drawn from a global compilation of studies quantitatively confirm the long-articulated contention that erosion rates from conventionally plowed agricultural fields average 1–2 orders of magnitude greater than rates of soil production, erosion under native vegetation, and long-term geological erosion.
Abstract: Data drawn from a global compilation of studies quantitatively confirm the long-articulated contention that erosion rates from conventionally plowed agricultural fields average 1–2 orders of magnitude greater than rates of soil production, erosion under native vegetation, and long-term geological erosion. The general equivalence of the latter indicates that, considered globally, hillslope soil production and erosion evolve to balance geologic and climate forcing, whereas conventional plow-based agriculture increases erosion rates enough to prove unsustainable. In contrast to how net soil erosion rates in conventionally plowed fields (≈1 mm/yr) can erode through a typical hillslope soil profile over time scales comparable to the longevity of major civilizations, no-till agriculture produces erosion rates much closer to soil production rates and therefore could provide a foundation for sustainable agriculture.
1,539 citations
"Soil erosion, conservation, and eco..." refers background in this paper
...The loess, being loose, porous and homogeneous, is easy to cultivate and has been an early and long-lasting center of cultivation because of fertile farmland (Liu & Ding, 2004; Montgomery, 2007; Wang et al., 2010)....
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TL;DR: Soil erosion has a strong impact on the global C cycle and this component must be considered while assessing theglobal C budget and adoption of conservation-effective measures may reduce the risks of C emission and sequester C in soil and biota.
1,327 citations
"Soil erosion, conservation, and eco..." refers background in this paper
...Accelerated soil erosion, in addition to causing loss of topsoil as a result of soil quality degradation in an irreversible direction, also lead to catastrophic floods, droughts, and famine threatening food and environmental security worldwide (Lal, 2003)....
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...in an irreversible direction, also lead to catastrophic floods, droughts, and famine threatening food and environmental security worldwide (Lal, 2003)....
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TL;DR: The current scale of deforestation in tropical regions and the large areas of degraded lands now present underscore the urgent need to restore biodiversity, ecological functioning, and the supply of goods and ecological services previously used by poor rural communities.
Abstract: The current scale of deforestation in tropical regions and the large areas of degraded lands now present underscore the urgent need for interventions to restore biodiversity, ecological functioning, and the supply of goods and ecological services previously used by poor rural communities. Traditional timber plantations have supplied some goods but have made only minor contributions to fulfilling most of these other objectives. New approaches to reforestation are now emerging, with potential for both overcoming forest degradation and addressing rural poverty.
1,232 citations
Additional excerpts
...Afforestation may initially increase the vegetation cover, but it has negative effect on biodiversity, and its ability to restore eco-environment depends on the type of re-vegetation carried out and its local environment (Lamb et al., 2005; Wang et al., 2013)....
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TL;DR: In this article, a preliminary assessment of current trends in the sediment loads of the world's rivers, longer-term records of annual sediment load and runoff were assembled for 145 major rivers.
1,046 citations
"Soil erosion, conservation, and eco..." refers background in this paper
...It was estimated that soil and water conservation reduced sediment load of nearly 0·18Gt y 1 before 1985 and was 0·25–0·30Gt y 1 afterwards (Zhao, 1996; Walling & Fang, 2003), however, it is much higher in the past decade because of considerable measures implementation....
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TL;DR: Soil erosion is one of the most serious environmental and public health problems facing human society as mentioned in this paper, and each year about 10 million-ha of cropland is lost due to soil erosion, thus reducing the croplands available for food production.
Abstract: Soil erosion is one of the most serious environmental and public health problems facing human society. Humans obtain more than 99.7% of their food (calories) from the land and less than 0.3% from the oceans and other aquatic ecosystems. Each year about 10 million ha of cropland are lost due to soil erosion, thus reducing the cropland available for food production. The loss of cropland is a serious problem because the World Health Organization reports that more than 3.7 billion people are malnourished in the world. Overall soil is being lost from land areas 10 to 40 times faster than the rate of soil renewal imperiling future human food security and environmental quality.
988 citations
"Soil erosion, conservation, and eco..." refers background in this paper
...It has been reported that modern soil loss rate is 10 to 40 times faster than the rate of soil renewal imperiling future human food security and environmental quality (Pimentel, 2006)....
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