Soil erosion resistance of “Grain for Green” vegetation types under extreme rainfall conditions on the Loess Plateau, China

CATENA ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 141 ◽  
pp. 109-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhi-Jie Wang ◽  
Ju-Ying Jiao ◽  
Scott Rayburg ◽  
Qiao-Li Wang ◽  
Yuan Su
Author(s):  
Xiaofeng WANG ◽  
Feiyan XIAO ◽  
Xiaoming FENG ◽  
Bojie FU ◽  
Zixiang ZHOU ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTSoil conservation on the Loess Plateau is important not only for local residents but also for reducing sediment downstream in the Yellow River. In this paper, we report a decrease in soil erosion from 2000 to 2010 as a result of the ‘Grain for Green' (GFG) Project. By using the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation and data on land cover, climate and sediment yield, we found that soil erosion decreased from 6579.55tkm–2yr–1 in 2000 to 1986.66tkm–2yr–1 in 2010. During this period, there was a major land cover change from farmland to grassland in response to the GFG. The area of low vegetation coverage with severe erosion decreased dramatically, whereas the area of high vegetation coverage with slight erosion increased. Our study demonstrates that the reduction in soil erosion on the Loess Plateau contributed to the decrease in the sediment concentration in the Yellow River.


2022 ◽  
Vol 218 ◽  
pp. 105297
Author(s):  
Jia-xin Liu ◽  
Bing Wang ◽  
Xing-wu Duan ◽  
Yan-fen Yang ◽  
Guo-bin Liu

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuan Zhong ◽  
Chunmei Wang ◽  
Guowei Pang ◽  
Qinke Yang ◽  
Zitian Guo ◽  
...  

<p>Soil erosion is an important threat in the high-quality development of the Loess Plateau of China, and Ephemeral Gully (EG) erosion is an important erosion type. Answering the distribution characteristics of EG at the regional scale is an important basis for EG control. The regional distribution of EG and the areas that still at high risk of EG development after the 'Grain for Green Project' since more than 20 years ago remain poorly understood. This study aimed to solve the above problems by using visual interpretation based on sub-meter Google Earth images in 137 systematically selected small watersheds in the Loess Plateau. The EG density, length, land use of the hillslope where each EG existed, and other parameters were obtained and analyzed using the GIS method. The spatial distribution of EG density, average length, and spatial correlation in the Loess Plateau was explored. The current EG distribution and key prevention areas in the Loess Plateau were identified. The results showed that: (1) EGs were found in 46 surveyed watersheds accounting for 33.6% of the total watershed number, with an EG density average value of 3.41km/km<sup>2</sup> and maximum value of 21.92 km/km<sup>2</sup>. The average number of EG was 60.32/km<sup>2</sup>. EG length was mainly distributed in 20 ~ 60 m, with an average length of 63.31 m; The critical slope length of EGs was mainly 40 ~ 60 m, with an average 56.20 m. (2) The watersheds with EGs were mainly located in the north-central, the west, and northwest of the Loess Plateau. EG erosion is extremely strong in loess hilly and gully region, and moderate in loess plateau gully region.(3) 38.3% of EG was distributed in cropland; 35.3% distributed in grassland; 22.8% distributed in forest land. After the 'Grain for Green Project', the EGs that were still distributed on cropland were a more important threat to soil erosion and need better prevention efforts. EGs located on cropland were still widely distributed in many areas of Loess Plateau, such as the northwest of Yan 'an City in the middle and upper reaches of Beiluo River, Suide and Luliang in the lower reaches of Wuding River, at the junction of Dingxi and Huining and in Qingyang area. This research would help in a more reasonable distribution of erosion control practices in the Loess Plateau.</p>


Author(s):  
Hui Wei ◽  
Wenwu Zhao ◽  
Han Wang

Large-scale vegetation restoration greatly changed the soil erosion environment in the Loess Plateau since the implementation of the “Grain for Green Project” (GGP) in 1999. Evaluating the effects of vegetation restoration on soil erosion is significant to local soil and water conservation and vegetation construction. Taking the Ansai Watershed as the case area, this study calculated the soil erosion modulus from 2000 to 2015 under the initial and current scenarios of vegetation restoration, using the Chinese Soil Loess Equation (CSLE), based on rainfall and soil data, remote sensing images and socio-economic data. The effect of vegetation restoration on soil erosion was evaluated by comparing the average annual soil erosion modulus under two scenarios among 16 years. The results showed: (1) vegetation restoration significantly changed the local land use, characterized by the conversion of farmland to grassland, arboreal land, and shrub land. From 2000 to 2015, the area of arboreal land, shrub land, and grassland increased from 19.46 km2, 19.43 km2, and 719.49 km2 to 99.26 km2, 75.97 km2, and 1084.24 km2; while the farmland area decreased from 547.90 km2 to 34.35 km2; (2) the average annual soil erosion modulus from 2000 to 2015 under the initial and current scenarios of vegetation restoration was 114.44 t/(hm²·a) and 78.42 t/(hm²·a), respectively, with an average annual reduction of 4.81 × 106 t of soil erosion amount thanks to the vegetation restoration; (3) the dominant soil erosion intensity changed from “severe and light erosion” to “moderate and light erosion”, vegetation restoration greatly improved the soil erosion environment in the study area; (4) areas with increased erosion and decreased erosion were alternately distributed, accounting for 48% and 52% of the total land area, and mainly distributed in the northwest and southeast of the watershed, respectively. Irrational land use changes in local areas (such as the conversion of farmland and grassland into construction land, etc.) and the ineffective implementation of vegetation restoration are the main reasons leading to the existence of areas with increased erosion.


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