scholarly journals Has “Grain for Green” threaten food security on the Loess Plateau of China?

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 1709560 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peng Shi ◽  
Zhaohong Feng ◽  
Haidong Gao ◽  
Peng Li ◽  
Xiaoming Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Loess Plateau ◽  
The Loess Plateau ◽  
Grain For Green

Soil conservation on the Loess Plateau and the regional effect: impact of the ‘Grain for Green' Project

2018 ◽  
Vol 109 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 461-471
Author(s):  
Xiaofeng WANG ◽  
Feiyan XIAO ◽  
Xiaoming FENG ◽  
Bojie FU ◽  
Zixiang ZHOU ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Loess Plateau ◽  
Soil Conservation ◽  
Yellow River ◽  
Vegetation Coverage ◽  
The Yellow River ◽  
The Loess Plateau ◽  
Regional Effect ◽  
Grain For Green

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.

scholarly journals Estimation of Actual Evapotranspiration in a Semiarid Region Based on GRACE Gravity Satellite Data—A Case Study in Loess Plateau

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 2032 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miao Sun ◽  
Qin’ge Dong ◽  
Mengyan Jiao ◽  
Xining Zhao ◽  
Xuerui Gao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Water ◽  
Loess Plateau ◽  
Water Consumption ◽  
Satellite Data ◽  
Potential Evapotranspiration ◽  
Sustainable Growth ◽  
Actual Evapotranspiration ◽  
The Loess Plateau ◽  
Grain For Green ◽  
Grain For Green Project

Jointly influenced by natural factors and artificial protection measures in recent years, the vegetation coverage of the Loess Plateau has significantly increased. However, extensive vegetation recovery can result in massive water consumption and a severe soil water deficit, which poses a great threat to the sustainable development of the regional ecological system. Maintaining the balance between precipitation and water consumption is an important foundation of ecological security in the Loess Plateau. Based on this, the present study used the GRACE (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment) gravity satellite data to simulate the annual actual water consumption from 2003 to 2014 and to analyze the temporal and spatial evolution of the regional precipitation and the actual evapotranspiration (AET). This study also applied the newly developed rainwater utilization potential index (IRUP) to quantify the sustainability of the water balance in the Loess Plateau. The spatial-temporal patterns of precipitation, potential evapotranspiration, and AET from 2003 to 2014 in the Loess Plateau were all analyzed in this study. Based on the results, the annual average precipitation (AAP) and AET in the entire Loess Plateau had significant increasing trends. The analysis of the spatial distribution reveals that the AET was decreasing from the southeast to the northwest in the Loess Plateau. However, the average values of potential evapotranspiration did not obviously change. Based on the estimated AET result, it was determined that the average IRUP had an increasing trend. The increase in the IRUP is due to an increased rate of precipitation that is statistically higher than that of the AET. Consequently, the Loess Plateau experienced a wetting trend during the period of 2003–2014, especially after the Grain for Green project was implemented. The results in this paper were proven by using three different depths of ERA-Interim (a global atmospheric reanalysis product created by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts) soil water content data from the same period and the observed runoff data from 18 different hydrological sites. Consequently, it seems that the vegetation could maintain a sustainable growth with the implementation of the Grain for Green Project.

Check Dam in the Loess Plateau of China: Engineering for Environmental Services and Food Security.

2011 ◽  
Vol 45 (24) ◽  
pp. 10298-10299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yafeng Wang ◽  
Bojie Fu ◽  
Liding Chen ◽  
Yihe Lü ◽  
Yang Gao
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Loess Plateau ◽  
Environmental Services ◽  
Check Dam ◽  
The Loess Plateau

scholarly journals Impact of revegetation of the Loess Plateau of China on the regional growing season water balance

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun Ge ◽  
Andrew J. Pitman ◽  
Weidong Guo ◽  
Beilei Zan ◽  
Congbin Fu
Keyword(s):  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Loess Plateau ◽  
Wrf Model ◽  
Weather Research And Forecasting ◽  
The Loess Plateau ◽  
Deep Soil ◽  
Grain For Green ◽  
Bare Land ◽  
Biophysical Changes ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. To resolve a series of ecological and environmental problems over the Loess Plateau, the Grain for Green Program (GFGP) was initiated at the end of 1990s. Following the conversion of croplands and bare land on hillslopes to forests, the Loess Plateau has displayed a significant greening trend with soil erosion being reduced. However, the GFGP has also affected the hydrology of the Loess Plateau which has raised questions whether the GFGP should be continued in the future. We investigated the impact of revegetation on the hydrology of the Loess Plateau using high resolution simulations and multiple realisations with the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model. Results suggests that land cover change since the launch of the GFGP has reduced runoff and soil moisture due to enhanced evapotranspiration. Further revegetation associated with the GFGP policy is likely to increase evapotranspiration further, and thereby reduce runoff and soil moisture. The increase in evapotranspiration is associated with biophysical changes, including deeper roots that deplete deep soil moisture stores. However, despite the increase in evapotranspiration our results show no impact on rainfall. Our study cautions against further revegetation over the Loess Plateau given the reduction in water available for agriculture and human settlements, without any significant compensation from rainfall.

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