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Progress, Challenges and Prospects of Eco-Hydrological Studies in the Tarim River Basin of Xinjiang, China

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Abstract

Eco-hydrological research in arid inland river basins has been a focus of geologists and ecologists as it is crucial for maintaining the sustainable development of socio-economy, particularly in ecologically vulnerable areas. Based on the research work carried out in the Tarim River basin of Xinjiang, northwestern China, this paper summarizes synthetically the climate change and associated responses of water resources in the mountainous area, land use and land cover in the oasis, and plants responding to environmental stresses in the desert area of the river basin. Research gaps, challenges, and future perspectives in the eco-hydrological studies of the Tarim River basin are also discussed.

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Acknowledgments

This study was jointly supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program: 2010CB951003), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 91025025) and the West Light Foundation of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (XBBS200907). We thank Professor Zongxue Xu and Zhongqin Li for their assistance in the work. We also thank the editor and the anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography , Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi, China

    Yaning Chen, Yapeng Chen & Weihong Li

  2. Key Laboratory of Oasis Ecology, School of Resources and Environmental Science, Xinjiang University, Urumqi, China

    Changchun Xu

  3. Department of Geography, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada

    Yongbo Liu

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  1. Yaning Chen
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  2. Changchun Xu
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  3. Yapeng Chen
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  4. Yongbo Liu
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  5. Weihong Li
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Correspondence to Yaning Chen.

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Chen, Y., Xu, C., Chen, Y. et al. Progress, Challenges and Prospects of Eco-Hydrological Studies in the Tarim River Basin of Xinjiang, China. Environmental Management 51, 138–153 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-012-9823-8

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