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Modeling Effects of Land use and Vegetation Density on Soil Water Dynamics: Implications on Water Resource Management

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Abstract

Vegetation restoration is helpful in preventing soil erosion but aggravates water scarcity, thus resulting in soil desiccation on the wind–water erosion crisscross region (WWECR) of the Loess Plateau in Northwestern China. However, no guideline currently exists on the selection of plant species and density for restoration purposes. Based on the process model of soil water-carrying capacity for vegetation (SWCCV) originally developed in this region, this study validated the model under a broad range of weather regimes, soil types, and land uses. The SWCCV model was applied as a diagnostic tool to obtain insights into the separate effects of vegetation density and land use on soil water dynamics on the WWECR of the Loess Plateau. Results showed that the total water loss at semi-natural grasslands was close to rainfall while significantly decreasing runoffs, thus indicating that semi-natural grass was suitable for vegetation restoration on the WWECR. If Caragana korshinskii is planted for agronomic and economic benefits, a density of 3,400 trees ha−1 will yield the most optimal soil water conservation benefits at study site. Our recommended land use and vegetation density were directive and instructional for vegetation restoration on the WWECR and that our modeling approach could be extended to applications in other arid and semi-arid regions.

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Abbreviations

WWECR:

Wind–water erosion crisscross region

SWCCV:

Soil water-carrying capacity for vegetation

LVD:

Low vegetation density

HVD:

High vegetation density

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Acknowledgments

We acknowledge the financial support provided by National Nature Science Foundation of China through grants No. 51109063, the National Department Public Benefit Research Foundation (Ministry of Environmental Protection of the People’s Republic of China) (No.201309035-05), and Innovative Research Team in Colleges and Universities in Jiangsu Province.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Efficient Irrigation-Drainage and Agricultural Soil-Water Environment in Southern China, Ministry of Education, College of Water Conservancy and Hydropower Engineering, Hohai University, Nanjing, 210098, China

    Dongli She & Dongdong Liu

  2. State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, 210008, China

    Yongqiu Xia

  3. Key Laboratory of Ecosystem Network Observation and Modeling, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing, 100100, China

    Ming’an Shao

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  1. Dongli She
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  2. Dongdong Liu
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  3. Yongqiu Xia
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  4. Ming’an Shao
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Correspondence to Yongqiu Xia.

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She, D., Liu, D., Xia, Y. et al. Modeling Effects of Land use and Vegetation Density on Soil Water Dynamics: Implications on Water Resource Management. Water Resour Manage 28, 2063–2076 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-014-0599-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-014-0599-x

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