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Study on vegetation ecological water requirement in Ejina Oasis

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Abstract

The Ecological Water Requirement (EWR) of desert oasis is the amount of water required to maintain a normal growth of vegetation in the special ecosystems. In this study EWR of the Ejina desert oasis is estimated through the relational equation between normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), productivity and transpiration coefficient, which was established by a combination of the RS, GIS, GPS techniques with the field measurements of productivity. The results show that about 1.53×108 m3 water would be needed to maintain the present state of the Ejina Oasis, and the ecological water requirement would amount to 3.49×108 m3 if the existing vegetation was restored to the highest productivity level at present. Considering the domestic water requirement, river delivery loss, oasis vegetation water consumption, farmland water demand, precipitation recharge, etc., the draw-off discharge of the Heihe River (at Longxin Mount) should be 1.93×108–2.23×108 m3 to maintain the present state of the Ejina Oasis, and 4.28×108–5.17×108 m3 to make the existing vegetation be restored to the highest productivity level at present.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Watershed Hydrology and Ecology, Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, 730000, China

    Zhao WenZhi, He ZhiBin & Zhang ZhiHui

  2. Linze Inland River Basin Comprehensive Research Station, Chinese Ecosystem Research Network, Lanzhou, 730000, China

    Zhao WenZhi, He ZhiBin & Zhang ZhiHui

  3. Geography and Resource Management College, Ludong University, Yantai, 264025, China

    Chang XueLi

Authors
  1. Zhao WenZhi
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  2. Chang XueLi
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  3. He ZhiBin
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  4. Zhang ZhiHui
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Zhao WenZhi.

Additional information

Spported by the Knowledge Innovation Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. KZCX3-SW-329) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 40235053)

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Zhao, W., Chang, X., He, Z. et al. Study on vegetation ecological water requirement in Ejina Oasis. SCI CHINA SER D 50, 121–129 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11430-007-2035-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11430-007-2035-z

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