Soil erosion and management on the Loess Plateau

1 Introduction The Loess Plateau situated in northern China covers the drainage basins in the middle reaches of the Yellow River. It starts from the western piedmont of Taihang Mountains in the east, reaches the eastern slope of the Wushao and Riyue mountains, connects the northern part of the Qinling Mountains in the south and borders the Great Wall in the north, covering an area of about 380,000 km2 (Figure 1). The region is overlain extensively by Quaternary loess in great thickness, …     

晚上新世-早更新世北太平洋和黄土高原的风尘沉积记录的初步对比

保存在陆地、海洋和冰芯中的风尘沉积物与粉尘源区的干旱化历史、过去大气环流模式及其强度的演化密切相关,因而,直接的海陆风尘记录对比一直是古气候研究中的热点.为了获得对亚洲粉尘源区的干旱化波动和东亚季风演化的全面认识,较高分辨率地提取了北太平洋ODP 885站深海沉积物中的风尘组分,进而估算了晚上新世-早更新世时段北太平洋中部的风尘通量变化.结果表明,亚洲内陆粉尘源区的干燥度具有大时间尺度的变化特征,在2.7Ma左右急剧增加,随后在2.7～1.5Ma时段逐渐减小,自1.5Ma开始又逐渐增加.此外,在2.7～0.9Ma时段,粉尘源区经历了多次显著的轨道时间尺度上的干湿波动.通过对北太平洋和黄土高原的风尘记录的直接对比,发现在距今约2.7Ma,东亚地区的古环境发生了显著的变动,表现为亚洲内陆干旱化的加剧和大幅度冬、夏季风环流的盛行.然而,自2.7Ma开始,尤其是1.5Ma以后,由于北太平洋和黄土高原与亚洲粉尘源区的距离不同,两地的风尘通量所揭示的干旱化趋势和变化幅度存有明显差异.北太平洋远离亚洲内陆,其风尘通量变化基本不受粉尘源区范围变化的影响,因而更能反映源区干燥度的变化.相反,黄土高原由于距离粉尘源区较近,风尘通量的变化可能同时受到粉尘源区干燥度和范围的变化以及携带粉尘的风动力强度变化的影响.显然,海洋和陆地古气候记录的直接对比,可为深入认识过去气候变化提供新的思路.     

Factors affecting arsenic concentration in groundwaters from Northwestern Chaco-Pampean Plain,Argentina

The concentration of arsenic measured in groundwater from three aquifers in the study area located in the Eastern Tucuman province, Argentina, mostly depends on the lithology, but the spatial and temporal variations of concentrations seem to be also controlled by pH changes, climatic factors, and human perturbations. The highest concentrations of As (more than 1,000 μg L⁻¹) were found in the shallow aquifer, made of As-rich loess, while the lowest concentrations were measured in the deep confined aquifer, consisting of alternating layers of alluvial sands/gravels and clays. Intermediate values were measured in the semiconfined aquifer made of the fluvial sediments deposited in the Salí River valley, that alternate in the upper part of the sedimentary sequence with layers of loess. Because most of As in the loess is considered to be adsorbed onto Fe-oxyhydroxide coatings, the increase of pH in the flow direction (west-east) leads to increasing arsenic concentrations towards the eastern border of the study area. The decomposition of organic wastes poured into the Salí River or associated with local and diffuse sources of contamination in the eastern part of the study area depletes dissolved oxygen, which leads to the reductive dissolution of Fe and Mn oxyhydroxides, and to the subsequent release of the adsorbed and co-precipitated As. This process mainly affects shallow groundwater and the upper part of the semiconfined aquifer. Geochemical and hydrological data also suggest that rising water table levels at the end of the wet season may also lead to reductive dissolution of As-rich Fe oxyhydroxides in the shallow aquifer.     

黄土高原大南沟流域非耕地中土壤养分变化

选取黄土高原区大南沟流域非耕地中灌木林地、摞荒地、荒草地、林地土壤养分数据,利用常规数据处理软件进行分析,得出如下结论:(1)水土流失造成摞荒地中土壤养分最低,需要把摞荒地改为灌木林地或林地;(2)磷含量从生长季开始随着时间推移一般呈现逐渐降低趋势,主要是水土流失造成的;(3)改变非耕地土地利用结构,增加地表植被覆盖率;占黄土高原一半以上的非耕地区是环境脆弱区之一,非耕地区土壤养分变化对环境产生重要影响,为土地利用结构的改变和当地的可持续发展提供理论支持.     

气温变化对西峰黄土高原地温与梨树发育期的影响

用西北地区140站1961-2000年的气温资料和西峰黄土高原1971-2005年5,10,15,20cm地温和1984-2005年梨树发育期资料,分析了西北地区春季、夏季、秋季、冬季和年气温的变化事实,再用相关计算和典型年份对比,分析了地温的时间变化规律及其对梨树发育期的影响。结果表明,西北地区20世纪60年代冬季增温,其余降温,70年代均降温,80年代冬季增温,其余降温,90年代均增温,冬季的最明显。西峰10cm地温各季节呈持续升高的趋势,春季增温最明显为0.058℃/a,变幅也最大,冬季增温幅度次之为0.039℃/a,再是秋季为0.032℃/a,夏季增温幅度最小为0.029℃/a,上升趋势均通过0.05和0.01的信度检验。冬季、春季地温与梨树的各发育期均为负相关,即地温高,发育期早,地温低,发育期迟。冬季地温与梨树发育期相关最显著的是叶变始期和开花始期,相关系数为-0.41～-0.52,信度为0.05,春季地温与之相关最显著的是开花始期,相关系数为-0.68～-0.69,信度达0.001。春季地温对梨树发育期的影响具有明显的持续性和滞后性,冬季地温对梨树发育期影响有阶段性,春季地温对梨树发育期的影响比冬季的明显。     

Application of <Superscript>137</Superscript>Cs fingerprinting technique to interpreting sediment production records from reservoir deposits in a small catchment of the Hilly Loess Plateau,China

According to variations of 137Cs and clay contents, 44 flood couplets were identified in a profile of reservoir deposit with a vertical length of 28.12 m in the Yuntaishan Gully. Couplet 27 at the middle of the profile had the highest average 137Cs content of 12.65 Bq kg-1, which indicated the 1963s' deposits, then 137Cs content decreased both downward and upward in the profile. The second top and bottom couplets had average 137Cs contents of 2.15 Bq kg-1 and 0.92 Bq kg-1, respectively. By integrated analysis of reservoir construction and management history, variations of 137Cs contents over the profile, sediment yields of flood couplets and rainfall data during the period of 1958-1970, individual storms related to the flood couplets were identified. 44 floods with a total sediment yield of 2.36×104 m3 occurred and flood events in a year varied between 1 and 10 times during the period of 1960-1970. 7-10 flood events occurred during the wet period of 1961-1964 with very wet autumn, while only 1-2 events during the dry period of 1965-1969. Average annual specific sediment yield was 1.29×104 t km-2 a-1 for the Yuntaishan Gully during the period of 1960-1970, which was slightly higher than 1.11 ×104 t km-2 a-1 for the Upper Yanhe River Basin above the Ganguyi Hydrological Station and slightly lower than 1.40 ×104 t km-2 a-1 for the nearby Zhifang Gully during the same period. Annual specific sediment yields for the Yuntaishan Gully were correlated to the wet season's rainfalls well.     

农业生产对气候变化的脆弱性研究方法初探

在总结脆弱性的定义与介绍相关研究方法的基础上，提出了农业生产对气候变化的脆弱性的初步定义、研究思路、指标体系及计算方法，并讨论了区域农业生产对气候变化影响的适应对策应遵循的有关原则。     

The impacts of urbanization on soil erosion in the Loess Plateau region

The accelerated urbanization has resulted in new soil erosion in the Loess Plateau region since the 1980s. A concept of urban erosion and its impacts on environment are discussed. The experimental studies and field investigations show that those loose silt and earth piles formed by urban construction can be eroded seriously: Under stormy rain, the amount of sediment from steep man-dumped slope is 10.8-12.2 times that of from uncovered slope land; the result of experiments with the wind tunnel also shows that the damage to the surface structure of dry loess can cause serious soil erosion by wind in some cities of the region. Even if in the urban built-up area, there are many loose sandy soil, mud and silt, which are washed into rivers by city’s ground flow in the rainy season. So, anthropogenically induced soil erosion has made soil erosion more serious around the urban areas. And the urban eroded environment has several characteristics such as fragility, complexity, seasonality and quick variability. Urban areas witness a quick economic growth and have more construction projects than rural areas, which brings more intensive changes of environments during a short period of time or adds some new elements to the erosion system. Therefore erosion has experienced more intensive impact by human activities. So, the possible impact of urbanization on erosion environment must be taken into consideration when designing or planning to exploit natural resources or to develop urban areas in the Loess Plateau.     

RUNOFF GENERATION CHARACTERISTICS IN TYPICAL EROSION REGIONS ON THE LOESS PLATEAU

1 mTRODUCT1ONThe Loess Plateau in the central and westem China with an area of 430,(X)0 lQn2 is well known for itsancient cultUre and serious soil and water loss. About 287,(X)0 km2 of area in this region has an annualerosion be greatC than 1(XX) tlkIn2. The eroded soil totally amounts to more than 2.2 X l0' tons, amongwhich about l.6X 10' tons, on average, is delivered into the Yellow kiver mdeng the river one of thehighest sediment-laden rivers in the word. The serious soil erosion …     

Quantitative measurements on the paleo-weathering intensity of the loess-soil sequences and implication on paleomonsoon

The loess-soil sequences in northern China provide a near continuous record of Quaternary paleoclimate. The pedogenetic intensity of the sequences is closely linked with the variations of the East Asian summer monsoon. In this study, 2181 samples from the Changwu and Xifeng loess sections are analyzed and two high-resolution paleo-weathering timeseries of the last 1.2 Ma are generated, using the ratio of CBD extractable free Fe₂O₃ (FeD) versus the total iron (FeT). This new index is compared with micromorphological features, low-frequency magnetic susceptibility, frequency-dependent magnetic susceptibility, and the Rb/Sr ratio^[5,6]. The results suggest that the FeD/FeT ratio is able to better reflect the degree of soil development. Since the chemical weathering of loess in the Loess Plateau region mainly depends upon the summer precipitation and temperature under modern climate condition, which are closely associated with strength of summer monsoon, and the chemical weathering intensity of loess primarily reflects the variations of the summer monsoon circulation.