Abstract
In Northern China, many regions and cities are located in semi-arid regions, and groundwater is even the only source of water to support human survival and social development. Affected by human activities, the Bashang (BS) region (including Zhangjiakou City and part of Xilin Gol League) have showed a significant decline in groundwater levels in recent years. However, in the BS region, the causes for the decline in groundwater level were not clear. In this study, we used time series of multi-source data Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) and Global Land Data Assimilation System (GLDAS) to analyze vegetation and groundwater changes based on linear regression models. The variation trends of NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index, derived from MODIS) and GWSA (groundwater storage anomaly, derived from GRACE and GLDAS) indicated the increasingly better vegetation in the agriculture planting areas, partially degraded vegetation in the grassland, and the declining groundwater level in the whole study region. In order to assess the impact of human-induced factors on vegetation and groundwater, the R U E s e a s o n a l calculation model was proposed based on RUE (rain use efficiency) in this study. The R U E s e a s o n a l calculation results showed that human-induced factors promoted the growth of vegetation in agricultural areas and accelerated the consumption of groundwater. In addition, we also obtained temporal and spatial distributions of human activities-affected regions. The area affected by human-induced factors in the south-central study area increased, which accelerated the decline in groundwater levels. From bulletin data, we found that the increasing tourists and vegetable production are respectively the most important factors for the increased consumption of urban water and agricultural water. Based on multi-source data, the influences of various human-induced factors on the ecological environment were explored and the area affected by human-induced factors was estimated. The results provide the valuable guidance for water resource management departments. In the BS region, it is necessary to regulate agricultural water use and strengthen residential water management.
Highlights
Groundwater is the world’s largest freshwater resource and plays a vital role in agricultural irrigation and food security [1]
Before 2009, low precipitation did not result in a larger amplitude of the terrestrial waterwater storage anomalies (TWSA)
We found that the precipitation in Q3rd was similar vegetation growth in the southern part of the study area in 2008 Q2nd and in 2009 Q2nd, vegetation in 2003, 2005, 2011, 2014, and 2015, but their Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) were different, growth in the entire study area was affected by human-induced factors
Summary
Groundwater is the world’s largest freshwater resource and plays a vital role in agricultural irrigation and food security [1]. Due to excessive dependence on groundwater resources, the rate of groundwater consumption increases and natural recharge is insufficient, eventually leading to a. Water 2019, 11, 473 decline in groundwater levels [3]. This significant increase in groundwater consumption is common in arid and semi-arid regions because surface water resources are scarce in many arid regions and people can only support and expand agricultural production by pumping groundwater resources [1,3]. Groundwater level in the BS is declining, precipitation has increased in recent years. As human activities and population increase, the shortage of water resources gradually becomes serious [5].3 of 23
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