Abstract
Research Highlights: Land use/cover change (LUCC) has an impact on the water use efficiency (WUE) of green space in the Haihe River Basin. Background and Objectives: The Haihe River Basin has historically been one of the most water-stressed basins in China. With the increase in green space and economic development, land use and water use in the Haihe River Basin have changed significantly. In order to contribute to the sustainable development of basin water management, the impacts of LUCC on the WUE of the Haihe River Basin were assessed with the goal to support decision makers with regard to water resources planning and watershed management. Materials and Methods: (1) Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data and land use data were used to produce land use/land cover and other related maps. (2) The WUE equation was used to calculate the green space WUE. (3) The contribution rates of changes in land use were assessed to illustrate how LUCC affected green space WUE. Results: (1) Artificial surfaces increased and large areas of farmland were converted to non-agricultural use, accompanied by the addition of green space. (2) Green space WUE increased significantly from 2005 to 2015. The average annual WUE exhibited a relatively uniform spatial distribution in the Haihe River Basin. Except for the central area of urban land, the WUE of most areas exhibited an increasing trend. (3) The impact of LUCC on WUE was mainly a result from the conversion of farmland and artificial surfaces and the increase in green space. Ecological restoration and crop adjustment contributed greatly to the improvement in green space WUE in the basin. Conclusions: Green space WUE of the Haihe River Basin was significantly affected by LUCC and there is room for improvement in the WUE of green spaces in the basin. The paper concludes with recommendations for further research to assist in planning for green space to promote sustainable development related to land use and water management.
Highlights
The shortage of water resources threatens economic development and the overall wellbeing of humankind in many parts of the world [1,2,3]
Artificial surfaces were scattered throughout the basin but were mostly concentrated in Beijing, Tianjin, and the Bohai Sea coastal areas
We evaluated the temporal and spatial variation of green space water use efficiency (WUE) from 2005 to 2015 and focused on the effect of land use/cover change (LUCC) on the green space WUE in the Haihe River Basin
Summary
The shortage of water resources threatens economic development and the overall wellbeing of humankind in many parts of the world [1,2,3]. River basin planning plays an important role in promoting sustainable development and utilization of water resources, and gives full opportunity to the maximum comprehensive efficiency of a river basin [8]. Global changes such as climate change and land use/cover change (LUCC) have already had an identifiable impact on ecosystems and the role of green spaces in environmental
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