Abstract
Groundwater in arid/semiarid regions plays crucial roles in providing drinking water supply, supporting irrigated agriculture, and sustaining important native terrestrial ecosystems. Groundwater depth controls water availability to vegetation and is essential for conserving groundwater-dependent terrestrial ecosystems. Environmental groundwater depth can be defined as a mean depth or a range of depths, satisfying the growth of natural vegetation that is not under stress, either due to lack of water or anoxia or soil salinization. Five methodologies have been reported to estimate environmental groundwater depth: the direct ones rely on response functions that relate vegetation condition, e.g., physiological parameters, appearance frequency, community structure, and remotely sensed physical indexes, to changes in groundwater depth; the indirect one estimates environmental groundwater depth based on the threshold of soil moisture content. To fill a knowledge gap of unique recognized methodology, a conceptual framework was proposed, which involves initial estimation (data collection, response assessment, and estimation) and feedback adjustment (implementation and modification). A key component of the framework is to quantify the linkage between ecological conditions and geohydrological features. This review may provide references for groundwater resources management, ecological conservation, and sustainable development in arid/semiarid regions.
Highlights
Water resources are closely linked to the wellbeing of humankind
Climate variability at inter-annual timescales related to elevated precipitation and increased runoff associated with El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) caused an increased recharge of aquifers in Arizona, California, and Argentina, as shown by rising groundwater tables [6]
This study reviewed pertinent research reported in peer-reviewed international literature that are indexed by Web of Science Core Collection and Chinese Science Citation Database, and aimed to: (a) generalize the definition of environmental groundwater depth; (b) review existing methodologies for estimating environmental groundwater depth; (c) propose a conceptual framework for designing environmental groundwater depth; and (d) discuss future works
Summary
Water resources are closely linked to the wellbeing of humankind. Scarcity of water has become a major issue in arid/semiarid regions where scarcity of water is a defining characteristic [1,2]. A reasonable groundwater depth is necessary to protect the groundwater-dependent terrestrial ecosystems, and a better understanding of environmental groundwater depth is required to enable a determination of the ecological reserves before a water resources plan may be granted or renewed. Cui and Shao [15] discussed the role of groundwater in arid/semiarid ecosystems, concerning the effect of groundwater depth on growth of plants and degree of soil salinity. They concluded that groundwater depth is a key factor for controlling land desertification and soil salinization in Northwest China. The results will be helpful to guide the water resources management and environmental conservation in arid/semiarid regions
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