Impacts of Land-Use Changes on Soil Erosion in Water–Wind Crisscross Erosion Region of China

Jie Wang,Zengxiang Zhang,Weiwei Zhang

doi:10.3390/rs11141732

Abstract

Soil erosion affects food production, biodiversity, biogeochemical cycles, hydrology, and climate. Land-use changes accelerated by intensive human activities are a dominant anthropogenic factor inducing soil erosion globally. However, the impacts of land-use-type changes on soil erosion dynamics over a continuous period for constructing a sustainable ecological environment has not been systematically quantified. This study investigates the spatial–temporal dynamics of land-use change and soil erosion across a specific area in China with water–wind crisscross erosion during three periods: 1995–1999, 2000–2005, and 2005–2010. We analyzed the impacts of each land-use-type conversion on the intensity changes of soil erosion caused by water and wind, respectively. The major findings include: (1) land-use change in the water–wind crisscross erosion region of China was characterized as cultivated land expansion at the main cost of grassland during 1995–2010; (2) the strongest land-use change moved westward in space from the central Loess Plateau area in 1995–2005 to the western piedmont alluvial area in 2005–2010; (3) soil erosion area is continuously increasing, but the trend is declining from the late 1990s to the late 2000s; (4) the soil conservation capability of land-use types in water–wind crisscross erosion regions could be compiled from high to low as high coverage grasslands, medium coverage grasslands, paddy, drylands, low coverage grasslands, built-up lands, unused land of sandy lands, the Gobi Desert, and bare soil. These findings could provide some insights for executing reasonable land-use approaches to balance human demands and environment sustainability.

Highlights

Soil provides a variety of ecosystem services, such as sustaining food production, regulating climate and hydrological cycling, and supporting biodiversity [1]
This area consists of 10 provinces with a total land area of about 252,000 km2 and can be divided into the eastern plain sandy area, the central grassland sandy area, the central Loess Plateau area, and the western piedmont alluvial area
During the 15 years, grasslands had the largest changes in the area, with a decrease of 3350.74 km2 (Figure 5). It is followed by the increases of cultivated lands, woodlands, built-up lands, and water bodies

Summary

Introduction

Soil provides a variety of ecosystem services, such as sustaining food production, regulating climate and hydrological cycling, and supporting biodiversity [1]. Soil erosion is a direct or indirect consequence of human activities, such as deforestation, overgrazing, unsuitable land-use practices, and climate change. The potential of soil erosion is determined by the topographic complexity, soil properties, land use, and management practices [7,8]. Land-use change, a critical component of global change, regulates the effects of human activities on the conservation of soil and water resources. With increasing demands for food and settlements, natural vegetation (e.g., forest and natural grasslands) has been replaced by agricultural land and artificial surfaces, inducing expansion of soil erosion and reduction of soil resources [1,9]. Land use or management changes, such as increasing crop and grazing intensities, do not transfer the land cover types but potentially lead to soil property degradation with increasing erosion hazards [1]

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Discussion

Conclusion