Restored vegetation dominates the decrease in surface and subsurface runoff on the Loess Plateau

Abstract

Understanding the runoff generation response to environmental changes at the basin scale can provide insights into the evolution of hydrological processes. The objective of this study is to detect and attribute the changes in surface and subsurface runoff in the Chinese Loess Plateau, a region with significant environmental and hydrological changes in the past several decades, to understand how and to what extent the runoff generation can be changed. Taking 13 basins (comprising 56 hydrological stations) on the Chinese Loess Plateau as the study area, we identified rainfall-runoff events and established indicators (event surface runoff coefficient, event timescale, normalized event peak discharge, baseflow, and baseflow index) to characterize the runoff generation, and further attributed the changes in runoff generation characteristics before (1961–2000) and after (2001–2019) the revegetation project. In particular, we inversely estimated the parameters of Soil Conservation Service Curve Number (SCS-CN) to analyze the initial abstraction and potential maximum retention under changing environment. Surface and subsurface runoff significantly decreased, with the surface runoff coefficient and baseflow decreasing by 34 % ± 24 % and 26 % ± 23 %, respectively. The surface runoff hydrograph became flatter with a 75 % decrease in the normalized event peak discharge and 82 % increase in the timescale of surface runoff, respectively. Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (32 %) and population (34 %) dominated the increase in the potential maximum retention, with 84 % of stations experiencing growth exceeding 100 %. The reduction in surface runoff can be primarily attributed to the enhanced soil infiltration due to revegetation and other human activities. Higher evapotranspiration resulting from revegetation was likely the dominant factor leading to the decrease in subsurface runoff. This study detailed the impacts of revegetation on surface and subsurface runoff generation, which can enhance our understanding of hydrological changes.