Manas River Research Articles

Surface runoff processes and sustainable utilization of water resources in Manas River Basin, Xinjiang, China

Water is the important resource to guarantee the existence and development of oases in arid areas. To improve the utilization efficiency of water resources in Manas River Basin, this paper investigated the trends and periods of runoff based on the runoff and climate data for the past 50 years. Subsequently, with the socioeconomic and water resources data, we studied a comprehensive evaluation on the water security in this area. The results indicated that the stream flows in the three hydrological stations of Hongshanzui, Kensiwat and Bajiahu have sig- nificantly increased and undergone abrupt changes, with periods of 18 and 20 years. According to assessment, water security in the Manas River Basin was at an unsafe level in 2008. In criterion layer, the ecological security index and the index of supply-demand situation are both at the relatively secure level; the quantity index and so- cioeconomic index of water resources are at the unsafe level and basic security level, respectively. Therefore, in order to achieve sustainable economic and social development within the Manas River Basin, it is vital to take a series of effective measures to improve the status of water security.

Baseflow simulation using SWAT model in an inland river basin in Tianshan Mountains, Northwest China

Abstract. Baseflow is an important component in hydrological modeling. The complex streamflow recession process complicates the baseflow simulation. In order to simulate the snow and/or glacier melt dominated streamflow receding quickly during the high-flow period but very slowly during the low-flow period in rivers in arid and cold northwest China, the current one-reservoir baseflow approach in SWAT (Soil Water Assessment Tool) model was extended by adding a slow- reacting reservoir and applying it to the Manas River basin in the Tianshan Mountains. Meanwhile, a digital filter program was employed to separate baseflow from streamflow records for comparisons. Results indicated that the two-reservoir method yielded much better results than the one-reservoir one in reproducing streamflow processes, and the low-flow estimation was improved markedly. Nash-Sutcliff efficiency values at the calibration and validation stages are 0.68 and 0.62 for the one-reservoir case, and 0.76 and 0.69 for the two-reservoir case. The filter-based method estimated the baseflow index as 0.60, while the model-based as 0.45. The filter-based baseflow responded almost immediately to surface runoff occurrence at onset of rising limb, while the model-based responded with a delay. In consideration of watershed surface storage retention and soil freezing/thawing effects on infiltration and recharge during initial snowmelt season, a delay response is considered to be more reasonable. However, a more detailed description of freezing/thawing processes should be included in soil modules so as to determine recharge to aquifer during these processes, and thus an accurate onset point of rising limb of the simulated baseflow.

Dynamics of Ecosystem Service Value Caused by Land use Changes in Manas River of Xinjiang, China

This study aims to quantify the impacts of land use changes on ecosystem service value during large scale land development, and to provide key information for both economic development and policy makers for eco-environmental protection. The study area locates in Manas river watershed which is a typical land development region in northwest China. Landsat MSS/TM/ETM+ images in 1976, 1989, 1999 and 2008 were applied to estimate ecosystem service value based on land use, and subsequently ecosystem service value dynamics were analyzed in response to land use changes. It is found that the built-up area and cultivated land increased significantly from 1976 to 2008. The decreasing ecosystem service value (from 17362.2 million Yuan in 1976 to 16975.0 million Yuan in 2008) is mainly caused by the reduced grassland. The combined ecosystem service value of water body and grassland is over 60% of the total value. Functions of water supply, waste treatment, soil formation and retention and biodiversity protection contributed to over 70% of the total service value. The results suggest that a reasonable land use plan should emphasize protection of water body, woodland and grassland as they have the highest ecosystem service value.

Satellite Snowcover Monitoring and Snowmelt Runoff Simulation of Manas River in Tianshan Region

The updrafted Snowmelt Runoff Model(SRM) was applied to the daily snowmelt runoff simulation of Manas River based on the spring snowcover monitoring of Tianshan Region by using the NOAA/AVHRR satellite data.The results showed that the coefficient of determination of the simulation could reach 0.89,and the deviation of the runoff volumes was within 5.1.If the parameters can be adjusted according to the method described in this paper,the model will be easily used to the similar basins.

Spatial Analysis of Land Use and Land Cover Changes in Recent 30 Years in Manas River Basin

Abstract Manas River Basin, best represent the mountain-basin system in arid area, is the major part of the economic belt on the northern slope of the Tianshan Mountains. Based on the 3S technology and four periods of remote sensing image data of MSS image in 1976, TM image from USA Landsat in 1987 and 1998, and CBERS image in 2006, combining GIS and quantitative analysis of landscape ecology, this paper analyzed the spatial changes of land use and land cover in Manas River Basin among 1976-2006 by using ARCGIS and FRAGSTATS. Analysis on four periods of remote sensing image showed that there was a wide change in land use and land cover of Manas River Basin in recent 30 years. Natural grassland decreased with a rate of 91.426 km 2 /a and cultivated land increase with a rate of 121.383 km 2 /a. The rapid expansion of cultivated land converted mainly by reclamations of wasteland and natural grassland. And there were little changes of other land use types. From the relationship of transformation between various types of land use and land cover, it could be found that unused land is relatively stable land-use types, the areas of residential land and industrial land increased gradually and the cultivated land and natural grassland were the main source, a larger proportion of natural grassland mainly changed into cultivated land, forest land and residential land and industrial land, land changed into cultivated land was larger than cultivated land changed into the other land and the increased land main converted by natural grassland, and the forest land converted to other land increased gradually and the they mainly converted to salt and kaline land. However, land use and land cover change was resulted from the interaction of human activity (social and economic factors) and natural environmental changes (natural factors). So, it is necessary to consistently improve the natural environment of Manas River Valley which can provided stable basis of the theory and practice for sustainable development of Manas River Valley.

古尔班通古特沙漠西部地下水位和水质变化对植被的影响

Groundwater is a key component of the water cycle in arid ecosystems due to low precipitation,high surface runoff and high evaporative demand.It has a direct influence on the growth and development of natural vegetation,species diversity,and ecosystem metabolism.This study reports on the variation in groundwater levels and quality in the western region of the Grurbantonggut Desert over three consecutive years.We investigated how groundwater level and quality affect physical and chemical properties of soil,species diversity,and the growth and regeneration of Haloxylon ammodendron.We established 20 inspection wells for measuring groundwater level over a period of three consecutive years.These inspection wells were set up at intervals of 7km to 10km from west to east in longitude and north to south in latitude,which according to the situation of the degenerate and distribution of Haloxylon ammodendron population in the study area.The study area contain habitat which is plain and small and big sand-dunes.The results show that groundwater levels varies widely in this area,ranging from 3.3m to 24.2m,averaging 6m to 8m.The soil physical-chemical factors also vary greatly across this area.Soil EC,pH,Cl-and SO2-4 have higher values at depths of 0cm to 40cm;their coefficients of variation decrease at greater depths.The groundwater level exhibits seasonal variation,influenced by upstream irrigation.The highest and lowest groundwater levels appear in April and July,respectively.The Manas River plays an important role in recharging groundwater in the study area,which of course varies between years.Approximately 75% of the groundwater level found in the inspection wells rises in 2010 compared with last year,which rises seasonally by 4.3cm on average,while the mineralization increases to 1g/L on average.The groundwater level has a weak effect on species diversity in the degraded area,while it has a significant impact on the growth of Haloxylon ammodendron.We find that the suitable groundwater level for growing Haloxylon ammodendron is 5m to 8m and the optimal mineralization level is less than 4g/L.Haloxylon ammodendron populations decline when groundwater level is more than 8m.When the groundwater level is less than 4m,groundwater mineralization causes salt deposition on the soil surface.This reduces the level of species diversity significantly and blocks the regeneration of Haloxylon ammodendron.This in turn leads to declines in the Haloxylon ammodendron population.In summary,the depletion of the Manas River related to agricultural irrigation influences the groundwater levels and the quality of the ecosystem in the western Grurbantonggut Desert.The decline in the Haloxylon ammodendron population is significantly correlated with groundwater levels.This should be considered in future natural resource conservation planning for this area.

Cassipourea atanganaesp. nov., a new species of Rhizophoraceae from Lower Guinea

A new species of Cassipourea is described from the banks of the Mana River, in the southeastern boundary of the Korup National Park in Cameroon and placed provisionally within the subgenus Cassipourea. The leaves of the new species are close to those of C. afzelii, but its flowers differ from those of the latter and the rest of the species of the subgenus Cassipourea in having a glabrous ovary and a diplostemonous androceum, with filaments distinctly of two lengths. The illustration of the new species is provided and based on its narrow distribution, the provisional conservation status Vulnerable VU D1 is assigned.

Oasis evolution and water resource utilization of a typical area in the inland river basin of an arid area: a case study of the Manas River valley

The Manas River valley is a typical inland river basin of an arid area in central Asia, and illustrates oasis evolution and economic development in this region. Based on the historical documents, monitoring data from field surveys, and remote sensing image data, this paper illustrates the oases evolution over the last 2,000 years and analyzes the rapid expansion of the Manas River oasis in the last 60 years. We also examine the relationship between oasis evolution and water resource utilization. We discuss the characteristics and effects of oasis expansion and the proposed adjustment measures for sustainable development of the Manas River valley. The principal objectives of this paper were to analyze the relationship between oasis expansion and water resource utilization over the last 60 years, and to solve the conflict between the continuous expansion of oases and a shortage of water resources to keep development of the Manas River valley sustainable. The results indicate that (1) oasis evolution in the Manas River valley over 2,000 years can be divided into three periods: a period dominated by animal husbandry, a period of semi-farming and semi-grazing, and a farming-dominated period. During the first two periods, the oasis area was limited, water conservancy facilities were poor and water utilization levels were low. In the third period, oasis expansion over the last 60 years shows a large-scale development. (2) The farming-dominated period can be subdivided into four phases according to the scale of water projects and the level of irrigation. Different oasis scales of the four phases show that artificial oasis evolution has a close connection with water resource utilization. (3) The evolution of oases in the Manas River valley raises some environmental problems although it plays an active role in promoting sustainability. Therefore, adjustment measures for the future development of oases could be proposed from the perspective of sustainable development, such as oasis scale control, forbidding reclamation, moderating exploitation of groundwater, and transforming industrial structures.

Streamflow Simulation by SWAT Using Different Precipitation Sources in Large Arid Basins with Scarce Raingauges

Streamflow from the mountains is the main source of water for the lower plain in arid regions. Accurate simulation of streamflow is of great importance to the arid ecosystem. However, many large arid drainage basins in northwestern China have low density of precipitation stations, which makes the streamflow modeling and prediction very difficult. Based on raingauge data and Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) data combined with raingauge data, different approaches were explored for spatializing precipitation in large area with scarce raingauges. Spatialized precipitation was then input into Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT), a semi-distributed hydrological model, to simulate streamflow. Results from a case study in the Manas river basin showed that simulated hydrographs using both the approaches are able to reproduce the watershed hydrological behavior. Moreover, statistical assessment indicated that hydrological model driven by the spatialized precipitation based on radar combined with raingauge data performed better than that based on gauge data. Radar precipitation estimator can provide a practical data source for hydrological modeling at a basin scale where the raingauge network is sparse.

Regional climate change and its effects on the runoff of Manas River, Xinjiang, China

The effects of climate change on annual runoff were analyzed on the basis of hydrologic and meteorological data for the past 50 years recorded by six meteorological stations and the Kenswatt Hydrological Station in the headstream of the Manas River watershed. The long-term trends of climate change and hydrological variations were determined in a nonparametric test, and the periodicities were determined employing the extrapolation method of periodic variance analysis. Subsequently, a periodicity-trend superposition model was used to predict future change. The results show that both the climate factors (temperature and precipitation) and runoff have increased considerably and have significant relations; the relation between temperature and runoff is the more significant. There is periodicity of 18 years in the change in annual runoff, and the primary periodicity of changes in temperature and precipitation is, respectively, 3 and 15 years. The runoff variations are affected by climate change in the headstream, but do not shift simultaneously with abrupt changes in temperature and precipitation in the headstream. There is a significant positive relationship in winter between the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and runoff, while there are negative correlations annually and in summer for the runoff lagging the NAO by 1 year. The NAO has certain effects on climate change that are mainly due to atmospheric circulation in the Manas River Basin, and thus, the NAO affects the runoff.

Effects of land use change on landscape pattern of the Manas River watershed in Xinjiang, China

The mechanism of interaction between land use change and landscape pattern is pivotal in research concerning global environmental change. Quantitative evaluation of land use change that has resulted from excessive land development and its impact on landscape pattern are important for sustainable utilization of local land resources. The study area was the Manas River watershed, a typical watershed in an arid area. The present study evaluated the influence of long-term land use change on the landscape pattern; the findings are valuable for economic development and environmental protection. The processes for land use change and changes in landscape pattern were reconstructed and analyzed for data in topographic maps dated 1962 and in remote sensing images taken in 1976, 1989, 1999 and 2008 using mathematical models and landscape metrics. The results indicate significant changes in land use over the past 50 years, with increases in the areas of cultivated land and construction land, and a significant decrease in unused land and woodland areas; grassland and water resources first increased and then tended to decrease over this time. The comprehensive index of land use change is 0.55, indicating an unbalanced, one-way transition in the study area. Landscape fragmentation and diversity increased and landscape dominance decreased; in other words, differences between landscapes decreased. The changes resulted in a significant tendency toward diversity and fragmentation of the landscape. Therefore, large-scale intensive agricultural development can reduce the negative influence of land use change on the landscape pattern.

Study on the System of Water Resources Optimization of the Eighth Division Irrigation in Manas River

Study on the System of Water Resources Optimization of the Eighth Division Irrigation in Manas River

The Study of Water Resources Sustainable Utilization Evaluation in Manas River Basin, Xinjiang Province, China

The Study of Water Resources Sustainable Utilization Evaluation in Manas River Basin, Xinjiang Province, China

Response of Manas River fluvial landforms to tectonic movement, at the north flank of the Tianshan Mountain, China

Manas River is the largest river at the north foot of Tianshan Mountain, and it is obvious that the landforms at the north flank of Tianshan Mountains respond to the tectonic movement. A hypothesis has been put forward that geomorphology of the north flank of the Tianshan Mountain Range is the result of active tectonic processes. Based on the filed survey and analysis, the hypothesis has been proved by the results of the research. By investigating into the evolutions of Manas River valley fold hills, alluvial fans and terraces, it is indicated that Tianshan Mountain piedmont has been constantly uplifted along with main body of Tianshan Mountain since Quaternary, and continues to be thrust from south to north, which makes the piedmont range constantly extend to the basin direction. The deformed main body also moves from south to north. Meanwhile, the alternant Pleistocene ice age and interglacial age climate also has significant impact on the current landform patterns of north piedmont of Tianshan Mountain.

Tectonic geomorphological characteristics for evolu-tion of the Manas Lake

Owing to global climatic changes and human activities, the lakes have changed dramatically in the Junggar Basin of Xinjiang in recent 50 years. Based on the remote sensing images from Beijing Satellite No.1 in 2006 together with the measured topographical data in 1999 and other data since the 1950s, this paper analyzes mainly the features of landforms around the Manas Lake and the changes of feeding sources of the lake. The results are as follows: (1) Tectonic movement brought about the fundamental geomorphological basis for lacustrine evolution, and the Manas Lake is one of small lakes broken up from the Old Manas Lake due to tectonic movement and drought climate; the Manas Lake had existed before the Manas River flowed into it in 1915. The geomorphologic evidences for evolution of the Manas Lake include: (a) Diluvial fans and old channels at the north of the lake indicate that the rivers originating from the north mountains of the Junggar Basin had fed the Old Manas Lake and now still feed the lake as seasonal rivers; (b) The Old Manas Lake was fed by many rivers originating from the mountains, except for the Manas River, from the evidence of small lakes around the Manas Lake, old channels, alluvial fans, etc.; (c) The elevations of the alluvial and diluvial fans are near to the 280 m a.s.l. and all of the small lakes and lacustrine plains are within the range of the 280 m a.s.l., which may prove that the elevation of the Old Manas Lake was about 280 m a.s.l.; (d) Core analysis of the Manas Lake area also indicates that the Manas Lake has existed since Late Pleistocene epoch. (2) Analysis on the feeding relations between the lakes and the lacustrine evolution shows that human activities are one of main driving forces of the lacustrine evolution in recent 50 years, and it is the precondition of restoring and maintaining the lacutrine wetlands in the study area to satisfy the feeding of the Baiyang and Manas rivers to the Manas Lake.

The Study of Three Evaluation Models of Water Resources Carrying Capacity in Manas River Basin

Because lack of water resources in Manas river basin, the water resources carrying capacity evaluation is important to the water sustainable development. In this paper, we select the main factors of the water resources carrying capacity and separate into water resources subsystem, social subsystem, economic subsystem and ecological subsystem. Then established three evaluation models to evaluate the different years of water resources carrying capacity and made the application comparison. The fuzzy comprehensive evaluation model and matter-element models are adaptable to the water carrying capacity evaluation, but the determination of weights is too subjective; The projection pursuit theory is based on the sample characteristics of their own, and without given weight of each indicator, the results is more objective. The results show that the water resources carrying capacity in Manas River basin was at V1-stage in 2000; it is at V2- stage in 2010 and V3- stage in 2020, and then the water resources carrying capacity in Manas River basin is the ideal carrying capacity status. At the same time, because of saving water technological and industry restructure adjustment, water resources carrying capacity in Manas River Basin is on a benign trend. At last, some measures of improving the water resource carrying capacity were put forward.

Sustainable Strategies and Status of Unconventional Water Resources Development and Utilization in Manas River Basin

Because of the Lack of water resources and the increasing water quantity used in living and production, the water resources are becoming the restrictive factor of regional economic and social development in in Manas river basin. The exploitation and utilization of conventional water resources has reached more than 95% in the basin,it caused great attention that the development and utilization of non-conventional water resources for agricultural development and ecological environment construction. At present, the exploitation and utilization of the non-conventional water resources(shallow underground salt water，saline water) for agriculture and forestry has become more and more widespread and in-depth. because of the lack of scientific instruction and reasonable exploitation, which not only caused water level falling, leading to degradation of the brittle natural entironment, but also caused SBHCSS and the decline in productivity. With the analysis of the non-conventional water resources actual exploitation and utilization, under the scientific development concept, the aryicle puts forward the sustained strategies of non-conventional underground water resources (salt water, saline water) reasonable exploitation and the irrigation return flow reuse efficient exploitation which is used for ecological restoration and reconstruction.

Arable Land in the Manas River Basin Based on CBERS Data

In this paper,the coefficients of net arable land after eliminating the small ground objects in the Manas River Basin are estimated by visual interpretation of the CBERS data.After the data are verified and compared with the field sample survey results,it is found that the overall reclamation level is high in the Manas River Basin,that is,the utilization rate of arable land in the study area is closely related to the natural or artificial conditions.Through comparing the two sets of data and the significance differences in T-tests,some conclusions can be obtained: the data derived using two methods,i.e.the net arable land coefficients estimated using the remote sensing image and those derived from the field sample survey,are similar,and the similarities are all higher than 90%,which reveals that the method of using remote sensing image to derive the arable land coefficients is feasible,and the reliability of net arable land coefficient is high.The regression analysis and hypothesis test results of the two sets of net arable land coefficients show that there is a significant linear regression between the two sets of data.It is feasible to verify the remote sensing data using the net arable land coefficients derived from the field sample survey.There is a high practical value to derive the net arable land coefficients using remote sensing images.

Evaluation of agricultural ecosystem services value in Manas River Watershed of China

农田生态系统可为人类提供各种产品及多种间接生态系统服务功能。本文运用环境经济学, 借助GIS技术, 对玛纳斯河流域农田生态系统1976年和2005年两个时段的产品提供、气候调节、土壤保持、碳固定、O2释放以及营养物质保持等6项生态系统服务功能价值进行了物质量及价值量的估算和分析。结果表明, 农田生态系统服务功能总价值从1976年的352 219.4×104元上升到2005年的767 061.5×104元, 29年间上升117%。根据两个时段农田生态系统服务功能价值的分析, 农田生态系统的产品提供功能受人类技术和管理的影响较大, 具有较高的提升潜力, 其价值占总生态系统服务功能价值的比例从1976年的7%上升到2005年的39%; 而间接生态系统服务功能体现了农田生态系统的自然属性, 为人类提供了巨大的调节、支持服务功能, 从1976年至2005年, 其生态系统服务功能价值上升43%。玛纳斯河流域农田生态系统服务功能研究表明, 农田生态系统具有多种生态系统服务功能, 应该重视对农田生态系统各项生态系统服务功能价值的评估, 从而达到干旱区流域社会、经济、自然生态系统的和谐发展。

The Emergence of an Endangered Species: Evolution and Phylogeny of the Trachypithecus geei of Bhutan

Golden langurs (Trachypithecus geei) are an endangered primate species in Bhutan. We discuss their evolution in terms of phylogeny, ecology, and biogeography. We test the hypothesis that rivers and mountains in Bhutan isolated a population of capped langurs (Trachypithecus pileatus) that later speciated into the morphologically distinct T. geei. Trachypithecus, the genus to which both capped and golden langurs belong, spread north from a paleorefuge in south China, and Semnopithecus (gray langurs) spread east and northward from a refuge in south India. We show that the 2 genera both arrived in Bhutan and were separated from each other by the Sunkosh River and Black Mountains. Likewise, a population of capped langurs isolated from parental populations by rivers speciated into the distinct golden langurs. We conducted field surveys covering the entire range of langurs in Bhutan. The Sunkosh River and Black Mountain range in west Bhutan isolate gray langurs and golden langurs from each other. In the east, the Manas River system (Manas-Mangde) served as a barrier between golden and capped langurs. However, it is an imperfect barrier and a contact zone between the 2 species occurred on the banks of the Mangde River. Second, we reconstructed the evolutionary history of the langurs of Bhutan via molecular phylogenetic tools. We sequenced the cytochrome b region (cyt b) of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) to model a phylogeny. It revealed the distinct evolutionary paths of the golden, capped, and gray langurs. As predicted, golden and capped langurs are closely related to each other and to other species in Trachypithecus from Southeast Asia. The gray langur of Bhutan grouped into a distinct clade with conspecifics in Semnopithecus from India and Nepal. The south Indian clade of gray langurs is more ancient, with the Bhutan and Nepal gray langurs having diverged later, which fits with the glacial models of ice sheet retreats and colonization of South Asia by gray langurs from south India north toward the Himalayas. Likewise, the golden and capped langur clade are the most derived and divergent from the older groups of Trachypithecus in Southeast Asia, which also fits with paleorefuge models of recolonization by Trachypithecus into the rest of Southeast Asia and north toward the Himalayas from paleorefuges in Southeast Asia. As predicted, golden and capped langurs are closely related to each other and gray langurs are only distantly related to them. The divergence between capped and golden langurs is more recent, while the split between Trachypithecus and Semnopithecus is more ancient and took place before the Pliocene.