Orginal Article |
|
|
|
|
Hydrological and water cycle processes of inland river basins in the arid region of Northwest China |
Yaning CHEN1, Baofu LI2,*(), Yuting FAN3, Congjian SUN4, Gonghuan FANG1 |
1State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China 2School of Geography and Tourism, Qufu Normal University, Rizhao 276826, China 3Key Laboratory of Tree-Ring Physical and Chemical Research of China Meteorological Administration/Xinjiang Laboratory of Tree Ring Ecology, Institute of Desert Meteorology, China Meteorological Administration, Urumqi 830002, China 4School of Geographical Science, Shanxi Normal University, Linfen 041000, China |
|
|
Abstract The increasing shortage in water resources is a key factor affecting sustainable socio-economic development in the arid region of Northwest China (ARNC). Water shortages also affect the stability of the region's oasis ecosystem. This paper summarizes the hydrological processes and water cycle of inland river basins in the ARNC, focusing on the following aspects: the spatial-temporal features of water resources (including air water vapor resources, runoff, and glacial meltwater) and their driving forces; the characteristics of streamflow composition in the inland river basins; the characteristics and main controlling factors of baseflow in the inland rivers; and anticipated future changes in hydrological processes and water resources. The results indicate that: (1) although the runoff in most inland rivers in the ARNC showed a significant increasing trend, both the glaciated area and glacial ice reserves have been reduced in the mountains; (2) snow melt and glacier melt are extremely important hydrological processes in the ARNC, especially in the Kunlun and Tianshan mountains; (3) baseflow in the inland rivers of the ARNC is the result of climate change and human activities, with the main driving factors being the reduction in forest area and the over-exploitation and utilization of groundwater in the river basins; and (4) the contradictions among water resources, ecology and economy will further increase in the future. The findings of this study might also help strengthen the ecological, economic and social sustainable development in the study region.
|
Received: 20 July 2018
Published: 10 April 2019
|
Corresponding Authors:
|
|
|
[1] | Aizen V, Aizen E, Glazirin G, et al.2000. Simulation of daily runoff in Central Asian alpine watersheds. Journal of Hydrology, 238(1-2): 15-34. | [2] | Aksoy H, Kurt I, Eris E.2009. Filtered smoothed minima baseflow separation method. Journal of Hydrology, 372(1-4): 94-101. | [3] | Arnell N W.1992. Factors controlling the effects of climate change on river flow regimes in a humid temperate environment. Journal of Hydrology, 132(1-4): 321-342. | [4] | Arnell N W, Gosling S N.2013. The impacts of climate change on river flow regimes at the global scale. Journal of Hydrology, 486: 351-364. | [5] | Barnett T P, Adam J C, Lettenmaier D P.2005. Potential impacts of a warming climate on water availability in snow-dominated regions. Nature, 438: 303-309. | [6] | Booij M J.2005. Impact of climate change on river flooding assessed with different spatial model resolutions. Journal of Hydrology, 303(1-4): 176-198. | [7] | Chen H, Li Z Q, Wang P Y, et al.2013. Change of glaciers in the Central Qilian Mountain. Arid Zone Research, 30(4): 588-593. (in Chinese) | [8] | Chen H Y, Chen Y N, Li W H, et al.2018. Identifying evaporation fractionation and streamflow components based on stable isotopes in the Kaidu River Basin with mountain-oasis system in north-west China. Hydrological Processes, 32(15): 2423-2434. | [9] | Chen L Q, Liu C M, Hao F H, et al.2006. Change of the baseflow and it's impacting factors in the Source Regions of Yellow River. Journal of Glaciology & Geocryology, 28(2): 141-148. (in Chinese) | [10] | Chen Y N, Li B F, Li Z, et al.2016a. Water resource formation and conversion and water security in arid region of Northwest China. Journal of Geographical Sciences, 26(7): 939-952. | [11] | Chen Y N, Li W H, Deng H J, et al.2016b. Changes in Central Asia's water tower: past, present and future. Scientific Reports, 6: 35458. | [12] | Chen Y N, Li W H, Fang G H, et al.2017. Hydrological modeling in glacierized catchments of Central Asia-status and challenges. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 21: 669-684. | [13] | Chen Z S, Chen Y N, Li B F.2013. Quantifying the effects of climate variability and human activities on runoff for Kaidu River Basin in arid region of northwest China. Theoretical and Applied Climatology, 111(3-4): 537-545. | [14] | Chen Z S.2016. Quantitative identification of river runoff change and its attribution in the arid region of northwest China. PhD Dissertation. Shanghai: East China Normal University. (in Chinese) | [15] | Dai X G, Li W H, Ma Z G.2006. Characteristics of water vapor source variation in Xinjiang in recent years. Progress in Natural Science, 16(12): 1651-1656. (in Chinese) | [16] | Dang S Z, Wang Z G, Liu C M.2011. Baseflow separation and its characteristics in the upper reaches of Heihe River Basin. Resources Science, 33(12): 2232-2237. (in Chinese) | [17] | Dong W, Cui B S, Liu Z H, et al.2015. Relative effects of human activities and climate change on the river runoff in an arid basin in northwest China. Hydrological Processes, 28(18): 4854-4864. | [18] | Duethmann D, Peters J, Blume T, et al.2014. The value of satellite-derived snow cover images for calibrating a hydrological model in snow-dominated catchments in Central Asia. Water Resources Research, 50(3): 2002-2021. | [19] | Duethmann D, Bolch T, Farinotti D, et al.2015. Attribution of streamflow trends in snow and glacier melt-dominated catchments of the Tarim River, Central Asia. Water Resources Research, 51(6): 4727-4750. | [20] | Duethmann D, Menz C, Jiang T, et al.2016. Projections for headwater catchments of the Tarim River reveal glacier retreat and decreasing surface water availability but uncertainties are large. Environmental Research Letters, 11(5): 054024. | [21] | Eckhardt K.2008. A comparison of baseflow indices, which were calculated with seven different baseflow separation methods. Journal of Hydrology, 352(1-2): 168-173. | [22] | Fan Y T, Chen Y N, Liu Y B, et al.2013. Variation of baseflows in the headstreams of the Tarim River Basin during 1960-2007. Journal of Hydrology, 487(2): 98-108. | [23] | Fan Y T, Chen Y N, Li W H.2014. Increasing precipitation and baseflow in Aksu River since the 1950s. Quaternary International, 336(12): 26-34. | [24] | Fang G H, Yang J, Chen Y N, et al.2015. Comparing bias correction methods in downscaling meteorological variables for a hydrologic impact study in an arid area in China. Hydrology & Earth System Sciences, 19: 2547-2559. | [25] | Fang G H, Yang J, Chen Y N, et al.2017. Impact of GCM structure uncertainty on hydrological processes in an arid area of China. Hydrology Research, 49(3): 893-907. | [26] | Farinotti D, Longuevergne L, Moholdt G, et al.2015. Substantial glacier mass loss in the Tien Shan over the past 50 years. Nature Geoscience, 8(9): 716-722. | [27] | Fontaine T A, Cruickshank T S, Arnold J G, et al.2002. Development of a snowfall-snowmelt routine for mountainous terrain for the soil water assessment tool (SWAT). Journal of Hydrology, 262(1-4): 209-223. | [28] | Forsythe N, Fowler H J, Li X F, et al.2017. Karakoram temperature and glacial melt driven by regional atmospheric circulation variability. Nature Climate Change, 7(9): 664-670. | [29] | Gan R, Luo Y.2013. Using the nonlinear aquifer storage-discharge relationship to simulate the base flow of glacier-and snowmelt-dominated basins in Northwest China. Hydrology & Earth System Sciences, 17(9): 3577-3586. | [30] | Gan R, Zuo Q.2016. Assessing the digital filter method for base flow estimation in glacier melt dominated basins. Hydrological Processes, 30(9): 1367-1375. | [31] | Gao H, Han T, Liu Y, et al.2017. Use of auxiliary data of topography, snow and ice to improve model performance in a glacier-dominated catchment in Central Asia. Hydrology Research, 48(5): 1418-1437. | [32] | Gao X, Zhang S Q, Ye B S, et al.2010. Glacier runoff change in the upper stream of Yarkant River and its impact on river runoff during 1961-2006. Journal of Glaciology and Geocryology, 32(3): 445-453. (in Chinese) | [33] | Grah O, Beaulieu J.2013. The effect of climate change on glacier ablation and baseflow support in the Nooksack River basin and implications on Pacific salmonid species protection and recovery. Climatic Change, 120(3): 657-670. | [34] | Guo X Q, Li Y Y, Cao L.2009. Study on the impacts of climate changes on the runoff in Shule River Basin. Journal of Anhui Agricultural Sciences, 37(35): 17595-17598, 17608. (in Chinese) | [35] | Guo Y, Shen Y J.2016. Agricultural water supply/demand changes under projected future climate change in the arid region of northwestern China. Journal of Hydrology, 540: 257-273. | [36] | Haddeland I, Heinke J, Biemans H, et al.2014. Global water resources affected by human interventions and climate change. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111(9): 3251-3256. | [37] | Hall F R.1968. Base flow recessions-a review. Water Resources Research, 4(5): 973-983. | [38] | He X Q, Zhang B, Sun L W, et al.2012. Contribution rates of climate change and human activity on the runoff in upper and middle reaches of Heihe River basin. Chinese Journal of Ecology, 31(11): 2884-2890. (in Chinese) | [39] | Huai B J, Li Z Q, Wang S J, et al.2014. RS analysis of glaciers change in the Heihe River Basin, Northwest China, during the recent decades. Journal of Geographical Sciences, 24(6): 993-1008. | [40] | Huang J L, Huang Y L, Zhang Z Y.2014. Coupled effects of natural and anthropogenic controls on seasonal and spatial variations of river water quality during baseflow in a coastal watershed of Southeast China. PloS ONE, 9(3): e91528. | [41] | Huang W, Feng S, Chen J H, et al.2015. Physical mechanisms of summer precipitation variations in the Tarim Basin in northwestern China. Journal of Climate, 28(9): 3579-3591. | [42] | Huss M, Hock R.2018. Global-scale hydrological response to future glacier mass loss. Nature Climate Change, 8: 135-140. | [43] | Immerzeel W, Droogers P.2008. Calibration of a distributed hydrological model based on satellite evapotranspiration. Journal of Hydrology, 349(3-4): 411-424. | [44] | IPCC.2013. Climate Change 2013:The Physical Science Basis: Summary for Policymakers. Working Group I Contribution to the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. | [45] | Kaldybayev A, Chen Y, Issanova G, et al.2016. Runoff response to the glacier shrinkage in the Karatal river basin, Kazakhstan. Arabian Journal of Geosciences, 9(3): 208, doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-015-2106-y. | [46] | Kendall C, Coplen T B.2010. Distribution of oxygen-18 and deuterium in river waters across the United States. Hydrological Processes, 15(7): 1363-1393. | [47] | Klaus J, Mcdonnell J J.2013. Hydrograph separation using stable isotopes: Review and evaluation. Journal of Hydrology, 505(24): 47-64. | [48] | Kong Y L, Pang Z H.2012. Evaluating the sensitivity of glacier rivers to climate change based on hydrograph separation of discharge. Journal of Hydrology, 434-435: 121-129. | [49] | Kronholm S C, Capel P D.2015. A comparison of high-resolution specific conductance-based end-member mixing analysis and a graphical method for baseflow separation of four streams in hydrologically challenging agricultural watersheds. Hydrological Processes, 29(11): 2521-2533. | [50] | Li B F, Chen Y N, Shi X.2012. Why does the temperature rise faster in the arid region of northwest China? Journal of Geophysical Research, 117(D16): D16115, doi: 10.1029/2012JD017953. | [51] | Li B F, Chen Y N, Chen Z S, et al.2016a. Why does precipitation in northwest China show a significant increasing trend from 1960 to 2010? Atmospheric Research, 167: 275-284. | [52] | Li B F, Chen Y N, Xiong H G.2016b. Quantitatively evaluating the effects of climate factors on runoff change for Aksu River in northwestern China. Theoretical and Applied Climatology, 123(1-2): 97-105. | [53] | Li B F, Chen Y N, Chipman J W, et al.2018. Why does the runoff in Hotan River show a slight decreased trend in northwestern China? Atmospheric Science Letters, 19(1): e800, doi: 10.1002/asl.800. | [54] | Li L, Maier H R, Partington D, et al.2014. Performance assessment and improvement of recursive digital baseflow filters for catchments with different physical characteristics and hydrological inputs. Environmental Modelling & Software, 54(2): 39-52. | [55] | Li Z L, Xu Z X, Shao Q X, et al.2010. Parameter estimation and uncertainty analysis of SWAT model in upper reaches of the Heihe river basin. Hydrological Processes, 23(19): 2744-2753. | [56] | Li Z Q, Shen Y P, Wang F T, et al.2007. Response of melting ice to climate change in the Glacier No. 1 at the headwaters of Urumqi River, Tianshan Mountain. Advances in Climate Change Research, 3(3): 132-137. (in Chinese) | [57] | Li Z X, Feng Q, Liu W, et al.2014. Study on the contribution of cryosphere to runoff in the cold alpine basin: A case study of Hulugou River Basin in the Qilian Mountains. Global and Planetary Change, 122: 345-361. | [58] | Li Z X, Feng Q, Wang Q J, et al.2016. Quantitative evaluation on the influence from cryosphere meltwater on runoff in an inland river basin of China. Global and Planetary Change, 143: 189-195. | [59] | Liu S Y, Yao X J, Guo W Q, et al.2015. The contemporary glaciers in China based on the Second Chinese Glacier Inventory. Acta Geographica Sinica, 70(1): 3-16. (in Chinese) | [60] | Liu T, Willems P, Pan X L, et al.2011. Climate change impact on water resource extremes in a headwater region of the Tarim Basin in China. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 15(11): 3511-3527. | [61] | Liu Y Y, Zhang X Q.2011. Variations of atmospheric water resources over the arid region of Northwest China and its causes. Advances in Climate Change Research, 7(6): 385-392. (in Chinese) | [62] | Luo K S, Tao F L, Deng X Z, et al.2017. Changes in potential evapotranspiration and surface runoff in 1981-2010 and the driving factors in Upper Heihe River Basin in Northwest China. Hydrological Processes, 31(1): 90-103. | [63] | Luo Y, Arnold J, Allen P, et al.2012. Baseflow simulation using SWAT model in an inland river basin in Tianshan Mountains, Northwest China. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 16(4): 1259-1267. | [64] | Lutz A F, Immerzeel W W, Shrestha A B, et al.2014. Consistent increase in High Asia's runoff due to increasing glacier melt and precipitation. Nature Climate Change, 4(7): 587-592. | [65] | Malsy M, Beek T A D, Flörke M.2015. Evaluation of large-scale precipitation data sets for water resources modelling in Central Asia. Environmental Earth Sciences, 73(2): 787-799. | [66] | Price K.2011. Effects of watershed topography, soils, land use, and climate on baseflow hydrology in humid regions: A review. Progress in Physical Geography, 35(4): 465-492. | [67] | Rong G, Lin S, Luo Y.2015. Baseflow characteristics in alpine rivers—a multi-catchment analysis in Northwest China. Journal of Mountain Science, 12(3): 614-625. | [68] | Seiller G, Anctil F, Perrin C.2012. Multimodel evaluation of twenty lumped hydrological models under contrasted climate conditions. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 16(4): 1171-1189. | [69] | Sorg A, Bolch T, Stoffel M, et al.2012. Climate change impacts on glaciers and runoff in Tien Shan (Central Asia). Nature Climate Change, 2(10): 725-731. | [70] | Sun C J, Chen Y N, Li X G, et al.2016a. Analysis on the streamflow components of the typical inland river, Northwest China. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 61(5): 970-981. | [71] | Sun C J, Chen Y N, Li W H, et al.2016b. Isotopic time series partitioning of streamflow components under regional climate change in the Urumqi River, northwest China. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 61(8): 1443-1459. | [72] | Sun C J, Li X G, Chen Y N, et al.2016c. Spatial and temporal characteristics of stable isotopes in the Tarim River Basin. Isotopes in Environmental and Health Studies, 52(3): 281-297. | [73] | Sun C J, Yang J, Chen Y N, et al.2016d. Comparative study of streamflow components in two inland rivers in the Tianshan Mountains, Northwest China. Environmental Earth Sciences, 75(9): 727. | [74] | Sun C J, Li X G, Chen W, et al.2017. Climate change and runoff response based on isotope analysis in an arid mountain watershed of the Western Kunlun Mountains. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 62(2): 319-330. | [75] | Sun C J, Shen Y J, Chen Y N, et al.2018. Quantitative evaluation of the rainfall influence on streamflow in an inland mountainous river basin within Central Asia. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 63(1): 17-30. | [76] | Sun M P, Li Z Q, Yao X J, et al.2013. Rapid Shrinkage and hydrological response of a typical continental glacier in the arid region of Northwest China-Taking Urumqi Glacier No. 1 as an example. Ecohydrology, 6(6): 909-916. | [77] | Sun M P, Li Z Q, Yao X J, et al.2015. Modeling the hydrological response to climate change in a glacierized high mountain region, northwest China. Journal of Glaciology, 61(225): 127-136. | [78] | Sun M P, Liu S Y, Yao X J, et al.2018. Glacier changes in the Qilian Mountains in the past half century: Based on the revised First and Second Chinese Glacier Inventory. Journal of Geographical Sciences, 28(2): 209-220. | [79] | Tang X L, Lv X, Li J F.2011. Runoff characteristics of Manasi River Basin in the past 50 years. Journal of Arid Land Resources and Environment, 25(5): 124-129. (in Chinese) | [80] | Vasil'chuk Y K, Rets E P, Chizhova J N, et al.2016. Hydrograph separation of the Dzhankuat River, North Caucasus, with the use of isotope methods. Water Resources, 43(6): 847-861. | [81] | Wan L, Xia J, Hong S, et al.2015. Decadal climate variability and vulnerability of water resources in arid regions of Northwest China. Environmental Earth Sciences, 73(10): 6539-6552. | [82] | Wang G Q, Zhang J Y, Jin J L, et al.2012. Assessing water resources in China using PRECIS projections and a VIC model. Hydrology & Earth System Sciences, 16(1): 231-240. | [83] | Wang L, Koike T, Yang K, et al.2009. Frozen soil parameterization in a distributed biosphere hydrological model. Hydrology & Earth System Sciences, 14(3): 557-571. | [84] | Wang X L, Luo Y, Sun L, et al.2016. Attribution of runoff decline in the Amu Darya River in Central Asia during 1951-2007. Journal of Hydrometeorology, 17(5): 1543-1560. | [85] | Wang X Y, Li Z Q, Ross E, et al.2015. Characteristics of water isotopes and hydrograph separation during the spring flood period in Yushugou River basin, Eastern Tianshans, China. Journal of Earth System Science, 124(1): 115-124. | [86] | Wang Y J, Qin D H.2017. Influence of climate change and human activity on water resources in arid region of Northwest China: An overview. Advances in Climate Change Research, 8(4): 268-278. | [87] | Wang Y L, Wang W K, Qian Y P, et al.2008. Change characteristics and driving forces of base flow of Yellow River Basin. Journal of Natural Resources, 23(3): 479-486. (in Chinese) | [88] | Ward R C, Robinson M.1990. Principles of Hydrology. London: McGraw-Hill, 365. | [89] | Wittenberg H, Sivapalan M.1999. Watershed groundwater balance estimation using streamflow recession analysis and baseflow separation. Journal of Hydrology, 219(1-2): 20-33. | [90] | Wu B, Zheng Y, Tian Y, et al.2014. Systematic assessment of the uncertainty in integrated surface water-groundwater modeling based on the probabilistic collocation method. Water Resources Research, 50(7): 5848-5865. | [91] | Wu J K, Wu X P, Hou D J, et al.2016. Streamwater hydrograph separation in an alpine glacier area in the Qilian Mountains, northwestern China. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 61(13): 2399-2410. | [92] | Xu J H, Chen Y N, Li W H, et al.2011. An integrated statistical approach to identify the nonlinear trend of runoff in the Hotan River and its relation with climatic factors. Stochastic Environmental Research and Risk Assessment, 25(2): 223-233. | [93] | Yang F, Ali M, Zheng X Q, et al.2017. Diurnal dynamics of soil respiration and the influencing factors for three land-cover types in the hinterland of the Taklimakan Desert, China. Journal of Arid Land, 9(4): 568-579. | [94] | Yang G L, Hao F H, Liu C M, et al.2003. The study on baseflow estimation and assessment in SWAT—Luohe Basin as an example. Progress in Geography, 22(5): 463-471. (in Chinese) | [95] | Yao Y, Zheng C, Liu J, et al.2015. Conceptual and numerical models for groundwater flow in an arid inland river basin. Hydrological Processes, 29(6): 1480-1492. | [96] | Zhang A J, Liu W B, Yin Z L, et al.2016. How will climate change affect the water availability in the Heihe River Basin, Northwest China? Journal of Hydrometeorology, 17(5): 1517-1542. | [97] | Zhang G W, Wu S F, Wang Z J.2003. The signal of climatic shift in northwest China deduced from river runoff change in Xinjiang region. Journal of Glaciology and Geocryology, 25(2): 183-187. (in Chinese) | [98] | Zhang S Q, Gao X, Zhang X W, et al.2012. Projection of glacier runoff in Yarkant River basin and Beida River basin, Western China. Hydrological Processes, 26(18): 2773-2781. | [99] | Zhang S Q, Gao X, Zhang X W.2015. Glacial runoff likely reached peak in the mountainous areas of the Shiyang River Basin, China. Journal of Mountain Science, 12(2): 382-395. | [100] | Zhang Y, Li B F, Chen Y N.2018. The temporal and spatial variation of water vapor content and its relationship with precipitation in the arid region of Northwest China from 1970 to 2013. Journal of Natural Resources, 33(6): 1043-1055. (in Chinese) | [101] | Zhao Q D, Zhang S Q, Ding Y J, et al.2015. Modeling hydrologic response to climate change and shrinking glaciers in the highly glacierized Kunma Like River Catchment, Central Tian Shan. Journal of Hydrometeorology, 16: 2383-2402. | [102] | Zhao Z, Wang J, Zhao J.2018. A spatial analysis of urban economic connections among the node cities along the "One Belt and One Road" in China. Journal of Arid Land Resources & Environment, 32(5): 12-18. (in Chinese) | [103] | Zhou J J, Lei L, Shi P J, et al.2015. Response of runoff to the climate and land use pattern changes in Shiyang River Basin. Acta Ecologica Sinica, 35(11): 3788-3796. (in Chinese) | [104] | Zhou J X, Wu J J, Liu S W, et al.2015. Hydrograph separation in the headwaters of the Shule River Basin: combining water chemistry and stable isotopes. Advances in Meteorology, 2015: 830306, doi: https://doi.org/10.1155/2015/830306. |
|
|
Viewed |
|
|
|
Full text
|
|
|
|
|
Abstract
|
|
|
|
|
Cited |
|
|
|
|
|
Shared |
|
|
|
|
|
Discussed |
|
|
|
|