Analysis of Spatiotemporal Groundwater-Storage Variations in China from GRACE

Abstract

In China, where some regions are over-reliant on groundwater, groundwater consumption is faster than replenishment, which results in a continuous decrease in the groundwater level. Here, we applied spatial and temporal methods to analyze the spatiotemporal variations in groundwater in China from GRACE, GRACE-FO, and GLDAS data. From a national perspective, groundwater storage showed a decreasing trend in northern China and an increasing trend in southern China. The results showed that the rates of groundwater depletion in North China, the Loess Plateau, and Northwest China were −10.09 ± 0.94, −10.05 ± 1.05, and –4.91 ± 0.28 mm y−1 equivalent height of water from 2003 to 2019, respectively. Furthermore, the groundwater in South China, the middle-lower Yangtze River, and the Ch-Yu region had a positive trend, with rates of 7.26 ± 1.51, 7.73 ± 1.35, and 3.61 ± 0.53 mm y−1 equivalent height of water, respectively. We also found that groundwater storage fluctuated slightly before 2016 on the Qinhai-Tibet Plateau and in Northeast China and decreased significantly after 2016. The Yun-Gui Plateau had a fluctuating trend. Investigating the spatiotemporal variation in groundwater storage in China can provide data for initiating regional ecological and environmental protection.

Spatiotemporal Variation Characteristics of Groundwater Storage and Its Driving Factors and Ecological Effects in Tibetan Plateau

“…The minimum negative anomaly of the interannual variation in the GWSA was −2.16 cm in 2009, while the maximum positive anomaly of 2.11 cm occurred in 2012 (Figure 2f). The results of the study by Liu et al [22] were the same. Liu et al [22] also came to a similar conclusion that GWS in the Qinghai province and the Tibet Autonomous Region reached a split point in 2016, and the groundwater storage changed from decreasing with a mean rate of −0.2 mm/a from 2003 to 2015 to increasing with a mean rate of 3.28 mm/a from 2016 to 2019.…”

“…The results of the study by Liu et al [22] were the same. Liu et al [22] also came to a similar conclusion that GWS in the Qinghai province and the Tibet Autonomous Region reached a split point in 2016, and the groundwater storage changed from decreasing with a mean rate of −0.2 mm/a from 2003 to 2015 to increasing with a mean rate of 3.28 mm/a from 2016 to 2019. The GWSA in the TP showed an overall downward trend, but increases after 2016.…”

“…The TWS in the TP have been confirmed to have undergone significant changes [17,18]. Additionally, the changes in GWS can be obtained by removing known contributors (soil moisture, accumulated snow, and plant canopy surface water) from the changes in TWS which were observed by GRACE/FO [18][19][20][21][22][23]. This method has been widely used, and relatively accurate results were obtained.…”

Drivers of water storage changes in the Yangtze River Basin during 2002-2022

“…It has been recommended by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to be applied in a series of environmental, climate, and hydrological data . The Mann-Kendall test statistic is calculated as (Liu et al, 2021):…”

“…Variations in terrestrial water storage in the Lancang-Mekong river basin from GRACE solutions and land surface https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2019.124258 Li, Y.,Yan, D., Peng, H., & Xiao, S. (2021). Evaluation of precipitation in CMIP6 over the https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosres.2020.105406 Liu, F., Kang, P.,Zhu, H., Han, J., & Huang, Y. (2021).…”