Effects of terracing and agroforestry on soil and water loss in hilly areas of the Sichuan Basin, China

Zhang, J. H.; Su, Zhengan; Liu, G. C.

doi:10.1007/s11629-008-0189-6

Cited by 37 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…In this study, the experimental site was located on a slope in Beibei, Chongqing (106°43′E, 29°83′N) (Figure 3), an eastern part of the Sichuan Basin, where it is easy to form soil erosion and severe NPS pollution due to steep slopes and abundant precipitation [34]. The temperature of Chongqing was about 8.2 °C in the experimental period.…”

Section: Experimental Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Precipitation and Topography on Total Phosphorus Loss from Purple Soil

Ding

Xue

et al. 2017

Water

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Abstract:The Sichuan Basin is the main agricultural production area of the upper reaches of the Yangtze River and is also an extremely important ecological area because it is rich in biodiversity and has complex and diverse landscape types. The dominant soil type, purple soil, is prone to rapid soil erosion and weathering processes because it is shallow and rich in phosphorus and other nutrients. Field experiments were conducted to reveal the effects of precipitation and topography characteristics on nonpoint source pollutants from purple soil. The results showed that total phosphorus (TP) load and TP concentration both increased with increasing rainfall amount, and there was an initial time of runoff and sediment yield before runoff generation. Moreover, the TP load generally increased with precipitation intensity as setting a coincident value of rainfall amount; however, the difference between TP load at 30 and 60 mm/h was minimal as was the difference between 90 and 120 mm/h. Similarly, TP concentration increased with increasing precipitation intensity. In terms of topographical conditions, TP load increased with increasing gradient, but began to decline when the gradient was about 20 • , which indicates that 20 • is the critical gradient for TP loss. There was a significant positive correlation between gradient and TP concentration when the gradient was <15 • , whereas the increase in TP concentration slowed as the gradient increased.

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Section: Experimental Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Precipitation and Topography on Total Phosphorus Loss from Purple Soil

Ding

Xue

et al. 2017

Water

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“…The regional soil erosion rate is closely related to local topography (i.e., slope length and gradient) [17]. Terracing is proven to be effective in preventing sheet and rill erosion by shortening the slope length and decreasing the slope gradient [18].…”

Section: Marginal Hedgerows and Contour Buffering Stripsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Farmers’ Sustainable Strategies for Soil Conservation on Sloping Arable Lands in the Upper Yangtze River Basin, China

Tang

et al. 2014

Sustainability

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Abstract:The Upper Yangtze River Basin comprises a densely-populated agricultural region with mountainous and hilly landforms. Intensive cultivation has been extended onto steep hillslopes, which constitute the principal source area for sediment production. Soil conservation on sloping arable lands is thus of utmost priority for persisting sustainable agricultural production and maintaining sound ecosystem services. Although there have been many soil conservation techniques, either promoted by the government or adopted by local farmers, the practiced area was very limited relative to the total area affected by soil erosion. This paper attempts to introduce four popular soil conservation measures on sloping arable lands in this region to enhance a broader scale of implementation, including hedgerow buffers, level trenches, sloping terraces and limited downslope tillage. These practices, although developed from local farmers' indigenous knowledge for productive purposes, have well conformed to our contemporary understanding of soil erosion processes on sloping landscape affected by human disturbances, were of sound suitability OPEN ACCESS Sustainability 2014, 6 4796 to regional manual tillage agriculture and more trade-off-efficient on rill prevention, runoff harvest and nutrient management.

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“…In Beijing Municipality, the average reductions in runoff and sediment by half-moon terraces were 18% and 76%, respectively (Fu et al, 2010). Sloping terraces in Sichuan Province of southern China reduced runoff and sediment yield by 41% and 80.1%, respectively (Zhang et al, 2008). In general, terracing was considered a successful approach to the control of water erosion in those regions with steep slopes and erodible soils (Rashid et al, 2016;Kovar et al, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of terracing practices on water erosion control in China: A meta-analysis

Chen

Wei

Chen

2017

Earth-Science Reviews

182

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A B S T R A C TTerracing has long been considered a strategy for soil and water conservation in many mountainous regions of the world. However, the effectiveness of terracing is limited by many factors, such as climate, soil properties, topography, land use, culture, demography and socioeconomic status. The aim of this critical review is to evaluate the roles of terracing on water erosion control in China. A meta-analysis of 601 runoff and 636 sediment observations involving a diversity of terrace structures was conducted. These 1237 observations involved level terraces, slope-separated terraces, slope terraces, zig terraces, fanya juu terraces and half-moon terraces, wide geographical locations within China, a diversity of land uses from forests to bare land, and a slopes ranging from 3°to 35°. The results confirmed that terracing significantly and positively affected water erosion control. In terms of different terrace structures, bench terraces were superior with respect to runoff and sediment reductions. Land use also played a crucial role in the efficiency of erosion control; terraces associated with tree crops and forests conserved the greatest amount of soil and water. In addition, a significant positive correlation between slope gradient (3°-15°and 16°-35°) and the effect of terracing on water erosion control was observed with the greatest decreases in water erosion occurred at slopes of 26°-35°and 11°-15°. This study revealed the effectiveness and variations of terracing with respect to water erosion control at the national scale and can serve as a scientific basis for land managers and decision makers. However with increasing urbanization, terrace abandonment increases as does the loss of place-based knowledge regarding terrace construction and maintenance.

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Effects of terracing and agroforestry on soil and water loss in hilly areas of the Sichuan Basin, China

Cited by 37 publications

References 7 publications

Effects of Precipitation and Topography on Total Phosphorus Loss from Purple Soil

Effects of Precipitation and Topography on Total Phosphorus Loss from Purple Soil

Farmers’ Sustainable Strategies for Soil Conservation on Sloping Arable Lands in the Upper Yangtze River Basin, China

Effects of terracing practices on water erosion control in China: A meta-analysis

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