Socio-Environmental Dynamics of Alpine Grasslands, Steppes and Meadows of the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau, China: A Commentary

Abstract

Alpine grasslands are a common feature on the extensive (2.6 million km2) Qinghai–Tibet plateau in western and southwestern China. These grasslands are characterized by their ability to thrive at high altitudes and in areas with short growing seasons and low humidity. Alpine steppe and alpine meadow are the principal plant Formations supporting a rich species mix of grass and forb species, many of them endemic. Alpine grasslands are the mainstay of pastoralism where yaks and hardy Tibetan sheep and Bactrian camels are the favored livestock in the cold arid region. It is not only their importance to local semi nomadic herders, but their role as headwaters of nine major rivers that provide water to more than one billion people in China and in neighboring countries in south and south-east Asia and beyond. Grasslands in this region were heavily utilized in recent decades and are facing accelerated land degradation. Government and herder responses, although quite different, are being implemented as climate change and the transition to the market economy proceeds apace. Problems and prospects for alpine grasslands and the management regimes being imposed (including sedentarization, resettlement and global warming are briefly discussed.

Ethnic Minorities, Traditional Livelihoods and Climate Change in China

“…Alpine areas such as this are very sensitive to temperature changes, especially as glaciers begin to melt and permafrost thaws (Feng & Nursey-Bray, 2020). In particular the region has experienced 'warmer and drier' conditions, and local ecologies are changing (Feng & Nursey-Bray, 2020;Feng & Squires, 2020). As temperatures rise there has been upslope migration of some plant species (and their attendant insect, bird and rodent cohorts).…”

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“…This Special Issue includes five published papers with novel insights that span a number of specific topics: modeling effects of climate change on the productivity of rangelands in Zimbabwe [1], understanding the health of savanna vegetation in and around national parks in Southern Africa and Belize over time [2,3], a long-term field study assessing the effects of restoration efforts on degraded meadow steppes in northern China [4], and commentary on socio-environmental dynamics of alpine grasslands in western China [5].…”

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