Fang Hongliang, Liu Gaohuan, Kearney Michael
Department of Geography, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742, USA.
Environ Manage. 2005 Jan;35(1):72-83. doi: 10.1007/s00267-004-3066-2.
The Yellow River Delta, one of China's three major river deltas, is becoming a major region for the development of agriculture and fisheries. Protecting the delicate ecology of newly formed aquatic systems as well as the evolution of soils, natural vegetation, and fauna on older upland environments in the delta is a priority in planning for the wise use of the delta's resources for future agricultural development. In this article, we use a Geographic Information System (GIS) to analyze relationships between land-use/ land-cover characteristics in the Dongying municipality, one of the most intensely developed areas of the delta, and spatial variations in soil salinity and landforms. This analysis reveals that soil salt content decreases from regionally high values in isolated depressions to relatively moderate values in embanked former back swamps, with the lowest values occurring in abandoned river courses. Comparing the present land use on this soil salinity-landform pattern shows that it is basically at odds with general concepts of land suitability for agricultural utilization of saline soils. Crop-based agriculture in the region is probably overdeveloped, whereas more appropriate agricultural development, like cattle and forest production, is underrepresented. Future development should focus on converting farmland in embanked former back swamps and abandoned river courses into grasslands and forests. Crop-based agriculture (up to 151,000 ha) could be planned at the low-salinity terrace uplands and flood plains. The article provides guidelines for decision-makers regarding agricultural land use and wetland protection in the Yellow River Delta.
黄河三角洲是中国三大河口三角洲之一，正成为农业和渔业发展的重要区域。保护新形成的水生系统的脆弱生态，以及三角洲古老高地环境中土壤、天然植被和动物群的演变，是明智利用三角洲资源以促进未来农业发展规划中的优先事项。在本文中，我们使用地理信息系统（GIS）分析了三角洲开发最密集地区之一东营市的土地利用/土地覆盖特征与土壤盐分和地形空间变化之间的关系。该分析表明，土壤盐分含量从孤立洼地的区域高值向围垦后的前河漫滩的相对适中值降低，最低值出现在废弃河道中。将目前的土地利用情况与这种土壤盐分-地形模式进行比较表明，它基本上与盐碱地农业利用的土地适宜性一般概念不一致。该地区以作物为主的农业可能过度发展，而更合适的农业发展，如养牛和林业生产，则占比不足。未来的发展应侧重于将围垦后的前河漫滩和废弃河道中的农田转变为草地和森林。可以在低盐度阶地高地和洪泛平原规划以作物为主的农业（面积达15.1万公顷）。本文为决策者提供了有关黄河三角洲农业土地利用和湿地保护的指导方针。
