Center for Human-Environment System Sustainability (CHESS), State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology (ESPRE), Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.
Sci Total Environ. 2017 Jul 15;590-591:739-750. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.03.037. Epub 2017 Mar 8.
Developing a greater understanding of water stress dynamics is crucial for sustainable development in global drylands. The primary goal of this study was to examine the water stress dynamics throughout the drylands of northern China (DNC). We first calculated the water stress index (WSI) of all 474 catchments in the DNC in 2003 and 2014. Then, we investigated the water stress dynamics in the DNC between 2003 and 2014 at multiple scales, which included the entire DNC, the drainage basins, and the main cities. In 2014, we found water stress in DNC over an area of 2.05×10km, which accounted for 52.13% of the total area of the DNC. From 2003 to 2014, the water stress in the DNC increased primarily because of increases in the area of irrigated croplands and the population of urban areas, and the total increase in the water stress area reached 3.14×10km, which accounted for 7.98% of the total area of the DNC. We also found that water shortages raised a legitimate concern over the sustainable development of the DNC because the population and urban land area exposed to water stress in the DNC have rapidly increased by 2.61×10 persons and 1.25×10km over the past two decades, respectively. Thus, we argue that effective actions are required to address the water stress in the DNC.
发展对全球旱地水压力动态的更深入了解对于可持续发展至关重要。本研究的主要目的是研究中国北方旱地（DNC）的水压力动态。我们首先计算了 DNC 中所有 474 个流域在 2003 年和 2014 年的水压力指数（WSI）。然后，我们在多个尺度上研究了 DNC 中的水压力动态，包括整个 DNC、流域和主要城市。2014 年，我们发现 DNC 地区的水压力超过 2.05×10km，占 DNC 总面积的 52.13%。从 2003 年到 2014 年， DNC 的水压力增加主要是由于灌溉耕地面积和城市人口的增加，水压力增加面积总计达到 3.14×10km，占 DNC 总面积的 7.98%。我们还发现，由于 DNC 地区的人口和城市土地面积暴露在水资源短缺的压力下，因此对 DNC 的可持续发展产生了合理的关注，在过去二十年中，人口和城市土地面积分别增加了 2.61×10 人和 1.25×10km。因此，我们认为需要采取有效措施来解决 DNC 地区的水压力问题。
