the key role of water resources management in ecological restoration in western china

146

Geographical Research

bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154

doi 101111j1745-5871200600378x

Blackwell Publishing Ltd

Original Acticle

X Yang J Dong and PD White Water Resources Management in Ecological Restoration in Western China

The Key Role of Water Resources Management in Ecological Restoration in Western China

XIAOPING YANG JUFENG DONG and PAUL D WHITE

Institute of Geology and Geophysics Chinese Academy of Sciences PO Box 9825 Beijing 100029 China

Corresponding author Email xpyang263netcn

Received 10 October 2005 Revised 25 January 2006 Accepted 16 February 2006

Abstract

The interactions of nature and society are intimately reflected in the degradationof the vast yet diverse landscapes and ecosystems of arid western China Thedevelopment of agriculture especially irrigation has altered rivers soils andecosystems so much that major ecological rehabilitation and restoration effortshave been needed since 1950 The catchments of the Tarim River in southernXinjiang (the Tarim Basin) and of the Black River (Hei He) in Gansu Provinceand western Inner Mongolia provide examples of the benefits difficulties andconflicts involved in dryland water management In the early stages of the humandevelopment of these catchments agriculture depending on irrigation using waterfrom these inland rivers was encouraged The over-exploitation of these waterresources led to such ecological problems as desiccation of lakes drying out ofrivers degradation of soils and vegetation and lowering of groundwater levels withconsequent environmental and economic impacts Since 1990 several high-costnational projects to re-establish ecosystems have been initiated Water is nowreleased from dams in the headwaters of the rivers in order to restore water flowsto the dried out lake basins Such schemes have inevitably led to social problemsand difficulties for the people who depended on the water from the dams for localirrigation The contrasts in adjustments and attitudes over the use of water foragriculture and other economic activities as opposed to schemes of restorationof ecosystems and ecological engineering stem largely from two issues incon-sistent provision of information from the scientific community and differingideologies namely environmental protection versus economic development

KEY WORDS

water resources reservoir ecology regional developmentecological rehabilitation environmental management hydrology China

Introduction

Although technological innovations have benefitedpeople and their environments over past centu-ries fresh water is definitely a non-substitutableresource upon which humans and ecosystemsdepend In the Earth system water is not onlyone of the key components but also a majoragent of the biogeochemical cycles that link thelithosphere biosphere and atmosphere Highmountains particularly the Tibetan Plateau

function as barriers for atmospheric circulationand keep moisture from reaching an extensiveregion in western China causing arid and hyper-arid climatic conditions (Domroumls and Peng 1988)Various desert landforms occur in these aridenvironments of western China at elevationsranging from 155 m below sea level in theTurfan Depression of eastern Xinjiang to manymountainous areas with summits often over 5000 mabove sea level (Zhu

et al

1980 1981 Derbyshire

X Yang J Dong and PD White

Water Resources Management in Ecological Restoration in Western China

147

copy 2006 Institute of Australian Geographers

and Goudie 1997 Jaumlkel 2002) Irrigation projectsand water management issues have been part ofthe entire history of China Agriculture in thewestern part of China generally depends on irri-gation Historical texts and cultural and reli-gious relics suggest that agriculture and oaseshave expanded almost continuously in westernChina over the last 2000 years although theexpansion has almost always been accompaniedby the degradation of cultivated lands

Water issues have also played a significantrole in Chinese culture The Yellow River (HuangHe in Chinese Figure 1) is widely accepted asthe cradle of Chinese civilisation At presenthowever water-related issues have become muchmore serious because of population growth andincreasing per capita water consumption WhileChina is the worldrsquos most populous nation it isalso one of the 13 most water-poor countriesAccording to the World Bank (2005) in 2003internal freshwater resources per capita aver-aged 6895 m

3

globally but were only 2186 m

3

per capita in China These numbers may explain

the continuous efforts which are aimed atmaking better use of water resources in ChinaUsing the areas of the Tarim River in SouthernXinjiang and the Black River (Hei He) in west-ern Gansu and in Inner Mongolia as examplesthis paper provides a preliminary evaluation ofthe background and impacts as well as therecent readjustment of water management prac-tices in western China The critical role of watermanagement in maintaining arid land ecosys-tems in western China is examined emphasisinghow economic or environmental objectives canalter water flows and consequently generatesocietal and ecological benefits and problemsConsiderable efforts have been undertaken topromote the more efficient use of water giventhe number of people who live in the catchmentsof these two inland rivers

Water issues in the Tarim Basin

Oases occur on the margins of the Tarim Basinas a result of the rivers being recharged to a highdegree by the meltwater from snow and glaciers

Figure 1 Location of study areas (Figure 2 and Figure 3) with indications of the various routes for water diversion from thesouth to the north (Source modified from Editorial Committee of National Atlas 1999)

148


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154


in the surrounding mountains (Zhu

et al

1980Yang 2001) Many rivers flowing from themountains dry up in the desert leading to a cen-tripetal drainage pattern (Figure 2) During theLate Quaternary there were periods of muchhigher water availability in the Basin allowingthe formation of large lakes in the sand seas(Yang

et al

2006) The term Tarim Riverusually refers to the 1321 km long river channelbetween the mouth of the Akesu River and LakeTaitema (Figure 2) According to local authoritiesthe Tarim River was able to flow on the north andnortheast margins of the Tarim Basin into LakeTaitema until the 1970s albeit with frequentchanges of riverbed location When Hedin (1904)traveled in this region at the end of nineteenthCentury he observed extensive lakes not only inthe Lop Nuer (Figure 2) but also large lakes inthe inter-dune depressions along the Tarim River

To provide water for agriculture and industryand to generate electricity numerous dams wereconstructed in the catchments of all the regionrsquosrivers (Figure 2) As a result the Tarim Riverbecame recharged almost solely by the AkesuRiver since water from the Yeerqiang and

Hotian Rivers only flows into the Tarim duringthe summer flood season In some years such as2002 no water flowed into the Tarim from theYeerqiang (Hu

et al

2004) although the annualrunoff of the source rivers (Hotian YeerqiangAkesu and Kaidu-Kongque Rivers) has eitherincreased slightly (Xu

et al

1997) or there havebeen no clear trends of variation (Hamid

et al

2000) according to the different analyticalmethods used The runoff of these four sourcerivers measured at the mountainous forelandtotaled 2665

times

10

8

m

3

in 2001 Only 4648

times

10

8

m

3

of this total flowed into the Tarim Riverin the same year (Wang

et al

2003) The meanannual runoff of the Yeerqiang is as high as 739

times

10

8

m

3

but all the water has been used infil-trated or evaporated in its own catchment inrecent years In 1985 there were 16 medium andlarge reservoirs along the Yeerqiang River witha total storage volume of 125

times

10

8

m

3

In addi-tion 10 medium and large reservoirs were con-structed along the main channel of the Tarimwith a total storage capacity of 586

times

10

8

m

3

in1985 (Editorial Committee of the Encyclopediaof Xinjiang 1998) From the 1970s until 2000

Figure 2 Overview of the rivers flowing from the mountains (Shan) into the Tarim Basin forming a centripetal drainagepattern The key reservoirs along the Tarim River and Yeerqiang River are indicated (Source modified from EditorialCommittee of the Encyclopedia of Xinjiang 1998)



149


the river course was desiccated in its lowerreaches because the limited water was largelykept in the reservoirs (Figure 2) with little waterflowing downstream over these three decades

The desiccation of a riverbed may cause aseries of ecological hazards in any environmentbut this is particularly so in arid zones Nodoubt the flora and fauna as well as the econ-omy of local herders suffered directly from thelack of water In addition the depth to ground-water increased dramatically as the surface waterdisappeared In the area between Daxihaizi andLake Taitema the depth to groundwater increasedfrom 7 m in 1973 to 127 m in 1997 accompa-nied by an increase in groundwater salinity from13 g L

minus

1

to 45 g L

minus

1

(China Water 2005) andstrong soil erosion (Feng

et al

2005)As the quality of life has improved in China

in recent years people have gradually turnedtheir attention to the well-being of natural envi-ronments In order to rehabilitate the ecosystemin the lower reaches of the Tarim River the cen-tral government in Beijing decided to invest 10billion Chinese Yuan (about A$17 billion) Oneof the key components of this investment hasbeen to divert water to the lower reaches of theTarim River This water diversion projectbasically consisted of three elements divertingwater from Lake Bosten into the Tarim canali-sation of the Tarim River in its middle reachesand seasonal opening of the water outlet of theDaxihaizi Reservoir (Figure 2) Since April2000 there have been some periods when thewater has been diverted from Lake Bosten to theTarim River It has then flowed from the Daxi-haizi Reservoir into Lake Taitema (Figure 2)After 30 years of dryness Lake Taitema is againfilled with water The restoration of water flowto Lake Taitema is reflected in the increase invegetation coverage along the river course Plantrecovery has taken place in the area where thegroundwater table rises close to the ground sur-face The original plant species such as

Phrag-mites communis

Populus euphratica

and

Tamrixrammosissima

have gradually returned to thisriparian zone (Guo

et al

2002) Rehabilitationof the flora is closely associated with the raisedgroundwater table In the upper part of therestored river more water is available and thegroundwater table has risen over a considerabledistance away from the river bed According toobservations made two years after the com-mencement of water diversion the groundwatertable had risen by

ca

4 m at sites 100 metresaway from the river bed in the upper reaches

(Xu

et al

2003) In addition the quality of theshallow groundwater has improved with itssalinity decreasing rapidly At a monitoring sitenear the water channel salt concentrationsdeclined from 66 g L

minus

1

to 20 g L

minus

1

after the firstphase of water diversion (Xia

et al

2003) Eco-logical recovery appears to be much slower inthe lower reaches probably because the durationof desiccation was longer (Guo

et al

2002)

Water management in the catchments of Black River (Hei He)

The Black River originates from the northernslopes of the Qilian Mountains in the provinceof Qinghai flowing north across the province ofGansu and drying up in western Inner Mongolia(Figure 3) The river in its lower reaches iscalled Ruo Shui meaning lsquoless waterrsquo becauseit becomes an ephemeral stream (Figure 3)The main river course is

ca

850 km long withthe Yingluo and Zhengyi Gorges marking theboundaries for the upper and lower reaches ofthe river respectively (Figure 3) Mean annualprecipitation declines from

ca

350 mm in theupper reaches of the catchment to

ca

140 mmin the middle reaches and

ca

40 mm in thelower reaches Therefore the upper reaches con-tribute most of the volume of the water in theriver In recent years most of the river water hasbeen used for irrigation and domestic consump-tion in the middle reaches because the adjacentland is flat and fertile During the early 18thcentury the water was managed by a systemwhereby local residents were only allowed toextract water from the river in rotation This meantthat there were periods during which water floweddownstream without any extraction occurring inthe middle reaches However the situation hasdeteriorated in the past four decades as agricul-ture has expanded considerably in this section ofthe riverrsquos course

Water management has been further compli-cated by the fact that this area is under thecontrol of two different provinces and an auton-omous region The area located in the lowerreaches of the river and suffering the worstwater shortage is in the autonomous region ofInner Mongolia In the interest of their ownagricultural production different counties andcommunities within the province of Gansu havecompeted strongly for the same water resourcesIn 1995 there were a total of 98 reservoirs ofvarious volumes in the entire catchment of theBlack River including those located on thetributaries of the main river The total storage

150


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154


Figure 3 Overview of the Black Riverrsquos catchments with indications of the key reservoirs both along the main river courseand along its tributaries (Source modified from Editorial Committee of the Encyclopedia of Gansu 1992 2000)



151


volume of these reservoirs reached 456

times

10

8

m

3

in 1995 (Pan and Tian 2001) althoughthe mean annual runoff of the main river is only158

times

10

8

m

3

The large number of dams (Figure4) strongly reflects the conflict between naturalresources and human demands Individual countiesand communities wanted to extract more waterfor themselves preferring economic developmentto environmental protection Many peoplethought they would be provided with water if adam was located in the region

A dam is not only advantageous for storingwater but is also often useful for generatingelectricity Since industrialisation began locallyin the 1950s there has been an increasing demandfor electrical power Because every dam wasexpected to store sufficient water for irrigationand power generation none of these dams couldbe adequately filled The administrators in theupper reaches were often requested to let morewater flow downriver by the people and author-ities downstream Unpleasant events and evenloss of life occurred during the years of droughtbecause the amount of water was insufficient forirrigation This is characteristic of human behav-iour in conditions of resource shortage Theseverity of this issue has been slightly mitigatedin recent years as the costs of agriculture (includ-ing fertilisers and pesticides) have increasedrapidly In line with economic liberalisationyounger generations prefer to explore opportu-nities in urban areas rather than in the country-side The trend of emigration to cities from ruralareas has accompanied economic growth inChina over the last two decades Therefore therelative importance of agriculture and the pres-sure of agricultural demands on water supplieshave decreased slightly in the last decade

Because of the over-exploitation of waterresources in the middle reaches river flow ceased

in the lower reaches for most of the year Theendoreic lakes downstream dried out completelyin the 1980s (Yang 1991) causing severedeterioration of the floodplain ecosystem in thelower reaches For many reasons including thepresence of some 15 000 people living adjacentto the lower reaches of the river of the nearbylocation of an air and space training base of theChinese Army and of the regionrsquos location onthe Chinese-Mongolian border the centralgovernment has paid considerable attention tothe problems of water shortages here A specialgovernmental agency was established with thepower to manage the water of the Black RiverThe central government in Beijing determined acompulsory ratio to ensure that water flowedinto the lower reaches of the Black River Theratio states that 8

times

10

8

m

3

of water should flowthrough the Zhengyi Gorge (Figure 4) if theannual runoff in any one year in the YingluoGorge reaches the mean annual runoff In otherwords about half of the water measured in theupper reaches should reach the area downstreamThe amount of water for the lower reaches variesproportionally with the annual runoff measuredin the Yingluo Gorge and any deficits in thewater budget will be balanced in the subsequentyears This compulsory measure has beenimplemented since 2000 and water again flowsinto the dried lake basin

Complexity of the water issues

Water shortages are by no means a new problemin western China On the northern and easternmargins and in the interior of the TaklamakanDesert a number of cities or oases that wereprosperous during the Han (206 BC

minus

220 AD)and Tang (618ndash907 AD) dynasties were aban-doned soon afterwards due to changes in theriver courses disturbance caused by civil warsor desert encroachments (Zhu

et al

1980 1981)Downstream oases were also abandoned becauseriver flows terminated further upstream duringhistorically dry periods (Mainguet 1994) Mainguet(1994) also emphasised that permanent manage-ment was required and that more attentionshould be given to human settlements becausethe areas around the oases were occupied bygrowing populations

Can the present water diversion projects solvethe fundamental problems of water shortages inwestern China Referring to the case of theTarim River a significant question concerningevery stakeholder is the feasibility of long-termwater diversion from Lake Bosten Agricultural

Figure 4 Profile along the main channel of the BlackRiver showing elevation changes and key reservoirs(Sources based on National Survey Agency 1997 EditorialCommittee of the Encyclopedia of Gansu 1992 2000)

152


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154


production would be drastically reduced if waterwere to be diverted to restore the ecology of thedried lakes and rivers Looking back at the veryrecent history of China one would like to pointout that the intensive use of the water in this aridenvironment was not a simple human mistakegiven that a large number of residents have madea living from agricultural or industrial activitiesthat depended on the water stored in the variousdams In the 1970s thousands of young peopleemigrated from the cities of eastern China into theTarim Basin and jointly contributed to agriculturaland industrial development in this arid region

The history of water use in the Tarim Basinreflects the complexity of interactions betweenpeople (and politics) and nature Even in termsof the overuse of water for irrigation the waterdoes help to recharge the groundwater reservesthat are crucial for the desert vegetation Waterfrom these dams made rapid development bothin farming and in urbanisation a reality For exam-ple the irrigated area increased from 348 000 hm

2

in 1950 to 1 255 300 hm

2

in 1998 in the catch-ments of the Akesu Yeerqiang and Hotian RiversThe population increased from 156 million in1950 to 392 million in 1998 in the same region(Li

et al

2001) The towns have been transformedfrom small administrative centres of counties intolarge modern cities For example at the beginningof the 20th Century there was only one place(the British Consulate in Kashi) in the entireTarim Basin where one could take a shower

Viewing the entire situation in the TarimBasin the present project of water diversion hasbrought benefits to the lower reaches of theTarim River but may result in ecological disas-ters in the middle reaches in the near futureFirst the water quality and lake level of LakeBosten will change Second canalisation of theTarim River in its middle reaches will impedethe recharging of the groundwater ultimatelyleading to vegetation loss and land degradationon the northern margin of the basin

There is no doubt that there will be a rapidincrease of vegetation in the floodplain of thelower reaches of the Black River in comingyears thanks to water diversions But social andeconomic problems will still exist because agri-cultural production in the middle reaches alsoneeds the water At present every farmer isallowed to use only a certain amount of waterfor irrigation through a system of water tickets(Chen

et al

2005) One of the great benefitsrelated to the water diversion project is that thelocal residentsrsquo attitudes toward the water-saving

concept have become increasingly focused asthe water became less available Some farmershave abandoned crop production and have startedanimal grazing in the newly re-establishedrangeland Given the difficulty of finding alter-native occupations for the farmers the onset ofovergrazing in the newly irrigated land is almostunavoidable Animal husbandry often brings moreincome to the local residents than does crop pro-duction In addition people in the middle reachesare now challenged with the need to adopt newwater-saving technologies for agriculture In themiddle reaches of the Black River as in the areaof the Tarim River the population and irrigationarea have increased tremendously over the lastfive decades The number of residents and thearea of irrigation were

ca

90 000 and 4700 hm

2

respectively during the Han Dynasty (206 BC

minus

220 AD) 550 000 and 68 700 hm

2

in the 1950sand 121 million and 222 700 hm

2

in 2003 (Chang2003)

While northern China is often troubled bydrought many places in southern China are fre-quently damaged by flooding To make betteruse of surplus water in the south and to over-come water shortages in the north the idea ofdiverting water from the south to the north hasbeen discussed for over half a century (Yang andPretzsch 1999) Beijingrsquos successful bid for theOlympics in 2008 has given added momentumto the implementation of this mega-plan Threeroutes have been designed to bring water fromthe south to the north (see Sheng

et al

2004 fora short overview) The middle route extendsfrom a tributary of the Yangtze to Beijing andthe eastern route crosses the eastern China low-lands (Figure 1) Construction of channels alongthe eastern and middle routes began in Decem-ber 2002 and December 2003 respectively Itseems that the western route could help to solvethe water problem in northwestern China (Tanand Cui 2004) but its ecological impact wouldbe immense In addition the western route wouldbe the most difficult in construction terms becauseit has to traverse mountains with altitudesexceeding 6000 m

Clear challenges for the scientific communities

The Chinese scientific communities have to bearin mind that the failure of land planning andwater management in many parts of Chinaincluding the cases in the areas of the TarimRiver and the Black River has not been causedsolely by administrators or politicians Disputes



153


about land use in the arid zones of westernChina also arise from differences of opinionamong scientists over the availability of waterDam construction was often envisaged as ameans of developing the economy The presentdiversion of water from Lake Bosten to LakeTaitema indicates that in this case the decision-makers have accepted that the views of ecolo-gists should have priority at the present timethus favouring environmental protection overeconomic development With regard to watermanagement political motivation has been thedecisive factor in China for thousands of yearsAfter the founding of the Peoplesrsquo Republic ofChina in 1949 the production of grains was thesingle dominant sector in Chinese agricultureWater has been used mainly to increase GrossDomestic Product (GDP) in both agriculture andindustry in western China for decades In recentyears a scientific assessment of national devel-opment or of so-called green GDP has beenemphasised in Chinese communities Thereforeit is now also well understood by Chinesedecision-makers that a certain amount of watershould be returned to the natural ecosystemsHowever the conflicts between the three mainwater uses ndash for urban life and industry foragriculture and for ecosystems ndash have not beenresolved Although water consumption has beenconsiderably reduced in agriculture as a result ofthe growing efficiency of irrigation methodspopulations in cities such as Kuerle Akesu andKashi (Figure 2) will continue to increase becauseurbanisation is part of the national developmentplan It is forecast that the number of urban res-idents in Kuerle will increase to half a millionby 2010 and that this cityrsquos annual water con-sumption for life and industry would reach 2

times

10

8

m

3

by that time (Xia

et al

2003) Thereforethe sustainability of the restoration of the lowerreaches of the river has not been ensured Con-sequently achieving long-term security for LakeTaitema might be somewhat unattainable

Water loss by evaporation from reservoirs inarid zones is considerable Therefore scientistshave recently suggested to the National PeoplersquosCongress of China that dams be built in theupper reaches of rivers The loss of water viaevaporation would be much lower if dams werelocated in the mountains given their colder cli-matic regimes But construction costs will bemuch higher owing to the lack of infrastructureIn fact all the existing water diversion projectswere initiated or at least supported by well-known scientists Decades ago a paper written by

an authoritative Chinese scientist and publishedin a leading Chinese newspaper emphasised thatthere was sufficient groundwater in the TarimBasin for both agriculture and industry Theopposite has proven to be the case Today workersin the Taklamakan are dependant on water fromthe desert margins because groundwater in thedesert interior is too salty to drink

In the case of the Black River desiccation ofthe lower reaches is mostly interpreted as theconsequence of water shortages It has been sug-gested that the groundwater in the Badain JaranDesert located to the east of the Black River ispalaeo-water from wetter periods during theQuaternary (Yang 2002) However other research-ers have denied this palaeo-feature of the groundwater They stated that there are active and rapidrecharges of groundwater in the lower reaches ofthe Black River (Chen

et al

2004) They arguedthat water could be extracted from groundwaterto rehabilitate the ecosystems and that thediversion project would not be necessary

Conacher (2002) emphasised the importanceof complex skills in producing and implement-ing a management strategy for catchmentsUnfortunately it appears that discussions amongscientists with different backgrounds and opin-ions have only been attempted on a modest scalein China There is more than one case whereinfluential experts have preferred to talk directlywith decision-makers rather than to consult withother colleagues beforehand The development andrehabilitation histories of the catchments of theBlack River and the Tarim River indicate thatthere is a strong need for collaboration and mutualrespect among experts in the social and physicalsciences if both economic growth and ecologicalsecurity are to be achieved

Conclusion

The recent histories of areas of the Tarim Riverand the Black River catchments of western Chinaclearly demonstrate the complexity and conflictsinherent in regional development strategies Inarid environments water is the most significantphysical factor influencing the success of everyeconomic or ecological project In the studyarea it appears that there has been strong andlongstanding competition for water for economicand ecological needs In accordance with thenational effort for environmental protection inrecent years giant projects of water diversionare being carried out in order to rehabilitate eco-systems in western China However the diver-sion of irrigation water in favour of ecological

154


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154


rehabilitation may seriously impact both theeconomy and the society in the middle reachesof the desert river courses in the near future Thescientific community is now facing strongchallenges to provide both reliable informationabout the natural environment and truly inte-grated appraisals of the various water use plans

ACKNOWLEDGMENTSWe would like to thank the National Natural Science Foun-dation of China for financial support (Grant no 4042501140271118) Sincere thanks are extended also to two anonymousreviewers and to the editors for constructive suggestions andfor linguistic help

REFERENCESChang B 2003 Technological practice and effects of water

diversion in the Black River Water Resources and Hydro-power Engineering 34 41ndash43 (in Chinese)

Chen J Li L Wang J Barry D Sheng X Gu WZhao X and Chen L 2004 Groundwater maintainsdune landscape Nature 432 459

Chen Y Zhang D Sun Y Liu X Wang N and SavenijeH 2005 Water demand management a case study of theHeihe River basin in China Physics and Chemistry of theEarth 30 408ndash419

China Water 2005 Retrieved 1 September 2005 fromlthttpwwwChinaWaternetcngt

Conacher A 2002 A role for geomorphology in integratedcatchment management Australian Geographical Studies40 179ndash195

Derbyshire E and Goudie A 1997 Asia In Thomas D(ed) Arid Zone Geomorphology Wiley Chichester 2nded 487ndash506

Domroumls M and Peng G 1988 The Climate of ChinaSpringer Berlin

Editorial Committee of the Encyclopedia of Gansu 1992Encyclopedia of Gansu (Volume about meteorology)Gansu Peoplesrsquo Press Lanzhou (in Chinese)

Editorial Committee of the Encyclopedia of Gansu 2000Encyclopedia of Gansu (Volume about construction)Gansu Peoplesrsquo Press Lanzhou (in Chinese)

Editorial Committee of National Atlas 1999 NationalNature Atlas of P R China China Cartographic PressBeijing (in Chinese)

Editorial Committee of the Encyclopedia of Xinjiang 1998Encyclopedia of Xinjiang (Volume about water resources)Xinjiang Peoplesrsquo Press Urumuqi (in Chinese)

Feng Q Liu W Si J Su Y Zhang Y Cang Z and Xi H2005 Environmental effects of water resource develop-ment and use in the Tarim River basin of northwesternChina Environmental Geology 48 202ndash210

Guo Y Xu Y Ma Y 2002 Ecological benefits of theemergency stream water feeding to the lower reaches ofTarim River Xinjiang Arid Land Geography 25 237ndash240(in Chinese)

Hamid Y Tashpolat T and Xiong H 2000 Analysis onannual variation and seasonal change of runoff from waterresources utilization in the interior rivers ndash the case ofTarim River Geographical Research 19 271ndash276 (inChinese)

Hedin S 1904 Scientific Results of a Journey in CentralAsia 1899ndash1902 Vol I The Tarim River Kungl Boktry-ckeriet PA Norstedt and Soener Stockholm

Hu R Wang D Feng G Wang Y Wang S and Zhang X2004 Avoidance of the river channel dried-up tragedy in

the lower reaches of the Tarim River to occur in its middlereaches Arid Zone Research 21 199ndash203 (in Chinese)

Jaumlkel D 2002 Storeys of aeolian relief in North Africa andChina In Yang X (ed) Desert and Alpine Environmentsndash Advances in Geomorphology and PalaeoclimatologyDedicated to Juumlrgen Houmlvermann China Ocean PressBeijing 6ndash21

Li Y Yang Q and Guan C 2001 Effects of irrigationdistrict reform for water saving on regulation of TalimuRiver basin Water Resources and Hydropower in ChineseRural Areas 6 4ndash8 (in Chinese)

Mainguet M 1994 Desertification ndash Natural Backgroundand Human Mismanagement Springer-Verlag Berlin andHeidelberg 2nd ed

National Survey Agency 1997 Maps of China 11 000 000China Cartographic Press Beijing

Pan Q and Tian S 2001 Water Resources in the Catch-ments of Black River Huang Hersquos Water Resources PressZhengzhou (in Chinese)

Sheng H Guo Z and Zhai Q 2004 Summary of engi-neering planning for south-to-north water transfer projectJournal of Water Resources and Architectural Engineering 236ndash39 (in Chinese)

Tan Y and Cui Q 2004 Comprehensive arrangement andemphatic importance to make the planning of westernroute water diversion South-to-North Water Transfers andWater Science amp Technology 2 1ndash4 (in Chinese)

Wang Y Li M Wang J Wang J Mao W and WangS 2003 Hydrological regimes of four source rivers andmainstream of Tarim River Xinjiang in 2001 Journal ofGlaciology and Geocryology 25 401ndash408 (in Chinese)

World Bank 2005 2005 World Development Indicators 3Environment Retrieved 30 August 2005 from lthttpwwwworldbankorgdatawdi2005wditext Table3_5htmgt

Xia J Zuo Q and Shao M 2003 The Sustainable Utili-zation of Water Resources in Bosten Lake ndash Theory Practiceand Method Science Press Beijing (in Chinese)

Xu H Chen Y and Yang G 2003 Effect of translatingwater on vegetation at the Lower Reaches of Tarim RiverEnvironmental Science 24 18ndash22 (in Chinese)

Xu G Yao H and Li S 1997 The present climate changein arid and semi-arid regions of China Quaternary Sciences2 105ndash114 (in Chinese)

Yang X 1991 Geomorphologische Untersuchungen inTrockenraumlumen NW-Chinas unter besonderer Beruumlck-sichtigung von Badanjilin und Takelamagan GoumlttingerGeographische Abhandlungen 96 1ndash124

Yang X 2001 The oases along the Keriya River in theTaklamakan Desert China and their evolution since theend of the last glaciation Environmental Geology 41314ndash320

Yang X 2002 Changes of the aridity index in the aridregions of northwestern China since the Late Pleistocenendash an understanding based on climatic geomorphologyZeitschrift fuumlr Geomorphologie NF Suppl-Bd 126169ndash181

Yang X and Pretzsch K 1999 Die ChinesischeDrei-Schulchten-Talsperre Geooumlkodynamik 20 231ndash243

Yang X Preusser F and Radtke U 2006 Late Quaternaryenvironmental changes in the Taklamakan Desert westernChina inferred from OSL dated lacustrine and aeoliandeposits Quaternary Science Reviews (in press)

Zhu Z Chen Z Wu Z Li J Li B and Wu G 1981Study on the Geomorphology of Wind-drift Sands in theTaklamakan Desert Science Press Beijing (in Chinese)

Zhu Z Wu Z Liu S and Di X 1980 An Outline ofChinese Deserts Science Press Beijing (in Chinese)



147


and Goudie 1997 Jaumlkel 2002) Irrigation projectsand water management issues have been part ofthe entire history of China Agriculture in thewestern part of China generally depends on irri-gation Historical texts and cultural and reli-gious relics suggest that agriculture and oaseshave expanded almost continuously in westernChina over the last 2000 years although theexpansion has almost always been accompaniedby the degradation of cultivated lands

Water issues have also played a significantrole in Chinese culture The Yellow River (HuangHe in Chinese Figure 1) is widely accepted asthe cradle of Chinese civilisation At presenthowever water-related issues have become muchmore serious because of population growth andincreasing per capita water consumption WhileChina is the worldrsquos most populous nation it isalso one of the 13 most water-poor countriesAccording to the World Bank (2005) in 2003internal freshwater resources per capita aver-aged 6895 m

3

globally but were only 2186 m

3

per capita in China These numbers may explain

the continuous efforts which are aimed atmaking better use of water resources in ChinaUsing the areas of the Tarim River in SouthernXinjiang and the Black River (Hei He) in west-ern Gansu and in Inner Mongolia as examplesthis paper provides a preliminary evaluation ofthe background and impacts as well as therecent readjustment of water management prac-tices in western China The critical role of watermanagement in maintaining arid land ecosys-tems in western China is examined emphasisinghow economic or environmental objectives canalter water flows and consequently generatesocietal and ecological benefits and problemsConsiderable efforts have been undertaken topromote the more efficient use of water giventhe number of people who live in the catchmentsof these two inland rivers

Water issues in the Tarim Basin

Oases occur on the margins of the Tarim Basinas a result of the rivers being recharged to a highdegree by the meltwater from snow and glaciers

Figure 1 Location of study areas (Figure 2 and Figure 3) with indications of the various routes for water diversion from thesouth to the north (Source modified from Editorial Committee of National Atlas 1999)

148


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154



et al


et al




et al


et al


et al


times

10

8

m

3

in 2001 Only 4648

times

10

8

m

3


et al


times

10

8

m

3


times

10

8

m

3


times

10

8

m

3





149




minus

1

to 45 g L

minus

1


et al




Populus euphratica

and

Tamrixrammosissima


et al


ca


(Xu

et al


minus

1

to 20 g L

minus

1


et al


et al

2002)



ca


ca


ca


ca



150


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154





151



times

10

8

m

3


times

10

8

m

3





times

10

8

m

3




minus


et al




152


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154




2

in 1950 to 1 255 300 hm

2


et al




et al



ca

90 000 and 4700 hm

2


minus

220 AD) 550 000 and 68 700 hm

2


2

in 2003 (Chang2003)


et al






153



times

10

8

m

3

by that time (Xia

et al





et al



Conclusion


154


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154









































148


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154



et al


et al




et al


et al


et al


times

10

8

m

3

in 2001 Only 4648

times

10

8

m

3


et al


times

10

8

m

3


times

10

8

m

3


times

10

8

m

3





149




minus

1

to 45 g L

minus

1


et al




Populus euphratica

and

Tamrixrammosissima


et al


ca


(Xu

et al


minus

1

to 20 g L

minus

1


et al


et al

2002)



ca


ca


ca


ca



150


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154





151



times

10

8

m

3


times

10

8

m

3





times

10

8

m

3




minus


et al




152


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154




2

in 1950 to 1 255 300 hm

2


et al




et al



ca

90 000 and 4700 hm

2


minus

220 AD) 550 000 and 68 700 hm

2


2

in 2003 (Chang2003)


et al






153



times

10

8

m

3

by that time (Xia

et al





et al



Conclusion


154


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154











































149




minus

1

to 45 g L

minus

1


et al




Populus euphratica

and

Tamrixrammosissima


et al


ca


(Xu

et al


minus

1

to 20 g L

minus

1


et al


et al

2002)



ca


ca


ca


ca



150


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154





151



times

10

8

m

3


times

10

8

m

3





times

10

8

m

3




minus


et al




152


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154




2

in 1950 to 1 255 300 hm

2


et al




et al



ca

90 000 and 4700 hm

2


minus

220 AD) 550 000 and 68 700 hm

2


2

in 2003 (Chang2003)


et al






153



times

10

8

m

3

by that time (Xia

et al





et al



Conclusion


154


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154









































150


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154





151



times

10

8

m

3


times

10

8

m

3





times

10

8

m

3




minus


et al




152


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154




2

in 1950 to 1 255 300 hm

2


et al




et al



ca

90 000 and 4700 hm

2


minus

220 AD) 550 000 and 68 700 hm

2


2

in 2003 (Chang2003)


et al






153



times

10

8

m

3

by that time (Xia

et al





et al



Conclusion


154


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154











































151



times

10

8

m

3


times

10

8

m

3





times

10

8

m

3




minus


et al




152


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154




2

in 1950 to 1 255 300 hm

2


et al




et al



ca

90 000 and 4700 hm

2


minus

220 AD) 550 000 and 68 700 hm

2


2

in 2003 (Chang2003)


et al






153



times

10

8

m

3

by that time (Xia

et al





et al



Conclusion


154


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154









































152


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154




2

in 1950 to 1 255 300 hm

2


et al




et al



ca

90 000 and 4700 hm

2


minus

220 AD) 550 000 and 68 700 hm

2


2

in 2003 (Chang2003)


et al






153



times

10

8

m

3

by that time (Xia

et al





et al



Conclusion


154


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154











































153



times

10

8

m

3

by that time (Xia

et al





et al



Conclusion


154


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154









































154


bull

June 2006

bull

44(2)146ndash154









































the key role of water resources management in ecological restoration in western china

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