Hydrogeochemical and isotopic characteristics of spring water in the Yarlung Zangbo River Basin, Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, Southwest China

The Yarlung Zangbo River Basin(YZRB)is situated in the southern part of the Tibetan Plateau and remains in a mostly natural state.To understand the chemical characteristics of spring water and its controlling factors in the YZRB,68 sets of spring water samples were analyzed using hydrochemical and isotopic techniques.The spring water was found to be slightly alkaline with total dissolved solids(TDS)below 1000 mg L−1.Major ions were Mg2+,Ca2+,SO42−,and HCO3−.The spring water types in this basin were determined to be HCO3-Ca·Mg and SO4·Cl-Ca·Mg.Ion exchange and dissolution of carbonate,gypsum,and silicate were identified as the prevalent hydrogeochemical processes contributing and defining spring water chemistry in this basin.Saturation indices(SI)of most major minerals studied in this region were below zero,indicating that these minerals remain under-saturated in the spring water in this area.Overall,the rank of different processes in terms of their contribution to the chemical composition of spring water in the YZRB was carbonate weathering>evaporate dissolution>silicate weathering>precipitation input.The content of 18O in spring water ranged from−22.22‰to−14.08‰with a mean of−18.15‰.Samples collected below and close to the local and global meteoric water lines indicated that spring water in this area is derived from meteoric water with chemistry affected by evaporation.

Basic Characteristics of Waterfalls in the Yarlung Zangbo River

The Great Bent in the lower reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo River in Tibet houses the largest fluvial gorge in the world. On October 18, 1998, the Chinese government named the gorge the Grand Canyon of the Yarlung Zangbo. Later, from October to December, the first trekking exploration through the canyon was successfully conducted by a group of Chinese scientists. In the meantime, the scientists carfled out a multi-disciplinary and comprehensive survey and made many discoveries in the region.

Quantitative Classification and Ordination of Plant Communities in the Upper and Middle Reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo River Basin

Based on vegetation survey data and environmental data of the Yarlung Zangbo River Basin, we conducted a quantitative ecological analysis of the vegetation community composition and the relationship between species and the environment in the study area. The results showed that 44 sampling sites and 68 plant species in the study area can be classified into seven subtypes: Artemisia minor + Stipa purpurea;Artemisia demissa + Stipa purpurea + Artemisia wellbyi;Kobresia pygmaea;Trikeraia hookeri;Sophora moorcroftiana + Cotoneaster multiflorus + Pennisetum centrasiaticum;Artemisia frigida;Potentilla fruticosa + Orinus thoroldii. Detrended correspondence analysis(DCA) indicated that both longitude and altitude play important roles in site and species distribution patterns. In addition, canonical correspondence analysis(CCA) revealed that in the upper and middle reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo River Basin, changes in temperature and precipitation caused by longitude are the main factors controlling the formation and transition of vegetation community types. Moreover, natural vegetation could be divided into three types: desert steppe community(source area), alpine steppe community(middle reaches region), and shrub community(confluence of Yarlung Zangbo River and Nyangqu River).