Spatially Heterogeneous Response of Carbon Storage to Land Use Changes in Pearl River Delta Urban Agglomeration, China

Carbon storage of terrestrial ecosystems plays a vital role in advancing carbon neutrality. Better understanding of how land use changes affect carbon storage in urban agglomeration will provide valuable guidance for policymakers in developing effective regional conservation policies. Taking the Pearl River Delta Urban Agglomeration(PRDUA) in China as an example, we examined the heterogeneous response of carbon storage to land use changes in 1990–2018 from a combined view of administrative units and physical entities. The results indicate that the primary change in land use was due to the expansion of construction land(5897.16 km2). The carbon storage in PRDUA decreased from 767.34 Tg C in 1990 to 725.42 Tg C in 2018 with a spatial pattern of high wings and the low middle. The carbon storage loss was largely attributed to construction land expansion(55.74%), followed by forest degradation(54.81%). Changes in carbon storage showed significant divergences in different sized cities and hierarchical boundaries. The coefficients of geographically weighted regression(GWR) reveal that the alteration in carbon storage in Guangzhou City was more responsive to changes in construction land(-0.11) compared to other cities, while that in Shenzhen was mainly affected by the dynamics of forest land(8.32). The change in carbon storage was primarily influenced by the conversion of farmland within urban extent(5.05) and the degradation of forest land in rural areas(5.82). Carbon storage changes were less sensitive to the expansion of construction land in the urban center, urban built-up area, and ex-urban built-up area, with the corresponding GWR coefficients of 0.19, 0.04, and 0.02. This study necessitates the differentiated protection strategies of carbon storage in urban agglomerations.

Anthropogenic disturbance of aquatic biodiversity and water quality of an urban river in Penang, Malaysia

Malaysia's rapid economic and demographic development have placed negative pressure on its water supplies and the quality of the Juru River, which is close to the nation's capital and its major source of water. Healthy aquatic ecosystems are supported by physicochemical properties and biological diversity. This study evaluated the anthropogenic impacts on aquatic biodiversity, especially plankton, fish, and macrobenthos, as well as the water quality of the Juru River in the Penang area. Aquatic biodiversity and river water parameters were collected from ten sampling stations along the Juru River. Seven variables were used to assess the physicochemical environment: pH, temperature, total suspended solids (TSS), salinity, dissolved oxygen (DO), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), and chemical oxygen demand. At each sampling station, the total number of plankton, fish, and macrobenthic taxa were counted and analyzed. The relationships between the physicochemical parameters and aquatic biodiversity were investigated with biotypological analysis, principal component analysis, hierarchical cluster analysis, and linear regression analysis. These analyses showed that the richness and diversity indices were generally influenced by salinity, temperature, TSS, BOD, and pH. The data obtained in this study supported the bioindicator concept. The findings, as they related to scientifically informed conservation, could serve as a model for Juru River management, as well as for river management throughout Malaysia and other tropical Asian countries.

Impact of urban expansion on regional temperature change in the Yangtze River Delta

Based on non-radiance-calibrated DMSP/OLS nighttime light imagery from 1992 to 2003, urban land area statistical data, meteorological data and land surface temperature data retrieved by MODIS and NOAA/AVHRR data, the influence of urbanization on regional climatic trend cf temperature in the Yangtze River Delta （YRD） was analyzed. Conclusions are as follows： 1） There is a significant urbanization process from 1992 to 2003 in the YRD. Four city clusters of Nanjing-Zhenjiang-Yangzhou, Suzhou-Wuxi-Changzhou, Shanghai and Hangzhou Bay form a zigzag city belt. The increase rate of annual mean air temperature in city-belt is 0.28-0.44℃/10a from 1991 to 2005, which is far larger than that of non-city-belt. 2） The urban heat island （UHI） effect on regional mean air temperature in different seasons is summer〉autumn〉spring〉winter. 3） The UHI intensity and the urban total population logarithm are creditably correlated. 4） The UHI effect made the regional annual mean air temperature increased 0.072℃ from 1961 to 2005, of which 0.047℃ from 1991 to 2005, and the annual maximum air temperature increased 0.162℃, of which 0.083℃ from 1991 to 2005. All these indicating that the urban expansion in the YRD from 1991 to 2005 may be regarded as a serious climate signal.

Impacts of Weather Conditions Modified by Urban Expansion on Surface Ozone: Comparison between the Pearl River Delta and Yangtze River Delta Regions

In this paper, the online weather research and forecasting and chemistry （WRF-Chem） model is used to explore the impacts of urban expansion on regional weather conditions and its implication on surface ozone concentrations over the Pearl River Delta（PRD） and Yangtze River Delta（YRD） regions. Two scenarios of urban maps are used in the WRF-Chem to represent the early 1990s （pre-urbanization） and the current urban distribution in the PRD and the YRD. Month-long simulation results using the above land-use scenarios for March 2001 show that urbanization increases both the day- and night-time 2-m temperatures by about 0.6℃and 1.4℃, respectively. Daytime reduction in the wind speed by about 3.0 m s-1 is larger than that for the nighttime （0.5 to 2 m s-1）. The daytime increase in the PBL height （〉 200 m） is also larger than the nighttime （50-100 m）. The meteorological conditions modified by urbanization lead to detectable ozone-concentration changes in the PRD and the YRD. Urbanization increases the nighttime surface-ozone concentrations by about 4.7%-8.5% and by about 2.9%-4.2% for the daytime. In addition to modifying individual meteorological variables, urbanization also enhances the convergence zones, especially in the PRD. More importantly, urbanization has different effects on the surface ozone for the PRD and the YRD, presumably due to their urbanization characteristics and geographical locations. Even though the PRD has a smaller increase in the surface temperature than the YRD, it has （a） weaker surface wind speed, （b） smaller increase in PBL heights, and （c） stronger convergence zones. The latter three factors outweighed the temperature increase and resulted in a larger ozone enhancement in the PRD than the YRD.

Clean-up and disposal process of polluted sediments from urban rivers

In this paper, the discussion is concentrated on the properties of the polluted sediments and the combination of clean-up and disposal process for the upper layer heavily polluted sediments with good flowability. Based on the systematic analyses of various clean-up processes, a suitable engineering process has been evaluated and recommended. The process has been applied to the river reclamation in Yangpu District of Shanghai City, China. An improved centrifuge is used for dewatering the dredged sludge, which plays an important role in the combination of clean-up and disposal process. The assessment of the engineering process shows its environmental and technical economy feasibility, which is much better than that of traditional dredging-disposal processes.

Urban and river flooding:Comparison of flood risk management approaches in the UK and China and an assessment of future knowledge needs

Increased urbanisation,economic growth,and long-term climate variability have made both the UK and China more susceptible to urban and river flooding,putting people and property at increased risk.This paper presents a review of the current flooding challenges that are affecting the UK and China and the actions that each country is undertaking to tackle these problems.Particular emphases in this paper are laid on(1)learning from previous flooding events in the UK and China,and(2)which management methodologies are commonly used to reduce flood risk.The paper concludes with a strategic research plan suggested by the authors,together with proposed ways to overcome identified knowledge gaps in flood management.Recommendations briefly comprise the engagement of all stakeholders to ensure a proactive approach to land use planning,early warning systems,and water-sensitive urban design or redesign through more effective policy,multi-level flood models,and data driven models of water quantity and quality.

Evaluation of urban river landscape design rationality based on AHP

An evaluation model for the rationality of the landscape design of urban rivers was established with the analytic hierarchy process （AHP） method so as to provide a foundation for updating the landscape design of urban rivers. The evaluation system was divided into four layers, including the target layer, the comprehensive layer, the element layer, and the index layer. Each layer was made of different indices. The evaluation standards for each index were also given in this paper. This evaluation model was proved tenable through its application to the landscape design rationality evaluation of the Weihe River in Xinxiang City of Henan Province. The results show that the water quality, space, activity, facility, community, width of vegetation, sense of beauty and water content are among the most influential factors and should be considered the main basis for evaluating the rationality of the landscape design of urban rivers.

Impact of Ecological Corridor Construction on Urban Space-A Case Study of Fen River Park in Taiyuan City

With the city development and construction, ecological corridor has become one of the most attractive areas in urban districts. Ecological corridor has produced not only ecological benefits, but also economic benefits and social benefits, especially banded ecological park. By analyzing the impact of Fen River Park on leisure space, living space, communication space, commercial space of Taiyuan, and expounding shortcomings of constructing Fen River Ecological Corridor, countermeasures and suggestions were put forward.

Tows Matrix Analysis on Developing Urban Agriculture in the Pearl River Delta Area

Based on the introduction of the profile of Pearl River Delta area, the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of developing urban agricultural in Pearl River Delta area are analyzed by using the SWOT analysis. The strengths are analyzed from three aspects, covering natural resources, geographic advantages and technological advantages; the weaknesses are analyzed from the terms of land resources, labor cost, industrial scale and quality of personnel involved; opportunities are analyzed from the aspects of potential clients, favorable policies and markets; the threats are analyzed from two aspects, including concept factor and income gap between urban and rural areas. on the basis of the above analyses, the countermeasures and suggestions on the development of urban agriculture in the Pearl River Delta area are put forward.

Suitable Weir Heights to Improve the Provision of Environmental Flows in Urban Rivers

Many studies have been conducted on environmental flow(e-flow)assessment and supply,but e-flow shortages remain common in many urban rivers.In addition to known reasons such as ever-increasing competition among water users and inadequate execution of designed e-flow supply plans,we propose that designing weir heights without explicitly considering e-flows is another major cause of this problem.In this paper,we suggest that the measures for satisfying e-flows be extended from the water supply stage to the river channel design stage.We establish a new weir height determination framework that would more effectively satisfy the required e-flows.The new framework differs from previous frameworks,in which flood control and water retention are the major concerns and the flow during floods is set as the inflow.In the new framework,e-flow provision and flow velocity maintenance are added concerns and the actual flows for e-flow supply are set as the inflow.As a case study of the new framework’s effectiveness,we applied it to the Shiwuli River,a typical channelized urban river in Hefei,China.The old framework specified too-high weir height to meet the e-flow requirements,whereas the new framework offered more reasonable heights that improved e-flow provision.

Spatio-temporal evolution and factor explanatory power analysis of urban resilience in the Yangtze River Economic Belt

Urban resilience assesses a city’s ability to withstand unknown risks.Scholars are not comprehensive in assessing urban resilience,and they lack consideration of population resilience.This study investigated 110 prefecturelevel cities in the Yangtze River Economic Belt(YREB)as study areas.We calculated the YREB’s level of urban resilience based on the aspects of“economy-society-population-ecology-infrastructure”,which ensured that the comprehensive evaluation of urban resilience is complete and sufficient.The spatio-temporal evolution of urban resilience was analyzed using exploratory spatial data.Geodetectors were used to investigate the impact of several indicators,focusing on economic,social,population,ecological,and infrastructure factors,on urban resilience.The results showed that the urban resilience of the YREB has maintained a slow upward trend from 2005 to 2018,and the average urban resilience of the YREB has risen from 0.2442 to 0.2560.The resilience gap between cities in the study region increased initially and then decreased.The dominant factor in the spatial differentiation of urban resilience was the economic factors,followed by the population factors.Urban resilience has been clarified and an evaluation index system is constructed,which can provide an effective reference for the evaluation of urban resilience among countries around the world.Based on this,factors that optimize urban resilience are configured,and the regional and national sustainable development can be promoted.

Urbanization effect on precipitation over the Pearl River Delta based on CMORPH data

Based on the satellite data from the Climate Prediction Center morphing(CMORPH) at very high spatial and temporal resolution, the effects of urbanization on precipitation were assessed over the Pearl River Delta(PRD) metropolitan regions of China. CMORPH data well estimates the precipitation features over the PRD. Compared to the surrounding rural areas, the PRD urban areas experience fewer and shorter precipitation events with a lower precipitation frequency(ratio of rainy hours, about 3 days per year less); however, short-duration heavy rain events play a more significant role over the PRD urban areas. Afternoon precipitation is much more pronounced over the PRD urban areas than the surrounding rural areas, which is probably because of the increase in short-duration heavy rain over urban areas.

The influence of urbanization on karst rivers based on nutrient concentration and nitrate dual isotopes： an example from southwestern China

China is experiencing rapid urbanization that has changed the water quality of rivers, especially nutrient loads. In this study, a typical urban river located in a karst area, Chengguan River, was chosen to explore the influence of urbanization on river ecosystems based on nutrient concentration and nitrate isotopes. The results show monthly variability of water chemistry and nutrient concentration. Nutrient concentration in two tributaries and the mainstem showed significant spatial variability, with heavy N and P pollution in one tributary near a suburban area,indicating a response to different levels of urbanization.Measurements of nitrate dual isotopes suggest thatvolatilization, assimilation, nitrification, and denitrification all occur in the polluted river. Water chemistry and nitrate isotopes show that major nitrogen sources included domestic waste and agricultural input, such as chemical fertilizer and manure. The results suggest that urbanization increases nutrient concentrations and accelerates the riverine nitrogen dynamic, and point to the need to manage point sources of sewage effluents to improve the water quality of urban rivers in southwestern China.

Relationship Between Producer Services Developing Level and Urban Hierarchy——A Case Study of Zhujiang River Delta

As the Central Place Theory indicates, the centricity of a central city can influence the extension of its ser- vice. Since the service industry in the theory is mostly consumer services, it is worth studying the relationship between the producer services and the centricity of the city in the service society with producer services becoming a more im- portant part of the service industry. The paper takes the case of the Zhujiang (Pearl) River Delta (PRD), a developed region in China, to study the relationship between the developing level of producer services and the urban hierarchy. Based on the analysis about the spatial difference of the producer services in the nine cities of the PRD, and the divi- sion of the nine cities according to some economic indices, it is shown that there is a correlation between the develop- ing level of producer services and the urban hierarchy. Furthermore, two deductions about the future status of the pro- ducer services in the city and the location of the producer services in a large region can be made from this correlation between the developing level of producer services and the urban hierarchy.

Effects of Aeration on Nitrification Process in a Polluted Urban River

[Objective] The study aimed to discuss the effects of aeration on nitrification process in a polluted urban river, [Metbod] Through indoor simulation experiments, the effects of different aeration conditions （aerating water named Ew, aerating sediment named Es ） on nitrification process in a polluted urban river were studied.[ Result]The nitrification of the control group named Ec proceeded slowly, while two kinds of aeration promo- ted the process of nitrification, that is, the peak values of nitrate nitrogen of Ew and Es group were respectively 5.15 and 3.83 times that of Ec group. During aeration, NO2 --N accumulation in the overlying water of Ew and Es group lasted for 10 and 14 days separately, and the maximum concentrations reached 11.41 and 7.41 mg/L respectively. Nitrification process was not consistent during the two aeration conditions, that is, the rate of nitrite oxidation in Ew group was faster than that in Es group. Denitrification process was significant after aeration, and the concentration of nitrate nitrogen in Ew and Es group was 1.26 and 2.82 mg/L respectively at the end of the experiment. [ Conclusion]The research could provide scientific references for the restoration of polluted urban rivers.

Spatial Effect of Mineral Resources Exploitation on Urbanization:A Case Study of Tarim River Basin,Xinjiang,China

Mineral resources exploitation significantly affects the spatial structure and evolutive trend of urbanization in arid areas.In this study,the spatial autocorrelation method and the spatial computation model were used to investigate the spatial impacts of mineral resources excavation and processing on comprehensive level of urbanization in the Tarim River Basin,Xinjiang,China for the years of 2000,2006 and 2008.The results are as follows:1)There was a spatial correlation of the development of mineral resources industry and the comprehensive level of urbanization in 2006 and 2008,with the spatial concentration trend rising significantly in 2006 and decreasing in 2008.2)The patterns of local spatial concentration of mineral resources industry and of the comprehensive level of urbanization were relatively stable,and the two patterns showed signs of spatial correlationship.The higher was the degree of the concentration of mineral resources industry,the stronger was its impact on the spatial clustering of urbanization.3)In 2000, mineral resources excavation and processing had a significant positive impact on the comprehensive level of urbanization in the region but not in its adjacent regions.However,in 2008,mineral resources excavation and processing significantly raised the comprehensive level of urbanization not only in the region but also in its neighboring regions.This research demonstrates that the development of mineral resources industry can strongly affect the trends and spatial patterns of urbanization.

Coordination of Urbanization and Water Ecological Environment in Shayinghe River Basin,China

During the rapid industrialization and urbanization of China,urban agglomeration in river basin areas raises the problems of over-use of water resources and pollution of the water environment.Related research in China has mainly focused on the conflicts among economic growth,urban expansion and water resource shortages within admin-istrative boundaries.However,water environments are much more dependent on their physical boundaries than their administrative boundaries.Consistent with the nature of water environment,this study aims at analyzing coordination relationships between urban development and water environment changes within physical river basin boundaries.We chose the Shayinghe River Basin,China,as our case study area which is facing serious challenges related to water en-vironment protection.Then we classified 35 county-level administrative units into upstream,midstream and down-stream regions based on their physical characteristics;analyzed the coordination degree of urban agglomeration using the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) method;and constructed cooperative models using the Linear Programming (LP function) to simulate four scenarios of the coordination relationship be-tween urban population increase and water environment protection based on existing water resources and water pollu-tion data.The results show that the present coordinative situation in Shayinghe River Basin is not sustainable.In gen-eral,more than 50% administrative units are in the bad coordinative situation.In particular,the downstream region is under worse condition than the upstream and midstream regions.Cooperative models in scenario analyses indicate that the population scale set in existing urban master plannings is not coordinated with the water environment protection.To reach the goal of regional sustainable development,the total population needs to be controlled such that it will re-main at 4.5×10 7 or below by 2020 given the capacity of water environment.

IMPACT OF URBANIZATION ON STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION OF RIVER SYSTEM—Case Study of Shanghai,China

Urbanization can affect the physical process of river growth, modify stream structure and further influence the functions of river system. Shanghai is one of the largest cities in the world, which is located in Changjiang (Yangtze) River Delta in China. Since the 1970s, the whole river system in Shanghai has been planned and managed by the Shanghai Water Authority. The primary management objectives in the last 30 years have been to enhance irrigation and flood-control. By using Horton-Strahler classification and Horton laws as a reference, a novel method of stream classification, in conjunction with the traditional and specially designed indicators, was applied to understanding the structure and functions of the river system in Shanghai. Correlation analysis was used to identify the interrelations among indicators. It was found that the impact of urbanization on the river system was significant although natural laws and physical characteristics marked a super-developed river system. There was an obvious correlation between the degree of urbanization and the abnormal values of some indicators. Urbanization impacts on river system such as branches engineered out, riverbank concreting and low diversity of river style were widely observed. Each indicator had distinct sensibility to urbanization so they could be used to describe different characteristics of urban river system. The function indicators were significantly related to structure indicators. Stream structure, described by fractal dimension and complexity of river system, was as important as water area ratio for maintaining river’s multi-function.

Revisiting and Rethinking Regional Urbanization in Changjiang River Delta,China

China is entering a critical and accelerating phase of urbanization.As one of the most urbanized regions in China,the Changjiang(Yangtze)River Delta has experienced dramatic urbanization and urban transformation.However,in the recent years,many changes have taken place in this region and there is limited attention to the regional urbanization path evolution,its problems and the way to solve these problems.Therefore,we should revisit the urbanization process in the Changjiang River Delta again.In this paper,we revisited urbanization paths of the Changjiang River Delta by data analysis,influence factors of urbanization by the Gray Relational Analysis,and major challenges to urbanization of the Changjiang River Delta by theoretical considerations.We found that the urbanization of the Changjiang River Delta had experienced several stages of large-scale spatial and urban system restructuring.Within the Changjiang River Delta,Shanghai,Zhejiang and Jiangshu had experienced different urbanization path with local characteristics.But with their development model gradually converging,their urbanization model is also converging.We also found that the major influence factors affecting the Changjiang River Delta urbanization were dynamic change and urbanization was driven by different key factors in different socio-economic development stages.Meanwhile,the Changjiang River Delta urbanization is facing many problems such as existing institutional arrangements,including the hukou(household registration)system and others which can not meet the needs of current socioeconomic development and urbanization.Therefore,it is imperative to promote institutional innovation and adopt a new urbanization development strategy for the sake of the orderly and sustainable urbanization development in the Changjiang River Delta.

Characterization of Air Pollution in Urban Areas of Yangtze River Delta,China

The hallmark of development in the Yangtze River Delta(YRD) of East China has been sprawling urbanization. However, air pollution is a significant problem in these urban areas. In this paper, we investigated and analyzed the air pollution index(API) in four cities(Shanghai, Nanjing, Hangzhou and Ningbo) in the YRD from 2001 to 2012. We attempted to empirically examine the relationship between meteorological factors and air quality in the urban areas of the YRD. According to the monitoring data, the API in Shanghai, Nanjing, Hangzhou slightly declined and that in Ningbo increased over the study period. We analyzed the inter-annual, seasonal, and monthly variations of API, from which we found that the air quality had different temporal changes in the four cities. It was indicated that air quality was poor in winter and spring and best in summer. Furthermore, different weather conditions affected air quality level. The wind direction was considered as an important and influential factor to air pollution, which has an impact on the accumulating or cleaning processes of pollutants. The air quality was influenced by the different wind directions that varied with seasons and cities.