Tectonic and climatic controls for fluvial terraces of the Yellow River over the past 2.6 Ma at Northeast Tibetan Plateau and Ordos Block

The Yellow River is usually assumed to record tectonic activities and climatic changes;however,a systematic study was lack in the sedimentology,stratigraphy,geomorphology and geochronology for the entire Yellow River though various geologic scholars have conducted numerous works in individual basins.This review focused on well-preserved fluvial terrace sequences that formed along this river on northeastern(NE)Tibetan Plateau and Ordos Block over the past 2.6 Ma.After comparing numerous initial incision ages at different segments along the Yellow River,we found out that the youngest initial incision may occur at ca.150 ka at the Longyang Gorge.The Yellow River may transit from multiple separated endorheic drainages to an entire external drainage after 150 ka,which may cause differentiations in the apparent incision rates before and after 150 ka;thus apparent net incision rates were calculated respectively for the Yellow River before 150 ka and the drainage network post 150 ka.Apparent net incision rates prior to 0.15 Ma were calculated as 0.15,0.29,0.10,0.12 and 0.03 mm/a respectively in Tongde-Xunhua,Lanzhou-Linxia basins,Heishan,Jinshan and Fenwei-Sanmen Gorges in this review,which mainly reflected Kunhuang-Gonghe Tectonic Event,generated by the Indo-Asian collision and diminishing as the NE Tibetan Plateau eastward extruding at ca.1.8-0.15 Ma.Apparent net incision rates post 0.15 Ma were calculated respectively for NE Tibetan Plateau and Ordos Block,considering their different base level.On NE Tibetan Plateau,four fluvial degradational phases were identified between ca.105~70,53~40,25~16 and 12~6 ka associated with terrace levels respectively,at average elevations of 96,40,20 and 10.5 meters above the current river level(m arl)within a range of 5~96 m arl;and four broad periods in the last 150 ka on Ordos Block:possibly marine oxygen isotope stage(MIS)5,ca.118 to 72 ka,most of MIS 3,ca.44~28 ka,transition from LGM to last deglacial ca.20 to 16 ka,and 4~3 ka at average elevations of 67.5,26,19 and 11.5 m arl.These degradational phases post 0.15 Ma were associated with multiple processes including enhanced fluvial discharge with an increase in monsoonal precipitation and/or melt water in deglaciation.

Late Quaternary fluvial terrace formation in the Luan River drainage basin,north China and its possible linkages with climate change and tectonic activation

The Luan River is the most important water system in north-eastern Hebei Province,China and is located in the transitional zone of the Eastern Yan Mountains,North China Plain and Songliao Plain.The well-developed river terraces of its tributary,the Yixun River,provide excellent information for studying neotectonics and climate change.There are seven terraces in the lower reaches of the Yixun River,numbered T7-T1.The optically stimulated luminescence dating results of 23 samples show that terraces T7-T2 formed at 111.36±5.83 ka,78.20±4.45 ka,65.29±4.15 ka,56.44±3.07 ka,40.08±2.66 ka,and 13.14±0.76 ka,respectively.A comparison with the oxygen isotope curves of deep-sea sediments reveals that the sediment formation of each terrace corresponded to cold periods of marine isotope stages MIS 4 and MIS 2 and the relatively cold periods of MIS 5e,MIS 3,and MIS 1.Since the Late Pleistocene,the incision rate of the Yixun River has ranged from 0.371-1.740 mm/a.During the formation of T7-T6,T5-T4,T4-T3,and T3-T2,the incision rate was low.However,in the two stages during which T6-T5 and T2-T1 formed(13.14±0.76 ka to 0.58±0.08 ka and 10.79±0.64 ka to 0.16±0.01 ka),these rates reached 1.554 mm/a and 1.592-1.740 mm/a,respectively.At approximately 30 ka,the activity of the Langying Fault increased,leading to footwall uplift.The river gathered in the north of Langying to form the ancient Erdaowan Lake,which resulted in the drying of the river in the lower reaches of the Yixun River during the last glacial maximum without forming river deposits.In the Early Holocene,headward erosion in the lower reaches of the Yixun River was enhanced,which resulted in the disappearance of the lake,and incised meandering formed due to increased neotectonism.Based on the analyses of river incision and the formation of ancient lakes and incised meandering,it was inferred that there have been three periods of strong tectonism in the river basin since the Late Pleistocene.

Mitigating risks of hybrid rice use in terrace agriculture

The Honghe Hani Rice Terraces of Yunnan Province have become a national emblem for China and a UNESCO World Heritage Site,but some are beginning to crumble.This research attempts to address why this is happening and what can be done about it.Previous work has failed to adequately address the possible shortcomings of recently introduced seed and water management technologies,their particular effect on rice terraces and the people who depend upon them.In an effort to better understand the issue,field observation was triangulated with in-depth interviews with local people,and the examination of scientific literature.To do this,the authors spent time in China with a translator in a key village known to be first in the area to truly succeed in carving the rice terraces and in making the mountain slope irrigation system required actually working.Results validated by experts in each field indicate that while the new seed and technologies do save water and improve lives,paired with migration,they may also be threatening the long-term viability of rice terracing in the region.The authors conclude that an integrated approach is needed and put forward a strategic blueprint to reinforce ecological,social and economic longevity.They also call for more research into the applicability of these resilience measures in other hybrid rice terracing regions,such as in the Philippines and Vietnam.

Analysis of wave shoaling and shore-breakers on a low tide terrace beach based on in-situ measurements at Xisha Bay on South China coast

Low tide terrace beach is a main beach type along South China coasts with strong tidal actions.How strong tides affect wave transformations on low tide terrace beach still remains unclear.In this study,in-situ measurements are conducted on the low terrace beach at Xisha Bay to provide quantitative descriptions of wave shoaling and shore-breaker phenomena under the tidal effects.It is found that wave breaking is unsaturated on the low tide terrace beach at Xisha Bay.Magnitudes of wave skewness and asymmetry increase as wave shoals and achieve the maximum value at the shore-breaker,and then decrease rapidly.Mean energy dissipation rates of shore-breakers are tide-modulated since the bottom slope changes at the shoreward boundary of wave propagation in a tidal cycle.The remaining wave energy flux at the initialization of the shore-breaker is 1%–12%of offshore wave energy flux,and the energy flux ratio decreases with increasing offshore wave heights.Wave attenuation at shore-breakers can be estimated directly from offshore wave conditions based on findings in this study,favoring designs of seawalls or beach nourishment projects.Field datasets on wave transformations can also be used for verifications of wave numerical models.

First application of plutonium in soil erosion research on terraces

The spatial distributions of ^(239+240)Pu and ^(137)Cs in soils from Longji Rice Terraces were investigated to evaluate soil erosion.The activity concentrations of ^(239+240)Pu and ^(137)Cs in the surface soils of the paddy fields were in the range of 0.089–0.734 and1.80–7.88 mBq/g,respectively.The activities of ^(239+240)Pu and ^(137)Cs showed very similar distribution trends,first increasing and then decreasing with increasing elevation.The 240Pu/239Pu atom ratios in the surface soils ranged from 0.162 to 0.232.The activities of ^(239+240)Pu and ^(137)Cs in the soil cores tended to be uniformly distributed within the plowed layer and declined exponentially below this depth.The mean soil erosion rates of Longji Rice Terraces estimated by ^(239+240)Pu and ^(137)Cs tracer methods were 5.44 t/(ha·a)and 5.16 t/(ha·a),respectively,which demonstrated that plutonium can replace ^(137)Cs as an ideal tracer for soil erosion research in the future.Landform features are the main factors affecting the distribution of plutonium and ^(137)Cs as well as soil erosion in the Longji Rice Terraces.

Response of soil nutrients to terracing and environmental factors in the Loess Plateau of China

Terracing is a widely adopted agricultural practice in mountainous regions around the world that aims to conserve soil and water resources.Soil nutrients play a crucial role in determining soil quality,particularly in landscapes prone to drought.They are influenced by factors such as land-use type,slope aspect,and altitude.In this study,we sought to examine the impact of terracing on soil nutrients(soil organic content(SOC),total nitrogen(TN),nitrate-nitrogen(NO_(3)^(-)-N),ammonium nitrogen(NH_(4)^(+)-N),total phosphorus(TP),available phosphorus(AP),total potassium(TK),and available potassium(AK))and how they vary with environmental factors in the Chinese Loess Plateau.During the growing season,we collected 540 soil samples from the 0 to 100 cm soil layer across five major land-use types,different slope aspects,and varying altitudes.Additionally,a meta-analysis of literature data further corroborated the effective accumulation of soil nutrients through terracing in the Loess Plateau.Our findings are as follows:(1)Terraced fields,regardless of land-use type,showed a significant improvement in SOC and TN content.(2)Soil nutrient contents within terraced fields were predominantly higher on sunny slopes.(3)Terraces at lower altitudes are characterized by elevated SOC concentrations.(4)A meta-analysis of literature data pertaining to terracing and soil nutrients in this region confirmed the effective accumulation of soil nutri-ents through terracing.The elucidated outcomes of this study offer a profound theoretical underpinning for the accurate planning and management of terraces,the scientific utilization of land resources,and the enhancement of land productivity.

Study on The Ecology System of Hani Terraced Paddy Fields

The ecology system of Hani Terraced Paddy Fields is the typical repre-sentative of the ecological agriculture in the southwestern mountainous areas of our country. After long-term development, Hani ecology system has developed, cored by＂forest-vil age-terrace-river＂, including paddy cultivation system, forests and ecologi-cal maintenance, folk culture and construction of water facilities. This research ex-plored the details of the structure and functions of the ecology system of Hani ter-raced fields. And il ustrates that the system is a new model of agriculture ecological civilization and deserves further study and more applications.

The Exploitation of Agricultural Civilization Heritages of Minority Community in Guangxi——A Case Study of Longsheng Dragon Back Terrace

Having outlined evolution and tour value of Dragon Back Terraces in Longsheng County,Guilin,the author puts forward following proposals for tour development in policy-making:(1) With improving the villages of the Minority community,to set up ecological museums in which the cultures of Minority are preserved,the primitive local "live humanity heritages" are shown as the key display on the basis of typical agricultural complex ecological system;(2) To encourage the citizens of the community to participate in the tour industry development,including the participation both in the decision-making in tour planning and preservation of the terrace agricultural civilization heritages as well as the allocation of the income of the local tour industry;(3)To promote the mutual development of both folkways and sightseeing tour,to enhance the exploitation of the present natural scenic and historical landscapes through the making full advantages of the present tour market.The Dragon Back Terraces are characterized by the important tour values,including the rich and colorful natural landscapes,typical complex agricultural ecological system,and the combination of the Minority folkways and agricultural civilization.

Research on Evaluation of Terrace Cultural Landscape Heritage Value from the Perspective of AVC——Take Three Famous Terraces in Southern China for Example

The objective evaluation to the terrace cultural landscape heritage value can provide targeted scientific basis for continuation of terrace culture landscape and establishment of protection measures. On the basis of field investigation, expert consultation and literature review, combined with the AVC （Attraction、Vitality and Ca-pacity）theory and Analytic Hierarchy Process based on Fuzzy Comprehensive Evalu-ation, the terrace cultural landscape heritage protection evaluation system and eval-uation model, which selects 22 indicators from three levels including terrace culture landscape resources attraction, resources vitality and resources bearing capacity were structured. Based on col ection of data, material from field survey of China＆#39;s most representative Yunnan Yuanyang Hani terrace, Hunan Ziquejie terrace and Longsheng Longji terrace and relevant mathematical calculation to determine evalua-tion index weights, organical y combined of qualitative with quantitative analysis, the diversity, reasonableness and accuracy of evaluation system is improved. Compre-hensive result of mathematical statistics showed that the rank of the cultural land-scape heritage value with the three most representative terraces in southern China is： γ（Hani）〉γ（Longji）〉γ（Ziquejie）.

Standards of Ecological Compensation for Traditional Ecoagriculture:Taking Rice-Fish System in Hani Terrace as an Example

Traditional eco-agriculture provides many ecosystem services which are important for the local environment, especially in mountain areas. In order to encourage the farmers to engage in coo-agriculture, it is necessary to establish an eco-compensation mechanism for them. As the compensation standard is one of key issues in establishing eeo-compensation mechanism, this paper calculated the standard based on the farmers＇ willingness to accept （WTA） and the input-output analysis of eco-compensation. We took the traditional rice-fish eco-agriculture as the research object, conducting field surveys in Hani Terrace of Honghe County. Through the questionnaires in 2o11, we obtained the farmers＇ willingness to accept government compensation and market compensation. Then, the research evaluated the output of eco-compensation, the economic value of rice-fish paddy ecosystem services. Finally, under different market compensation standards, we compared the input and output of government compensation. The results show that, in 2011 the government should to pay farmers 7462 yuan.ha^-1·a^-1 to meet their willingness, but the output （ecological benefit） was only 7393 yuan.ha^-1·a^-1. However, whenthe rice price increases 1 yuan·kg-1 because of the limited use of chemicals in the next year, the government just has to pay farmers 4062 yuan.ha^-1·a^-1 and the surplus will be 3331 yuan.ha^-1·a^-1.

Chronological Link Between the Abrupt Change of the Loess Grain Size Sequence and the Formation of River Terraces on the Eastern Margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau Since the Late Early-Pleistocene

Based on the study of magnetostratigraphy,magnetic susceptibility and grain size of Garze A section on the southeastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau since the late early-Pleistocene,the basal age of Garze loess is located at～1.16 MaBP and a series of abrupt paleoclimatic changes is detected.The times of abrupt changes are of distinct series features,and the interval between each two adjacent abrupt changes is～50 kyr or～100 kyr.The most significant abrupt changes occur at around 1.06,0.85,0.6,0.46,0.39 and 0.14 MaBP.There is a chronological link between the abrupt changes of paleoclimate and the formation of river terraces and it is almost simultaneous with a strengthening trend of neotectonic activities.Therefore,maybe the climatic transition controll the timing of terrace formation,and the tectonic uplift originate potential energy and has a direct effect on channel incision, both the climatic transition and the tectonic uplift are important.Terraces are the products of the interaction of instable climatic variations and tectonic uplift.Like the loess-paleosol sequences,river terrace sequences are also controlled by the climate-tectonic coupling system and are ruled by climate-tectonic gyration with a～100 kyr paracycle,which may be the short eccentricity period of the earth.

Tourist preferences for agricultural landscapes:a case study of terraced paddy fields in Noto Peninsula,Japan

Many agricultural landscapes have been formed through the interaction and co-evolution of nature and people, and represent the living landscapes shaped over time through intensive and continuous human cultivation. Terraced paddy fields are being re-evaluated to take into account the multiple functions they fill beyond only rice cultivation, particularly their contribution to the national biodiversity strategy of Japan. Since the 1990 s, terraced paddy fields have been considered a representative cultural landscape of Japan and, at the same time, multi-stakeholder conservation activities have been conducted throughout Japan to reverse the increasing abandonment of terraces. Shiroyone Senmaida is an outstanding cultural landscape and a major tourist attraction in Noto Peninsula, Ishikawa Prefecture, which was designated through an initiative by the Food and Agriculture Organization(FAO) as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems(GIAHS) pilot site in 2011. It is important to clarify tourist preference for terraced paddy field landscapes to contribute to future policy making toward improved agricultural landscape conservation. A key finding of this study is that tourists visiting toenjoy the agricultural landscape are also concerned on the sustainability of the farming methods and preferred to maintain the naturalness of the landscape. Respondents with higher educational levels and greater concern for the biological and traditional farming knowledge aspects of the rice terraces were also more inclined to favor sustainable farming practices. Tourists preferred to maintain the naturalness and rurality of the agricultural landscape, and indicated that construction of excessive tourist facilities would cause the landscape to deteriorate. It was suggested that the local community and surroundings, including rural settlements, hills, and forests, should also be conserved together with the scenic terrace.

Formation of the Yalong Downstream Terraces in the SE Tibetan Plateau and Its Implication for the Uplift of the Plateau

The Yalong River is an important river that runs across the abruptly changing terrain of the SE Tibetan Plateau. The terraces and Quaternary sediments in its valleys preserve the information of tectonic uplift, climate changes, and landform evolution since the Middle Pleistocene. Based on geomorphological, sedimentological, and chronological investigations, 6-8 terraces are identified in the lower reaches of Yalong catchment and its tributary--the Anning River. The electron spin resonance （ESR） or optically stimulated luminescence （OSL） data on the alluvial sediments in the upper portion of terraces indicate that they formed in 1.10, 0.90, 0.72, 0.06-0.04, 0.03-0.02, and 0.01 Ma. Tectonic uplift and the climatic cycle controlled the formation of the Yalong River terraces. The former dominated the dissection depths and incision rates, whereas the latter controlled the transformation between accumulation, which developed during the glacial period, and incision, which developed during the glacial-interglacial transition. The Yalong downstream incised rapidly from 1.10 to 0.72 Ma and rapidly from 0.06 Ma until the present; the terraces developed during these two periods. The incision rates in space during the two periods indicate the uplifting extent of the Jinpingshan area, which decreases toward the east and the south. The results reveal two rapidly uplifting stages in the SE Tibetan Plateau, including an accelerated uplifting since 0.06 Ma. Since the Middle Pleistocene, the tectonic uplift of the SE and NE parts of the Tibetan Plateau is synchronous, according to the same development stages of the river terraces of the Yalong downstream and the Yellow River in the Lanzhou area of the NE Tibetan Plateau. The difference in the horizontal displacement between the Xianshuihe Fault and the Anninghe Fault bend resulted in the rapid uplift of the Jinpingshan area. The incision rate for the spatial distribution of the Yalong downstream is the geomorphologicai response of crustal shortening and uplift differences in the SE margin block of the Tibetan Plateau. The southeastward diffusion process of the Tibetan Plateau was recorded.

Elevation and Land Use Types Have Significant Impacts on Spatial Variability of Soil Organic Matter Content in Hani Terraced Field of Yuanyang County,China

Soil organic matter （SOM） content is one of the most important indicators of the sustainability of soil. To maintain sustainable soil utilization and management in fragile Hani terraced field, it is meaningful to investigate the effects of topography and land use type on SOM content. Descriptive statistics and geostatistics were used to analyze the data and the kriging method was applied to map the spatial patterns of SOM content. The results showed that the mean SOM content was 32.76 g/kg, with a variation coefficient of 40%. The SOM content was affected by elevation and land use type. As the increase of elevation, the SOM content in Hani terraced field also increased obviously. The SOM content in tea garden, which is almost at high elevation, was the highest in all six land use types, and the SOM content decreased in a following sequence： tea garden 〉 paddy field 〉 corn field 〉 banana garden 〉 cassava field 〉 sugarcane field. In addition, at the same elevation, the paddy field had the highest SOM content compared with other land use types. All these results demonstrate that paddy field is the most efficient and suitable land use type for SOM conservation at high, middle or low elevations in the fragile Hani terraced field. In order to protect soil quality and maintain the sustainable agricultural development, it is necessary to maintain or even to enlarge the area of paddy field in Yuanyang county, Yunnan Province, China.

Distribution and Forming Model of Fluvial Terrace in the Huangshui Catchment and its Tectonic Indication

The Huang Shui River, a main tributary of the Yellow River, crosses a series of tectonically subsided and uplifted areas that show different patterns of terrace formation. The distribution of fluvial terrace of the Huang Shui River is studied through topographic and sedimentologic terrace mapping. Three terraces in the Haiyan Basin, four terraces in the Huangyuan Basin, 19 terraces in the Xi＇ning Basin （the four high terraces may belong to another river）, nine terraces in the Ping＇an Basin, five terraces in the Ledu Basin and 12 terraces in the Minhe Basin are recognized. Sedimentology research shows that the geomorphologic and sedimentological pattern of the Huang Shui River, which is located at the margin of Tibet, are different from that of the rivers at other regions. The formation process of the terrace is more complicated at the Huang Shui catchment： both accumulation terrace and erosion terrace were formed in each basin and accumulation terraces were developed in some basins when erosion terraces were formed in other basins, indicating fluvial aggradation may occur in some basins simultaneously with river incision in other basins. A conceptual model of the formation process of these two kinds of fluvial terraces at Huang Shui catchment is brought forward in this paper. First, the equilibrium state of the river is broken because of climatic change and/or tectonic movement, and the river incises in all basins in the whole catchment until reaching a new equilibrium state. Then, the downstream basin subsides quickly and the equilibrium state is broken again, and the river incises at upstream basins while the river accumulates at the subsidence basin quickly until approaching a new equilibrium state again. Finally, the river incises in the whole catchment because of climatic change and/or tectonic movement and the accumulation terrace is formed at the subsidence basin while the erosion terrace is formed at other basins. The existence of the accumulation terrace implied the tectonic subsidence in the sub-basins in Huang Shui catchment. These tectonic subsidence movements gradually developed from the downstream Minhe Basin to the upstream Huangyuan Basin. Dating the terrace sequence has potential to uncover the relationship between the subsidence in the catchment and the regional tectonic at the northeastern Tibetan Plateau.

Analysis of Comprehensive Benefits of Transforming Slope Farmland to Terraces on the Loess Plateau:A Case Study of the Yangou Watershed in Northern Shaanxi Province,China

De-farming slope farmland has been an effective measure in recent years to improve environment and prevent soil and water loss on the Loess Plateau.There are different views about the defarming method,and also various de-farming patterns have been put into practice.This paper takes the Yangou Watershed in Shaanxi Province of China as a case for studying the comprehensive benefits of transforming slope farmland to terraces.Based on the day-by-day meteorological data of the Yan'an station in 2005 and the data of terrain features,soil and land use data of the Yangou Watershed,the impact of transforming slope farmland on terraces were simulated and analyzed in aspects of yield increase and water-soil conservation under different topographic conditions with the aid of software WIN-YIELD.Furthermore,an empirical analysis was applied to study the effects of transforming slope farmland to terraces in the Yangou Watershed.The results show that:(1) The bigger the topographic gradient is,the more remarkable benefits it has in yield increase and water-soil conservation.(2) Farmland with slope below 5° could be retained,but farmland with slope above 15° should be converted to forest or grassland as soon as possible.(3) Transforming slope farmland to terraces has the same remarkable effects as the current policy of "Relieving and de-farming" in improving agricultural production conditions,safeguarding food security,raising permanent vegetation coverage rate,and preventing soil and water loss.Besides,it is more cost-effective than the policy of "Relieving and de-farming".It's strongly suggested that the policy of transforming slope farmland to terraces be carried out on the Loess Plateau without delay.

Sequences and genesis of the Yellow River terraces from Sanmen Gorge to Kouma

Based on field landscape investigations, thermoluminescence （TL）, magnetostratigraphy and Ioess-paleosol sequence, we found that there are at least four Yellow River terraces, whose ages are 0.86 Ma, 0.62 Ma, 0.13 Ma and 0.05 Ma, in Yuxi Fault-Uplift （from Sanmen Gorge to Mengjin） and at least three Yellow River terraces, whose ages are 1.24 Ma, 0.25 Ma and 0.05 Ma, in Huabei Fault Depression （from Mengjin to Kouma）. All the terraces have a similar structure that several meters of paleosols directly develop on the top of fluvial silt. It shows that the Yellow River incised and consequently abandoned floodplain converted to terrace during the interglacial period. Therefore, there may be a link between the formation of terraces and glacial-interglacial climatic cycles. However, the differences in the Yellow River terrace sequences and ages between Yuxi Fault-Uplift and Huabei Fault Depression indicate that the surface uplift should play an important role in the formation of these terraces.

Soil Nutrient Distribution in Two Typical Paddy Terrace Wetlands Along an Elevation Gradient During the Fallow Period

Soil nutrient concentrations in the top soils from two paddy terraces were determined in order to investigate spatial distributions of soil nutrients along the elevations on the Yunnan plateau of China during the fallow period.Results showed that soil nutrients in both terraces were higher than the reference concentrations except for SOC,TN,TP and Fe.Soil macronutrients didn't show significant differences in both terraces except for Mg and Ca,so did soil micronutrients except for Mn.Spatial distribution patterns of soil nutrients along the increasing elevations were different in both terraces.However,soil nutrients in both terraces were generally not significantly influenced by the elevations and soil pH values.The findings of this study can contribute to soil fertility management and ecological protection of Hani terraces.

Assessment of Soil Loss in the Mirabah Basin: An Overview of the Potential of Agricultural Terraces as Ancestral Practices (Saudi Arabia)

Water erosion remains the major problem in many countries, especially those with an extension in the arid and semi-arid area and those marked by a long dry season. The intensification of land degradation which is a result of the strong erosive dynamics on a global scale has stimulated the initiative of multidisciplinary researchers investigate the issue of water erosion from its various facets [1] [2]. The goal is to preserve water and soil, two resources threatened. Multiple attempts were made to diagnose and implement empirical and experimental methods for quantitative estimation of soil loss caused by diffuse erosion. Indeed, the Eastern slope of the high mountains of Asir (Saudi Arabia), formerly worn and cut by the depression of rivers and undeniable branching of the river system, deserves to be studied in detail given the release of a huge erosive potential that is responsible for soil losses that are increasing gradually and continuously. The purpose of this paper was to validate the suitability of agricultural terraces in terms of soil preservation, using the results of the soil loss application as an indicator of the state of function of these latter. Many studies have addressed the agricultural terraces, however, only a few of them have focused on the relationship between erosion and agricultural terraces through an experimental approach. Previous work has concentrated mainly on their socio-economic impact;whilst the knowledge of their environmental impact remained scarce. In terms of the climate change context, soil erosion is becoming a central problem in Asir region. Thus, in this way, the application of the universal equation of soil loss was very helpful to explain and predict the role of each factor. Nevertheless, extreme caution and great care must be taken because of the application of this model outside its frame.

Landscape Pattern of Ancient Terraces in Huangping County and Slopeto-Terrace Strategy

Formation and development of ancient terraces proves that slope-to-terrace project is a signifi cant measure for conserving water and soil in mountainous areas. UAV remote sensing technology was applied to obtain RS images with a resolution ratio of 0.1–0.5 m, Arc GIS was applied for data processing, and Fragstats3.3 was used to calculate characteristic indexes, to study landscape pattern of 4 ancient terraces in Huangping County, Guizhou Province. The results showed that terrace landscapes and woodland landscapes in the study area account for nearly 80% of the whole landscape(terrace 30%, woodland 50%); mean area of single fi eld is mainly concentrated between 100 m^2 and 200 m^2, and height between 0.7 m and 1.7 m, breadth 0.5 m and 0.6 m; most terraces have a gradient of 5–25°, accounting for 70% of the total number of fi eld. The water and soil conservation concept in the ancient terraces provides references for the slope-to-terrace project and the water and soil loss control of slope farmland.