Reductions in non-point source pollution through different management practices for an agricultural watershed in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area

Non-point source water pollution generated by agricultural production is considered a major environmental issue in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area （TGRA） of China. The Annualised Agricultural Non-Point Source Pollution （AnnAGNPS） model was selected to assess the impact of the application of various management treats, including seven crops, five fertilizer levels and three-group management practice scenarios, on water quality from Heigou River Watershed in TGRA. The scenario subsets include conservation tillage practice （CTP）, conservation reserve program （CRP） and conversion of cropland into forestland program （CCFP）. Results indicated that tea can not be replaced by other crops because comparatively tea resulted in a higher sediment yield. CTP with no-tillage was more effective to reduce sediment yield, but could increased nutrient loss. CRP reduced sediment yield significantly, but slightly benefited on nutrient loss. CCFP reduced not only sediment yield but also the nutrient loss significantly. The conversion of cropland with a slope greater than 10° into forestland was found to be the best scenario as the sediment yield export is less than 5 tons/ha and nutrient loss is within the permissible limit.

Effect of nitrogen and phosphorus on the water quality in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area during and after its construction

A survey concerning the concentration of the nutrients in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area was carried out. This paper presents the parameters(NO 3 - N, NO 2 - N, Kjeldahl N, non ionic ammonia, P PO 4 and TP) determined at 16 sampling sites from 1997 to 1999 The dominant soluble nitrogen form was NO 3 - N followed by Kjeldahl N, NO 2 - N and non ionic ammonia. Mean values of NO 3 - N, NO 2 - N, Kjeldahl N and non ionic ammonia ranged from 0 50 to 2 37 mg/L, 0 022 to 0 084 mg/L, 0 33 to 0 99 mg/L and 0 007 to 0 092 mg/L respectively. Mean values of P PO 4 at most sampling sites were higher than 0 1 mg/L for subject to eutrophication. The major factors influencing the concentrations of N and P might be agricultural runoff, municipal and industrial effluents. In addition, 6 kinds of soil were sampled at the area where would inundated after the dam completed. Two approaches were adopted to simulate the N and P release from the inundated soils. The results showed that the soils would release nitrogen and phosphorus to the overlying water when the soils were inundated. The characteristics of soil affected the equilibrium concentrations of N and P between the soil and the overlying water.

Changes in cultivated land patterns and driving forces in the Three Gorges Reservoir area, China, from 1992 to 2015

Changes of cultivated land patterns caused by major water conservation projects are rarely reported. We selected the Three Gorges Reservoir area in China to study the change in area and landscape pattern of the cultivated land in the head,central, and tail areas of the reservoir that took place between 1992 and 2015;we then studied the spatial distribution of the cultivated land in the three parts of the reservoir;finally, we studied the driving forces behind the changes in the cultivated land. The results derived are as follows.(1) During the construction of the Three Gorges Project(TGP, 1992–2015), the area of cultivated land around the reservoir decreased by30.23 million ha. This reduction occurred in phases:the most severe change in cultivated land occurred during the later stage of the project(2002–2010);only 0.62 million ha of cultivated land did not change between 1992 and 2015.(2) Spatial pattern analysis showed that the cultivated land in the three parts of the reservoir changed from a northern distribution to a southern distribution;thus, the area of cultivated land in the north decreased over the time period. The area of cultivated land in the head and tail areas decreased by varying degrees, while it increased in the central area over the 23 years, indicating that the change in cultivated land showed regional differences.(3) The TGP, the policy of reverting farmland to forest,and urbanization were the main driving factors for the change of cultivated land, but there were differences in their impacts at different stages.(4) According to the patch dynamics of the land cover change, the degree of change gradually intensified during the early and later stages of the project and then stabilized during the operational period. Our research provides scientific support for the protection of cultivated land resources and food security in the reservoir area and for the coordination of social and economic development, which is of great significance to sustainable development in the reservoir area.

Land Use of the Three Gorges Reservoir Area and the Effect on Its Landscape Pattern in the Recent 50 Years

The paper makes detailed analysis on the changing processes of the main types of land use in Three Gorges Reservoir Area through the techniques of RS （Remote Sense） and GIS （Geography Information System）. Based on the theory of landscape ecology, many types of landscape pattern indexes are calculated and made correlation analysis. The results indicate that： in 1995 the ecological environment of Three Gorges Reservoir Area was the most vulnerable in the recent 50 years, but resumed in 2002; the landscape pattern diversity index, fractal dimension index and fragmentation index has close correlation with the area of land use/cover change （LUCC）. The research also releases that the increase of the cultivated land, grassland and construction land deteriorates the landscape ecological pattern, while the increase of forest land area will help restore the landscape ecological pattern to its original state. The rapid change of grassland is an important index of the change of landscape pattern, because it has the most effect on change of landscape pattern index.

Monitoring the Cultivated Slope Land in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area Based on Remote Sensing and GIS

By means of combining auto-extraction with manual interpretation, the current distribution information about cultivated land is obtained. The distribution information of 1992 is extracted from the dynamic polygons of 2002. The monitoring mini-system of the cultivated slope land is established. In the system, detailed surveys, focused on the resources of cultivated slope land, are carried out. The results indicate that the area of the cultivated slope land is very large. Meanwhile, there are lots of cultivated steep slopes with gradient above 35°. The areas of steep land cultivated had been slowly reduced from 1992 to 2002. At the same time, the pressures of returning farm land to forestry are great in all counties. The conflicts between population growth, insufficient grain supply and stagnant economic development sharpen increasingly. It is inevitable to improve the agricultural structure.

Spatial heterogeneity of fine root biomass of Pinus massoniana forests in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area, China

Environmental heterogeneity is a constant presence in the natural world that significantly affects plant behavior at a variety of levels of complexity. In order to estimate the spatial pattern of fine root biomass in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area, the spatial heterogeneity of fine root biomass in the upper layer of soils （0-10 cm） in three Mas- son pine （Pinus massoniana） stands in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area, China, was studied in 30 m x 30 m plots with geostatistical analysis. The results indicate that 1） both the live and dead fine root biomass of stand 2 were less than those of other stands, 2） the spatial variation of fine roots in the three stands was caused together by structural and ran- dom factors with moderate spatial dependence and 3） the magnitude of spatial heterogeneity of live fine roots ranked as： stand 3 〉 stand 1 〉 stand 2, while that of dead fine roots was similar in the three stands. These findings suggested that the range of spatial autocorrelation for fine root biomass varied considerably in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area, while soil properties, such as soil bulk density, organic matter and total nitrogen, may exhibit great effect on the spatial distribution of fine roots. Finally, we express our hope to be able to carry out further research on the quantitative relation- ship between the spatial heterogeneous patterns of plant and soil properties.

On the land use in Three Gorges Reservoir area

In this study the arable land changes in two counties (Zigui and Xingshan) in the Three Gorges Reservoir area in China are investigated. The statistical data from the officially published statistical books are used to study these changes in the two counties during the past 50 years since 1949. The changes of arable land, changes of arable land per capita, and changes of multiple crop index in Zigui and Xingshan counties are examined. Using an index method, we conclude that the two counties are critical in the sustainable utilization of arable land.

Remote Sense and GIS-Based Division of Landslide Hazard Degree in Wanzhou District of the Three Gorges Reservoir Area

An evaluation model divided landslide hazard degrees in Wanzhou District of Three Gorges Reservoir Area. The model was established by GIS techniques and took land use/cover, stratum characters, slope aspect, slope gradient, elevation difference and slope shape as evaluation factors. The data of land use/cover were obtained by remote sensing, and the weights of the factors mentioned above were established by the analytic hierarchy process （AHP）. The results indicate, low danger areas in the studied area account for 66.51%, and high danger areas and very high danger areas occupy 1/3 of the total area. The regions of high and very high danger are mainly located around the urban area of Wanzhou District and on the banks of the Yangtze River with a relatively large area, where collapse and landslide directly threats densely populated areas and Three Gorges Reservoir. Slope destabilization, if occurs, will bring huge loss to social economy. All research results are consistent with the actual conditions; therefore, they can be regarded as a useful basis for planning and constructing of the reservoir area.

Impact of the Small Town Construction on Original Inhabitants in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area——A Case Study in Lishu Village, Changling Town, Chongqing Municipality, China

Based on the five-year long dynamic tracking and investigation of the peasant households of the Lishu village, the influences by small town construction on the economy and employment of the original peasant households are discussed. On the one hand, small town construction plays a positive role in adjustment of the industrial structure of the original peasant households and in the transfer of their employment towards non-agricultural industries. On the other hand the economic growth of the original peasant households is not so well sustainable, and is so fluctuating. Moreover, the unbalance of income distribution of the said households has been furthered, and small town construction has made the existing labor surplus of the original peasant households more serious, particularly the women labor surplus.

Tectonic environment and cause of earthquakes in the Three Gorges reservoir area

Seismotectonics in the Three Gorges reservoir area is investigated by using the P-wave tomography with earthquakes that occurred before the impoundment of the reservoir. The result indicates that most of these events occurred in or around the velocity-gradient belts between high-velocity and low-velocity anomalies. These belts have similar characteristics to buried-fauh zones. Stresses generated by movement of partially molten upper-mantle materials and thermal stress may have jointly contributed to the seismic activities along the faults and such buried faults, and possibly activated new earthquake ruptures.

Analysis of the tidal gravity observations in Three Gorges reservoir area

The comparative observations of the tidal gravity in Three Gorges reservoir area, recorded with the LCR-ET20 gravimeter from Institute of Geodesy and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences and the DZW-9 gravimeter from Institute of Seismology, China Earthquake Administration, are introduced. High-accuracy tidal gravity parameters in this area are obtained, and the scale factor of the DZW-9 gravimeter is also estimated at a value of -（756.06±0.05）×10^-8 m-s^-2V^-1. The observed residuals of the corresponding instruments are investigated. Numerical results indicate that the long-term drift of the DZW-9 gravimeter appears a linear characteristic, and the observed accuracy is of the same order comparing with that of the LCR-ET20 gravimeter. The results given in the paper can provide with an effective reference model of the tidal gravity correction to the ground based and space geodesy.

Problems in the Labor Export of Western Rural Areas——A Case Study of Three Gorges Reservoir Area

The thesis gives a brief account of the status of the labor economy in Three Gorges Reservoir area,which indicates that the labor economy in this area has made certain development and is characterized by fragile ecology,backward economic development and weak capacity to absorb employment,the Three Gorges Reservoir area is densely populated and has lots of rural surplus labors which need to be transferred.Then the thesis analyzes the problems in the labor export of this region,which can be manifested in the following aspects:the exported labors are with low quality and single skill;they are narrow-minded and have strong intention for their employment regions;they have low income but high risk to get employed;the government does not provide strong supporting services for exported labors.In order to solve these problems,the thesis proposes the suggestions and measures to develop the labor economy in Three Gorges Reservoir area,say,to perfect and ameliorate the training mechanism and improve the quality and skills of labors;to build the platform of employment network and solve the problems of the asymmetric employment information;to actively develop the intermediary organizations and promote the a proper movement of labor forces;to fully exert the function of government in logistic services and resolve the difficulties of the exported workers.

The Characteristics of Soil Nutrients in Terracing Land under Different Land Use Patterns in Three Gorges Reservoir Area

In this study,taking the typical terracing land in Wushan County of Chongqing Municipality for example,we study the distribution of soil nutrients in the terracing land under different land use patterns in Three Gorges Reservoir Area. We conduct field survey and sampling on three different land use patterns( cash crop land,food crop land and abandoned land),and do the indoor experimental analysis of soil nutrient indicators. The results indicate that there is significant or very significant impact on soil nutrients under different land use patterns. The content of soil organic matter declines in sequence from abandoned land,food crop land to cash crop land; the content of soil N declines in sequence from cash crop land,abandoned land to food crop land; the content of soil P declines in sequence from cash crop land,food crop land to abandoned land; the content of soil K declines in sequence from abandoned land,cash crop land to food crop land. The result is in close relation to land use patterns,human cultivation activity,land disturbance and application of fertilizer.

The Influencing Factors of Soil Organic Carbon Density in Lanlingxi Watershed in Three Gorges Reservoir Area

To reveal the influencing factors of soil organic carbon( SOC) density in 0-30 cm soil layer of Lanlingxi watershed in Three Gorges Reservoir Area,build the regression equation for soil organic carbon density and adjust carbon sink strategy in this region,soil samples of top soil profile( 0-30 cm) in five land use types were selected by the typical method. The SOC density of top soil profile( 0-30 cm) and other environmental factors,such as elevation,slope and aspect and soil properties in five land use types,including grassland,scrubland,woodland,land for tea plantation and farmland in the watershed was investigated. The relationship of SOC density with physical properties of soil was also examined. The SOC density of the above five land use types averaged 7. 55,3. 83,6. 04,10. 24,2. 83 kg·m^(-2),respectively. There was a significant difference in the SOC density( p < 0. 01); SOC density was significantly positively correlated with organic matter content( R= 0. 942,p < 0. 01),clay mass percentage( R = 0. 898,p < 0. 01),total nitrogen( R = 0. 863,p < 0. 01),elevation( R = 0. 599,p < 0. 01); SOC density was significantly negatively correlated with sand content( R =-0. 932,p < 0. 01) and slope( R =-0. 407,p < 0. 05); and the correlation between SOC density and soil p H,total phosphorus or total potassium was not obvious. Multiple correlation coefficient R = 0. 986( R > 0. 8,highly correlated) between SOC density and environmental factors was greater than the correlation coefficient between any one independent variable and dependent variable,which fully proved the combined effect of environmental factors on SOC density.

“City-Scene” Characteristics and Optimization Strategies Research on Three Gorges Reservoir Area of the Post-Three Gorges Era

In the long-term symbiotic evolution process,the town areas along the Yangtze River and its natural and cultural landscapes have presented a sound "city-scene" landscape form. But with the implementation of the Three Gorges project,the town relocation as well as the flooding in the natural and human landscape area,the original harmonious "city-scene" pattern started to collapse and fell into the situation of "fragmentation" and "islanding". The differentiation between city and landscape,uncoordinated scale and fractured urban context become pressing issues that affect the integral form optimization of the town areas. This paper aims at responding to the call of the government about proceeding the construction of the Yangtze River economic belt under the ecological and green strategy and seeking an attuned "cityscene" relationship of the town area. Based on the analysis of the dynamic evolution of the "city-scene" relationship,the paper also pointed out that the urban construction around the reservoir area in the postThree Gorges era was the key stage of "scene-city" integration and symbiosis while the maintenance of scenery pattern,the harmony of space scale and the protection of living culture should be applied as the vital strategies.

Evaluation on the human settlements environment suitability in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area of Chongqing based on RS and GIS

To explore geographical differences in quantitative characteristics and spatial pattern of human settlements environmental suitability （HSES） in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area （TGRA）, terrain, climate, hydrology, vegetation and other natural factors were selected to build the livable environmental evaluation, and the quantitative analysis was conducted through Remote Sensing（RS） and Geographic Informational System （GIS） to reveal geo- graphical characteristics and spatial patterns of HSES. The results are obtained as follows： （1） inhabitants of the TGRA of Chongqing are concentrated in the area with moderate h.igh HSES, which is 78% of the total population distributed in 48% of the study area; （2） the HSES is closely related to the terrain, and it forms an arc-banded spatial succession pattern： relatively low in the northeast and the southeast while comparatively high in the west and the south; （3） large numbers of people are distributed in the area with low suitability （with higher population density than the average of the western China）, but economic development level in these areas is quite low. Moreover, these areas are ecological sensitive and fragile, many kinds of eco-environmental problems have been caused by human activities. Therefore, population migration and layout are reasonable options for the development of these areas.

An Optimized Random Forest Model and Its Generalization Ability in Landslide Susceptibility Mapping:Application in Two Areas of Three Gorges Reservoir,China

Numerous researches have been published on the application of landslide susceptibility assessment models;however,they were only applied in the same areas as the models were originated,the effect of applying the models to other areas than the origin of the models has not been explored.This study is purposed to develop an optimized random forest(RF)model with best ratios of positive-to-negative cells and 10-fold cross-validation for landslide susceptibility mapping(LSM),and then explore its generalization ability not only in the area where the model is originated but also in area other than the origin of the model.Two typical counties(Fengjie County and Wushan County)in the Three Gorges Reservoir area,China,which have the same terrain and geological conditions,were selected as an example.To begin with,landslide inventory was prepared based on field investigations,satellite images,and historical records,and 1522 landslides were then identified in Fengjie County.22 landslide-conditioning factors under the influence of topography,geology,environmental conditions,and human activities were prepared.Then,combined with 10-fold cross-validation,three typical ratios of positive-to-negative cells,i.e.,1:1,1:5,and 1:10,were adopted for comparative analyses.An optimized RF model(Fengjie-based model)with the best ratios of positive-to-negative cells and 10-fold cross-validation was constructed.Finally,the Fengjie-based model was applied to Fengjie County and Wushan County,and the confusion matrix and area under the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve value(AUC)were used to estimate the accuracy.The Fengjie-based model delivered high stability and predictive capability in Fengjie County,indicating a great generalization ability of the model to the area where the model is originated.The LSM in Wushan County generated by the Fengjie-based model had a reasonable reference value,indicating the Fengjiebased model had a great generalization ability in area other than the origin of the model.The Fengjiebased model in this study could be applied in other similar areas/countries with the same terrain and geological conditions,and a LSM may be generated without collecting landslide information for modeling,so as to reduce workload and improve efficiency in practice.

Groundwater level prediction of landslide based on classification and regression tree

According to groundwater level monitoring data of Shuping landslide in the Three Gorges Reservoir area, based on the response relationship between influential factors such as rainfall and reservoir level and the change of groundwater level, the influential factors of groundwater level were selected. Then the classification and regression tree（CART） model was constructed by the subset and used to predict the groundwater level. Through the verification, the predictive results of the test sample were consistent with the actually measured values, and the mean absolute error and relative error is 0.28 m and 1.15%respectively. To compare the support vector machine（SVM） model constructed using the same set of factors, the mean absolute error and relative error of predicted results is 1.53 m and 6.11% respectively. It is indicated that CART model has not only better fitting and generalization ability, but also strong advantages in the analysis of landslide groundwater dynamic characteristics and the screening of important variables. It is an effective method for prediction of ground water level in landslides.

Ensemble learning framework for landslide susceptibility mapping:Different basic classifier and ensemble strategy

The application of ensemble learning models has been continuously improved in recent landslide susceptibility research,but most studies have no unified ensemble framework.Moreover,few papers have discussed the applicability of the ensemble learning model in landslide susceptibility mapping at the township level.This study aims at defining a robust ensemble framework that can become the benchmark method for future research dealing with the comparison of different ensemble models.For this purpose,the present work focuses on three different basic classifiers:decision tree(DT),support vector machine(SVM),and multi-layer perceptron neural network model(MLPNN)and two homogeneous ensemble models such as random forest(RF)and extreme gradient boosting(XGBoost).The hierarchical construction of deep ensemble relied on two leading ensemble technologies(i.e.,homogeneous/heterogeneous model ensemble and bagging,boosting,stacking ensemble strategy)to provide a more accurate and effective spatial probability of landslide occurrence.The selected study area is Dazhou town,located in the Jurassic red-strata area in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area of China,which is a strategic economic area currently characterized by widespread landslide risk.Based on a long-term field investigation,the inventory counting thirty-three slow-moving landslide polygons was drawn.The results show that the ensemble models do not necessarily perform better;for instance,the Bagging based DT-SVM-MLPNNXGBoost model performed worse than the single XGBoost model.Amongst the eleven tested models,the Stacking based RF-XGBoost model,which is a homogeneous model based on bagging,boosting,and stacking ensemble,showed the highest capability of predicting the landslide-affected areas.Besides,the factor behaviors of DT,SVM,MLPNN,RF and XGBoost models reflected the characteristics of slow-moving landslides in the Three Gorges reservoir area,wherein unfavorable lithological conditions and intense human engineering activities(i.e.,reservoir water level fluctuation,residential area construction,and farmland development)are proven to be the key triggers.The presented approach could be used for landslide spatial occurrence prediction in similar regions and other fields.

三峡库区山区农业生态系统转型

The Three Gorges Reservoir Area(TGRA)is typical of an ecologically vulnerable area,comprised of rural and mountainous areas,and with high immigration.Because of its economic and ecologic importance,studying the traditional agroecosystem changes in the TGRA is key to rural development and revitalization.In this study,we apply a framework of theoretical analysis,empirical study,and trend prediction to the Caotangxi River watershed within the TGRA.Using QuickBird high-resolution remote sensing images from 2012 to 2017 to evaluate natural resources and farmers’behavior,we analyze the transition and trends in the traditional agroecosystem in mountainous areas of the TGRA at spatial scale of the man-land relationship.We find that the agroecosystem in the TGRA can be divided into four modes using 100 m interval buffer rings:high-low-low,high-low-high,low-high-low and low-low-high mode where the different modes represent the agricultural development stages in the TGRA.Furthermore,the traditional agroecosystem in TGRA,represented by system elements such as farmers and sloping farmland,is transforming to accommodate the diversification of farmer livelihoods.For example,sloping farmland,which was dominated by a production function,now has equal emphasis on ecological and economic functions.Spatially,the range of the agroecosystem transition has migrated beyond high mountain areas to flat valley areas.Generally,this study provides an overview of land use in rural areas,controls on soil and water loss in mountainous areas,and better rural living environments in the TGRA.