Ecological Water Requirement of Vegetation and Water Stress Assessment in the Middle Reaches of the Keriya River Basin
Desert oases are vital for maintaining the ecological balance in arid regions’ inland river basins. However, fine-grained assessments of water stress in desert oasis ecosystems are limited. In our study, we aimed to evaluate the water stress in desert oasis ecosystems in the middle reaches of the Ke...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2023-09-01
|
| Series: | Remote Sensing |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/15/18/4638 |
| _version_ | 1797577152117342208 |
|---|---|
| author | Ranran Wang Abudoukeremujiang Zayit Xuemin He Dongyang Han Guang Yang Guanghui Lv |
| author_facet | Ranran Wang Abudoukeremujiang Zayit Xuemin He Dongyang Han Guang Yang Guanghui Lv |
| author_sort | Ranran Wang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Desert oases are vital for maintaining the ecological balance in arid regions’ inland river basins. However, fine-grained assessments of water stress in desert oasis ecosystems are limited. In our study, we aimed to evaluate the water stress in desert oasis ecosystems in the middle reaches of the Keriya River Basin, with a specific focus on their ecological functions and optimizing water resource management. We hypothesized that evapotranspiration has significant effects on ecological water consumption. First, we estimated the actual evapotranspiration (ET) and potential evapotranspiration (PET) based on the SEBS (surface energy balance system) model and remote sensing downscaling model. Then, the ecological water requirement (EWR) and ecological water stress (EWS) index were constructed to evaluate the ecological water resource utilization. Finally, we explored the influencing factors and proposed coping strategies. It was found that regions with higher ET values were mainly concentrated along the Keriya River and its adjacent farmland areas, while the lower values were observed in bare land or grassland areas. The total EWR exhibited the sequence of grassland > cropland > forest, while the EWR per unit area followed the opposite order. The grassland’s EWS showed a distinct seasonal response, with severe, moderate, and mild water shortages and water plenitude corresponding to spring, summer, autumn, and winter, respectively. In contrast, the land use types with the lowest EWS were water areas that remained in a state of water plentitude grade (0.08–0.20) throughout the year. Temperature and vegetation index were identified as the primary influencing factors. Overall, this study provides a reliable method for evaluating the EWR and EWS values of basin scale vegetation, which can serve as a scientific basis for formulating water resource management and regulation policies in the region. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T22:03:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-1318c372b96f4c428d3c3d9fd5c9fe4a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2072-4292 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T22:03:57Z |
| publishDate | 2023-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Remote Sensing |
| spelling | doaj.art-1318c372b96f4c428d3c3d9fd5c9fe4a2023-11-19T12:50:34ZengMDPI AGRemote Sensing2072-42922023-09-011518463810.3390/rs15184638Ecological Water Requirement of Vegetation and Water Stress Assessment in the Middle Reaches of the Keriya River BasinRanran Wang0Abudoukeremujiang Zayit1Xuemin He2Dongyang Han3Guang Yang4Guanghui Lv5College of Ecology and Environment, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830017, ChinaCollege of Ecology and Environment, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830017, ChinaCollege of Ecology and Environment, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830017, ChinaCollege of Ecology and Environment, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830017, ChinaCollege of Ecology and Environment, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830017, ChinaCollege of Ecology and Environment, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830017, ChinaDesert oases are vital for maintaining the ecological balance in arid regions’ inland river basins. However, fine-grained assessments of water stress in desert oasis ecosystems are limited. In our study, we aimed to evaluate the water stress in desert oasis ecosystems in the middle reaches of the Keriya River Basin, with a specific focus on their ecological functions and optimizing water resource management. We hypothesized that evapotranspiration has significant effects on ecological water consumption. First, we estimated the actual evapotranspiration (ET) and potential evapotranspiration (PET) based on the SEBS (surface energy balance system) model and remote sensing downscaling model. Then, the ecological water requirement (EWR) and ecological water stress (EWS) index were constructed to evaluate the ecological water resource utilization. Finally, we explored the influencing factors and proposed coping strategies. It was found that regions with higher ET values were mainly concentrated along the Keriya River and its adjacent farmland areas, while the lower values were observed in bare land or grassland areas. The total EWR exhibited the sequence of grassland > cropland > forest, while the EWR per unit area followed the opposite order. The grassland’s EWS showed a distinct seasonal response, with severe, moderate, and mild water shortages and water plenitude corresponding to spring, summer, autumn, and winter, respectively. In contrast, the land use types with the lowest EWS were water areas that remained in a state of water plentitude grade (0.08–0.20) throughout the year. Temperature and vegetation index were identified as the primary influencing factors. Overall, this study provides a reliable method for evaluating the EWR and EWS values of basin scale vegetation, which can serve as a scientific basis for formulating water resource management and regulation policies in the region.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/15/18/4638evapotranspirationSEBSecological water requirementwater stressdesert oases |
| spellingShingle | Ranran Wang Abudoukeremujiang Zayit Xuemin He Dongyang Han Guang Yang Guanghui Lv Ecological Water Requirement of Vegetation and Water Stress Assessment in the Middle Reaches of the Keriya River Basin Remote Sensing evapotranspiration SEBS ecological water requirement water stress desert oases |
| title | Ecological Water Requirement of Vegetation and Water Stress Assessment in the Middle Reaches of the Keriya River Basin |
| title_full | Ecological Water Requirement of Vegetation and Water Stress Assessment in the Middle Reaches of the Keriya River Basin |
| title_fullStr | Ecological Water Requirement of Vegetation and Water Stress Assessment in the Middle Reaches of the Keriya River Basin |
| title_full_unstemmed | Ecological Water Requirement of Vegetation and Water Stress Assessment in the Middle Reaches of the Keriya River Basin |
| title_short | Ecological Water Requirement of Vegetation and Water Stress Assessment in the Middle Reaches of the Keriya River Basin |
| title_sort | ecological water requirement of vegetation and water stress assessment in the middle reaches of the keriya river basin |
| topic | evapotranspiration SEBS ecological water requirement water stress desert oases |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/15/18/4638 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT ranranwang ecologicalwaterrequirementofvegetationandwaterstressassessmentinthemiddlereachesofthekeriyariverbasin AT abudoukeremujiangzayit ecologicalwaterrequirementofvegetationandwaterstressassessmentinthemiddlereachesofthekeriyariverbasin AT xueminhe ecologicalwaterrequirementofvegetationandwaterstressassessmentinthemiddlereachesofthekeriyariverbasin AT dongyanghan ecologicalwaterrequirementofvegetationandwaterstressassessmentinthemiddlereachesofthekeriyariverbasin AT guangyang ecologicalwaterrequirementofvegetationandwaterstressassessmentinthemiddlereachesofthekeriyariverbasin AT guanghuilv ecologicalwaterrequirementofvegetationandwaterstressassessmentinthemiddlereachesofthekeriyariverbasin |