Assessment of the Spatiotemporal Impact of Water Conservation on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau

Xin Wen; Huaiyong Shao; Ying Wang; Lingfeng Lv; Wei Xian; Qiufang Shao; Yang Shu; Ziqiang Yin; Shuhan Liu; Jiaguo Qi

doi:10.3390/rs15123175

Remote Sensing (Jun 2023)

Assessment of the Spatiotemporal Impact of Water Conservation on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau

Xin Wen,
Huaiyong Shao,
Ying Wang,
Lingfeng Lv,
Wei Xian,
Qiufang Shao,
Yang Shu,
Ziqiang Yin,
Shuhan Liu,
Jiaguo Qi

Affiliations

Xin Wen: College of Earth Sciences, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, China
Huaiyong Shao: College of Earth Sciences, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, China
Ying Wang: School of Materials and Environmental Engineering, Chengdu Technological University, Chengdu 611730, China
Lingfeng Lv: College of Earth Sciences, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, China
Wei Xian: College of Resources and Environment, Chengdu University of Information Technology, Chengdu 610225, China
Qiufang Shao: Teaching Steering Committee, Sichuan Tourism University, Chengdu 610100, China
Yang Shu: College of Management, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611100, China
Ziqiang Yin: College of Ecology and Environment, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, China
Shuhan Liu: College of Earth Sciences, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, China
Jiaguo Qi: Center for Global Change and Earth Observations, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/rs15123175
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 15, no. 12
p. 3175

Abstract

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The Qinghai–Tibet Plateau is a proven essential water conservation region in Asia. However, various factors, such as anthropogenic activities, climate, and vegetation significantly affect its water conservation. Along these lines, a deep understanding of the spatiotemporal patterns of water conservation for this plateau and relevant influencing elements is considered of great importance. This paper calculates the water conservation on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau based on the InVEST model, and given that the evapotranspiration data are an important parameter of the InVEST model, this study selects the mainstream evapotranspiration data to compare the accuracy of the simulated water yield, and also selects the most accurate remote sensing evapotranspiration data examined in the study to carry out the study of water conservation on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. Due to the large area of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau and the various types of climate and ecological zones, this paper analyzes the spatial and temporal variations of water conservation on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau in each ecological zone and climate zone division and detects the factors affecting water conservation on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau by using the geo-detector method. From our analysis, the following outcomes are proven: on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau, (1) the overall water conservation decreased from southeast to northwest; (2) the water conservation of the studied plateau in 1990, 2000, 2010, and 2020 was 656.56, 590.85, 597.4, and 651.85 mm, respectively; (3) precipitation, evapotranspiration, and NDVI exhibited a positive relationship with water conservation; (4) the precipitation factor had the biggest impact on the spatial distinctions of the water resource governance; (5) the above factors are combined with the slope factor and the interaction of each factor to improve water conservation. Our work provides valuable insights for the further implementation of ecological projects with a view to enhancing water resource management methods.

Published in Remote Sensing

ISSN: 2072-4292 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Science
Website: http://www.mdpi.com/journal/remotesensing/

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