Arid Zone Research ›› 2021, Vol. 38 ›› Issue (4): 901-909.doi: 10.13866/j.azr.2021.04.01

• Water Resources and Utilization •     Next Articles

Effect of ecological water conveyance on groundwater depth and vegetation in the Kongque River

LIU Lu1,2(),CHEN Yapeng1(),LI Xiaoyang1,2   

  1. 1. State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011,Xinjiang, China
    2. College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
  • Received:2020-10-15 Revised:2020-12-09 Online:2021-07-15 Published:2021-08-03
  • Contact: Yapeng CHEN E-mail:liulu181@mails.ucas.ac.cn;chenyp@ms.xjb.ac.cn

Abstract:

To understand changes in groundwater depth and vegetation after ecological water conveyance, the spatial and temporal variation characteristics of groundwater depth, the relationship between groundwater depth and cumulative water volume, and changes in the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and vegetation coverage after water conveyance were analyzed using statistical methods and remote sensing image data. In regards to temporal variation, the results showed a steady upward trend in the groundwater depth of the Kongque River after ecological water transfer, and that the yearly change in groundwater depth was mainly caused by human agricultural production. In regards to spatial change, the range of rising groundwater depth decreased with increasing distance in each perpendicular section to the river channel. The change of the buried depth of the middle reach along the river direction was the largest. There was a negative correlation between groundwater depth and cumulative ecological water delivery. The correlation of the middle reach section was the most significant. From 2016 to 2019, the NDVI of the upstream and midstream sections increased by 64.28% and 100%, respectively, whereas the NDVI value of the downstream reach was stable at 0.05. The vegetation coverage within 2 km from the three river reaches showed an increasing trend. Thus, ecological water conveyance had a positive effect on groundwater depth and vegetation in Kongque River Basin. These results suggest that a reasonable water conveyance amount should be maintained to strengthen groundwater supervision and control, and to protect ecological security.

Key words: Kongque River, ecological water conveyance, groundwater depth, NDVI, vegetation coverage