Dryland East Asia: Land Dynamics amid Social and Climate Change (Ecosystem Science and Applications)

Drylands in East Asia (DEA) are home to more than one billion people with an environment vulnerable to natural and anthropogenic changes. One of the critical needs in the region is to fully understand how dryland ecosystems respond to the changing climate and human activities in order to develop strategies to cope with continued climate change. This book provides state-of-the-art knowledge and information on drylands ecosystem dynamics, changing climate, society, and land use in the region. In addition to the synthesis of the existing research and knowledge of DEA, the book provides a role model for regional ecological assessment. With a wide spectrum of contributions from experts around the globe, the book should be of interest to researchers and students both internationally and in East Asia. Lessons learned from this synthesis effort in DEA should be useful for developing climate adaptation strategies for other similar regions around the globe. * Synthesizes current research on Dryland East Asia * Provides a model for studying other regions * Top international researchers in the field Part I. State and Changes in Dryland East Asia 1 State and Change of Dryland East Asia (DEA) 1.1 Geography, Demography and Economics in DEA 1.2 Climate and Land-Use Changes 1.3 Ecosystem Production and Evapotranspiration 1.4 Scientific and Societal Challenges for Adaptations in DEA References 2 Dryland East Asia in Hemispheric Context 2.1 Study Regions 2.2 Change Analysis of Vegetated Land Surface 2.3 Retrospective Trend Analysis Reveals Areas of Significant Change 2.4 Vegetation Change in Three Epochs 2.5 Land Cover Variation and Change 2.6 Precipitation Variation and Change 2.7 Conclusion References 3 NEESPI and MAIRS Programs in Dryland East Asia 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Contrast and Comparison 3.2.1 The Programs 3.2.2 Research Approaches 3.2.3 Organization Structure 3.2.4 Major Research Activities 3.3 Major Findings and Achievements 3.3.1 Understanding Climate Change 3.3.2 Understanding Societal Consequences 3.3.3 Understanding Ecosystem Impacts 3.3.4 Institutional Responses to Environmental Change 3.3.5 Understanding Challenges 3.4 Conclusions References 4 Land Use and Land Cover Change in Dryland East Asia 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Global Land Use Changes through Centuries 4.3 Long-Term Changes in Cropland and Pastureland in DEA 4.4 Recent Changes in Asian Drylands 4.4.1 Rangeland Degradation and Desertification and Increased Cropland 4.4.2 Grassland Recovery 4.4.3 Reforestation/Afforestation 4.5 Sahel Land Use Change References 5 Urban Expansion and Environment Change in Dryland East Asia 5.1 Introduction 5.2 Study Area, Data, and Methodology 5.2.1 Study Area 5.2.2 Data and Methodology 5.3 Findings 5.3.1 Urban Expansion 5.3.2 Environment Impact 5.4 Case of ̈Ur ̈umqi 5.4.1 Spatio-Temporal Change in Ürümqi 5.4.2 Environment Challenges of Ürümqi 5.5 Discussion 5.5.1 Characteristics of Urbanization in Arid Regions 5.5.2 Socio-Economic Factors Driving Urbanization 5.6 Conclusions References 6 Ecosystem Carbon Cycle under Changing Atmosphere, Climate and Land Use in Dryland East Asia 6.1 Introduction 6.2 Simulated Ecosystem Carbon Patterns in DEA 6.3 Responses of Ecosystem Carbon Cycling to Atmospheric Change 6.3.1 CO2 Enrichment 6.3.2 Nitrogen Deposition and Its Impact on DEA Ecosystems 6.4 Responses of Ecosystem Carbon Cycling to Climate Change 6.4.1 Responses to Precipitation Changes 6.4.2 Responses to Temperature Changes 6.5 Responses of Ecosystem Carbon Cycling to Land Use and Land Cover Changes 6.6 Interactions among Environmental Changes 6.6.1 Limitation of Nitrogen Availability on CO2 Impacts 6.6.2 Dependence of Nitrogen Effects on Water Status (Precipitation Regimes) 6.6.3 Interaction between Temperature (Warming) and Water Availability (Precipitation) 6.6.4 Relationship and Interactions between Land Use and Climate Changes on Ecosystem Carbon Cycling 6.7 Carbon Sequestration Potential and Human Adaption to Climate Change References 7 Dynamics of Vegetation Productivity in Dryland East Asia from 1982 to 2010 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Data and Methods 7.2.1 AVHRR NDVI 7.2.2 MODIS NDVI 7.2.3 Land Cover Map 7.2.4 MERRA Reanalysis Data 7.2.5 Agricultural Statistics 7.2.6 Statistical Analysis 7.3 Results and Discussion 7.3.1 Trends of Spatially-Averaged NDVI 7.3.2 Spatial Patterns of NDVI Trends 7.3.3 Climatic Drivers 7.3.4 Other Drivers 7.4 Conclusions References Summary I : Contexts of Change Part II. Consequences 8 Impacts of Global Change on Water Resources in Dryland East Asia 8.1 Introduction 8.2 Key Water Resource Challenges 8.2.1 Distribution ofWater Balances across DEA and Historical Changes 8.2.2 Land Use/Land Cover Change 8.2.3 Agricultural Irrigation and Industrialization 8.2.4 Climate Change 8.3 Water Resources under Environmental Changes: Case Studies 8.3.1 Loess Plateau 8.3.2 Impacts of Future Climate Change on Runoff across DEA 8.4 Conclusions References 9 Examining Changes in Land Cover and Land Use, Regional Climate and Dust in Dryland East Asia and Their Linkages within the Earth System 9.1 Introduction 9.2 Assessment of Decadal Dust Emission Based on Historical LCLU, Regional Climate and the Regional Coupled Dust Modeling System WRF-Chem-DuMo 9.3 Observation-based Dust Climatology and Its Relationship to LCLU and Regional Climate 9.4 A Satellite Perspective on the Last Decade 9.5 Impacts of Dust on Human-Environment-Climate Systems References 10 Biophysical Regulations of Grassland Ecosystem Carbon and Water Fluxes in DEA 10.1 Brief Introduction of Abiotic and Biotic Factors in Relation to Carbon and Water Fluxes in DEA 10.2 Biophysical Regulations of Carbon Fluxes between Grazed and Ungrazed Grasslands 10.2.1 Responses of Daytime Net Ecosystem Exchange to Biotic/Abiotic Factors 10.2.2 Response of Nighttime NEE (Re) to T and SWC 10.3 Ecosystem Carbon Fluxes between Grassland and Cultivated Cropland 10.3.1 Responses of Daytime NEE to Biotic/Abiotic Factors 10.3.2 Response of Nighttime NEE (Re) to T and SWC 10.4 Biophysical Regulations of Water and Energy Fluxes 10.4.1 Energy Partitioning and Its Response to Abiotic/Biotic Factors 10.4.2 EcosystemWater and Energy Fluxes between Grazed and Ungrazed Grasslands and between Grassland and Cultivated Cropland References 11 Afforestation and Forests at the Dryland Edges: Lessons Learned and Future Outlooks 11.1 Introduction 11.2 Vegetation Zonation and Climate 11.3 Climate Forcing Effect of Forests: Ambiguous Conditions at the Dryland Edges 11.3.1 Low Elevation Xeric Limits: Vulnerable Forest-Grassland Transition 11.3.2 Management of Forests—Plantations vs. Close to Nature Ecosystems 11.4 Effects of Forest Management on Forest Hydrological Balances in Dry Regions: A Comparison of China and the United States 11.4.1 China 11.4.2 United States 11.5 Past and Future of Forest Policy in Dryland Regions of China 11.5.1 Causes and Consequences of Expanding Desertification 11.5.2 Shelterbelt Development and Sand Control Programs in China 11.5.3 Debates and Critics about the Achievements of the Past Programs 11.5.4 Lessons Learned from Past 11.6 Conclusions References 12 Human Impact and Land Degradation in Mongolia 12.1 Introduction 12.2 Land Degradation Overview 12.2.1 Mining Land Degradation 12.2.2 Land Degradation by Road 12.2.3 Pastureland Degradation and Desertification 12.2.4 Soil Erosion of Arable Land 12.2.5 Deforestation 12.2.6 Soil Pollution 12.3 Use of Fallout Radionuclide Methods for Soil Erosion Study 12.4 Conclusions References 13 The Effect of Large-Scale Conservation Programs on the Vegetative Development of China’s Loess Plateau 13.1 Introduction 13.2 Conservation Programs 13.3 Study Region 13.3.1 Loess Plateau 13.3.2 Subset for Fine Scale Analysis 13.4 Data 13.4.1 MODIS Data 13.4.2 Landsat Data 13.4.3 Grazing Statistics 13.4.4 Anthromes 13.5 Methods 13.6 Results and Discussion 13.6.1 Vegetation Index and Albedo Changes 13.6.2 500 m NDVI Changes 13.6.3 Grazing Intensity Change 13.7 Conclusions References Summary II : Consequences Part III. Solutions/Adaptations 14 Monitoring and Assessment of Dryland Ecosystems with Remote Sensing 14.1 Problems of Land Degradation and Desertification in Drylands: Current Challenges and Perspectives 14.2 Indicators of Land Degradation/Desertification and Their Detection by Remote Sensing 14.2.1 History of Degradation/Desertification Indicator Development in Recent Decades 14.2.2 Retrieving Biophysical Spectral Information with Remote Sensing for DLDD 14.2.3 Bio-physiological Indexes for Assessment and Monitoring 14.3 Review of Available Sensors and Data over DEA and Their Suitability for Detecting Desertification Indicators 14.3.1 Short Outlook on Future Satellite Sensors over DEA 14.4 Remote Sensing Approach for Desertification Assessment in Central Asia: History, Current Research, and Perspectives—A Case Study 14.5 Conclusions References 15 The Effects of Spatial Resolution on Vegetation Area Estimates in the Lower Tarim River Basin, Northwestern China 15.1 Introduction 15.2 Study Area 15.3 Methodology 15.4 Results and Discussion 15.5 Conclusions References 16 New Ecology Education: Preparing Students for the Complex Human- Environmental Problems of Dryland East Asia 16.1 Introduction 16.2 Description of New Ecology Education 16.2.1 Topic 1: What’s Going On? (Conceptual Models) 16.2.2 Topic 2: Life Is So Confusing! (Nonlinearity) 16.2.3 Topic 3: Everything Is Connected to Everything Else (Systems Thinking) 16.2.4 Topic 4: Climbing Up-and-Down the Complexity Ladder (Hierarchy Theory) 16.2.5 Topic 5: What Does It Take to Change This System? (Resilience) 16.2.6 Topic 6: Coping with Land Degradation in Drylands (Ecosystem Services) 16.2.7 Topic 7: Unraveling the Complexity of Coupled H-E Systems and Desertification (The Drylands Development Paradigm) 16.2.8 Topic 8: Where Art, Science, and Craft Meet (Ostrom’s Framework) 16.3 Conclusions References 17 Grassland Degradation and Restoration in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China from the 1950s to 2000s: Population, Policies and Profits 17.1 Introduction 17.2 Population and Urbanization in IM 17.2.1 Population Evolution 17.2.2 Population and Over-Grazing 17.2.3 Urbanization and Restoration 17.3 Policy, Laws and Regulation for Grassland 17.4 From Production to Profits 17.4.1 Animal Husbandry 17.4.2 Tourism Development 17.4.3 Environmental Service 17.5 Conclusions References 18 Sustainable Governance of the Mongolian Grasslands: Comparing Ecological and Social-Institutional Changes in the Context of Climate Change in Mongolia and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China 18.1 Introduction 18.2 Explanatory Models of Grassland Dynamics 18.3 Analyses and Results 18.3.1 Collectivization of Pastures and Livestock 18.3.2 Privatization and Market Incentives 18.3.3 Recentralization of Grassland Management in IM, China 18.3.4 Changing Roles of the State, Market and Community for Grassland Management 18.3.5 Climate Variability and Change: History and Future 18.4 Discussion 18.5 Conclusions References 19 Adaptive Management of Grazing Lands 19.1 Introduction 19.2 Distribution of Grazing Lands and Problems 19.3 Case Study and Adaptive Management in IM 19.3.1 Study Site 19.3.2 The ACIAR-Model 19.3.3 Typical Farm 19.3.4 Economic Stocking Rate 19.3.5 Improved Feeding of Livestock during Winter and Spring 19.3.6 Changing Lambing Time 19.3.7 Use of Warm Sheds during Cold Seasons 19.4 Conclusions and Discussion References Summary III: Solutions and Adaptations Index

Drylands in East Asia (DEA)are home to more than one billion people with an environment vulnerable to natural and anthropogenic changes. One of the critical needs in the region is to fully understand how dryland ecosystems respond to the changing climate and human activities in order to develop strategies to cope with continued climate change. This book provides state-of-the-art knowledge and information on drylands ecosystem dynamics, changing climate, society, and land use in the region. In addition to the synthesis of the existing research and knowledge of DEA, the book provides a role model for regional ecological assessment. With a wide spectrum of contributions from experts around the globe, the book should be of interest to researchers and students both internationally and in East Asia. Lessons learned from this synthesis effort in DEA should be useful for developing climate adaptation strategies for other similar regions around the globe.

Drylands in East Asia (DEA) are home to more than one billion people and vulnerable to natural and anthropogenic changes. In order to develop adaptation strategies one needs to know how ecosystems respond to these changes. The book provides state-of-the-art knowledge on drylands ecosystem dynamics, climate changes, and land use in DEA. With contributions from international experts, the book will be of interest both to researchers and students