Asymmetric response of vegetation GPP to impervious surface expansion: Case studies in the Yellow and Yangtze River Basins

Mingjie Yang; Lianqing Xue; Yuanhong Liu; Saihua Liu; Qiang Han; Lijuan Yang; Yixia Chi

doi:10.1016/j.envres.2023.117813

Asymmetric response of vegetation GPP to impervious surface expansion: Case studies in the Yellow and Yangtze River Basins

Environ Res. 2024 Feb 15:243:117813. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2023.117813. Epub 2023 Dec 1.

Authors

Mingjie Yang¹, Lianqing Xue², Yuanhong Liu¹, Saihua Liu¹, Qiang Han¹, Lijuan Yang¹, Yixia Chi³

Affiliations

¹ College of Hydrology and Water Resources, Hohai University, Nanjing, 210098, China.
² College of Hydrology and Water Resources, Hohai University, Nanjing, 210098, China; School of Hydraulic Engineering, Wanjiang University of Technology, Ma'anshan, 243031, China. Electronic address: lqxue@hhu.edu.cn.
³ School of Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, 212100, China.

PMID: 38043893
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2023.117813

Abstract

Terrestrial gross primary production (GPP) changes due to impervious surfaces significantly impact ecosystem services in watersheds. Understanding the asymmetric response of vegetation GPP to impervious surface expansion is essential for regional development planning and ecosystem management. However, the asymmetric response of vegetation GPP to the impacts of impervious surface expansion is unknown in different watersheds. This paper selected the Yellow River and Yangtze River basins as case studies. We characterized the overall change in GPP based on changes in impervious surface ratio (ISR), determined impervious surface expansion's direct and indirect impacts on GPP in the two watersheds, and further analyzed the asymmetric response of the compensatory effects of indirect influences on the impervious surface expansion in different watersheds. The results showed that: (1) The vegetation GPP decreased with increasing ISR in the Yangtze River Basin, while that in the Yellow River Basin first increased and then reduced. (2) The direct impacts of increased ISR reduced vegetation GPP, while the indirect impacts both had a growth-compensating effect. Growth compensation stabilized at approximately 0.40 and 0.30 in the Yellow and Yangtze River Basins. (3) When the ISR was 0.34-0.56, the growth compensation could offset the reduction of GPP due to direct impact and ensure that the background vegetation GPP was not damaged in the Yellow River Basin. In contrast, the background vegetation GPP was inevitably impaired with increased ISR in the Yangtze River Basin. Therefore, this study suggests that the ISR should be ensured to be between 0.34 and 0.56 to maximize the impervious surface of the Yellow River Basin without compromising the background vegetation GPP. While pursuing impervious surface expansion in the Yangtze River Basin, other programs should be sought to compensate for the loss to GPP.

Keywords: Asymmetric; Direct and indirect impacts; GPP; Impervious surface ratio; Yangtze River Basin; Yellow River Basin.

MeSH terms

China
Ecosystem*
Environmental Monitoring*
Rivers