Loess Plateau: from degradation to restoration

Yang Yu; Wenwu Zhao; Juan F Martinez-Murillo; Paulo Pereira

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140206

Loess Plateau: from degradation to restoration

Sci Total Environ. 2020 Oct 10:738:140206. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140206. Epub 2020 Jun 15.

Authors

Yang Yu¹, Wenwu Zhao², Juan F Martinez-Murillo³, Paulo Pereira⁴

Affiliations

¹ College of Soil and Water Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China; Key Laboratory of Soil and Water Conservation & Desertification Combating, State Forestry and Grassland Administration, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China; Jixian National Forest Ecosystem Research Network Station, CNERN, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China; Department of Sediment Research, China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, Beijing 100038, China.
² State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.
³ Departamento de Geografía, Universidad de Málaga, Campus de Teatinos s/n, Málaga 29071, Spain; Instituto de Geomorfología y Suelos, Universidad de Málaga, Ampliación Campus de Teatinos, Málaga 29071, Spain.
⁴ Environmental Management Laboratory, Mykolas Romeris University, Vilnius, Lithuania. Electronic address: pereiraub@gmail.com.

PMID: 32660774
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140206

Abstract

United Nations established 2021-2030 as the decade for ecosystem restoration and "prevent, halt and reverse the degradation of ecosystems worldwide". Ecosystem and land degradation are a global phenomenon. As a consequence of land degradation, in the late 1990s, the "Grain for Green Program" (GFGP) was established in Loess Plateau (China). It converted slope farmlands to forest or grassland over the, resulting in a visible "greening" trend. Other effects of GFGP on soil properties, land production, hydrological conditions, ecosystem services, and policy implications are the topics of this Special Issue. This Special Issue includes 17 contributions that cover recent research carried out in Loess Plateau in the mentioned topics at different spatial and temporal scales. The collection of papers presented in this Special Issue discusses critical issues in vegetation restoration and sustainable land management in the region. This Special Issue will contribute to United Nations strategy for ecosystems restoration.

Keywords: Ecosystem services; Grain for Green Program; Land degradation; Loess Plateau; Vegetation restoration.

Publication types

Editorial