Does the Green Great Wall effectively decrease dust storm intensity in China? A study based on NOAA NDVI and weather station data

Tan, Minghong; Li, Xiubin

doi:10.1016/j.landusepol.2014.10.017

Cited by 109 publications

(72 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…The GGW program has greatly improved vegetation cover and effectively reduced dust storm intensity in parts of northern China [8], but other researchers point to warmer temperatures and greater rainfall as being more important drivers of greening trends in the area [146], and the value of large-scale afforestation in controlling desertification and soil erosion in China has been questioned due to low tree survival rates [147]. Huang et al [148] report that rangeland restoration programs have resulted in a systematic increase in the area of grassland in most northern and western regions, but Su et al [149] warn that bush encroachment is an unexpected outcome of the grazing ban on sandy rangelands in Inner Mongolia.…”

Section: Contemporary National Regional and International Plansmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Attempts to combat wind erosion with soil conservation measures have succeeded in reducing SDS in certain parts of the world (e.g., [7,8]) but in other areas there has been a recent marked increase in wind erosion and associated dust storms. These areas include parts of the Arabian Peninsula [9,10], the eastern Mediterranean [11,12], Lower Mesopotamia and adjacent regions [13], and parts of northeast Asia [14].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sand and Dust Storms: Impact Mitigation

2017

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Sand and dust storms (SDS) play an integral role in the Earth system but they also present a range of hazards to the environmental and economic sustainability of human society. These hazards are of considerable importance for residents of dryland environments and also affect people beyond drylands because wind erosion can occur in most environments and desert dust events often involve long-range transport over great distances (>1000 km). This paper makes an assessment of the scale of SDS impacts by totalling the countries affected using an appraisal of peer-reviewed published sources, arriving at a conservative estimate that 77% of all parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) are affected directly by SDS issues. We then present a synthesis of the environmental management techniques designed to mitigate SDS hazards for disaster risk reduction and review policy measures, both historical and contemporary, for SDS impact mitigation. Although many SDS hazards are well-known, the processes involved and their impacts are not all equally well-understood. Policies designed to mitigate the impacts of wind erosion in agricultural areas have been developed in certain parts of the world but policies designed to mitigate the wider impacts of SDS, including many that are transboundary, are geographically patchy and have a much shorter history. Further development and wider implementation of such policies is advocated because of the recent marked increase in wind erosion and associated dust storms in several parts of the world.

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Section: Contemporary National Regional and International Plansmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sand and Dust Storms: Impact Mitigation

2017

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“…Whether the Three-North Forest Shelterbelt Program is performing well in combating desertification and SDS events is still debatable, but countermeasures should be adopted in this region [65,66]. The map of the major transportation routes of sand and dust storms, combined with the results of SDSI, could help the government and policy makers more accurately and effectively address SDS issues.…”

Section: Major Transportation Routes Of Sand and Dust Storms In The Tmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterizing Sand and Dust Storms (SDS) Intensity in China Based on Meteorological Data

Cao

Zhang

et al. 2018

Sustainability

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Sand and dust storms (SDS) are global phenomena that significantly impact the socio-economy, human health, and the environment. The characterization of SDS intensity is a fundamental aspect of SDS issues and studies. In this study, a sand and dust storms index (SDSI) is developed to characterize SDS intensity by addressing the potential impacts of sand and dust storms on sensitive elements. Compared with other indices, SDSI includes four SDS-related components: SDS frequency, SDS visibility, SDS duration, and SDS wind speed. Using SDSI, this study characterizes the SDS intensity in the Three-North Forest Shelterbelt Program (TNFSP) region of China. The SDSI results show that high values of SDSI are mostly concentrated in southern Xinjiang, western and central Inner Mongolia, western and central Gansu, and northern Ningxia. By analyzing the SDSI components, over half of the stations experienced sand and dust storms no more than once per year on average. Most of the SDS events reduced horizontal visibility to less than 500 m, one-third of SDS events last more than two hours, and the wind speed of over half of the SDS events varied between 10-17 m/s. In comparison with SDS frequency, SDSI performs better in reflecting the spatial and temporal variation of SDS events. Therefore, instead of SDS frequency, SDSI can be applied to studies relevant to SDS intensity. Finally, five major SDS transportation routes were identified based on the surface prevailing wind direction, SDSI, and the existing literature. The SDS routes, combined with SDSI, could help governments and policy-makers cooperate on a regional level to combat SDS events more effectively.Keywords: sand and dust storms (SDS); sand and dust storms (SDS) index; sand and dust storms (SDS) intensity; sand and dust storms (SDS) routes

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“…It has made great achievements since its initiation in 1978 and will continue for 75 years until 2050 [39]. Many research and assessment efforts linked to the TNSFP have focused on vegetation dynamics, and previous studies has reported that vegetation have greatly improved in the TNSFP region, while it varied dramatically outside the TNSFP region during 1981-1998 [40], indicating a positive effect of the TNSFP on vegetation growth. Meanwhile, regional study results also showed a substantial forest increase in Yulin district from 1974 to 2010 [41].…”

Section: Role Of Ecological Restoration In Vegetation Dynamicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in Growing Season Vegetation and Their Associated Driving Forces in China during 2001–2012

Liu

Zhu

et al. 2015

Remote Sensing

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Abstract:In recent decades, the monitoring of vegetation dynamics has become crucial because of its important role in terrestrial ecosystems. In this study, a satellite-derived normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) was combined with climate factors to explore the spatiotemporal patterns of vegetation change during the growing season, as well as their driving forces in China from 2001 to 2012. Our results showed that the growing season NDVI increased continuously during 2001-2012, with a linear trend of 1.4%/10 years (p < 0.01). The NDVI in north China mainly exhibited an increasing spatial trend, but this trend was generally decreasing in south China. The vegetation dynamics were mainly at a moderate intensity level in both the increasing and decreasing areas. The significantly increasing trend in the NDVI for arid and semi-arid areas of northwest China was attributed mainly to an increasing trend in the NDVI during the spring, whereas that for the north and northeast of China was due to an increasing trend in the NDVI during the summer and autumn. Different vegetation types exhibited great variation in their trends, where the grassforb community had the highest linear trend of 2%/10 years (p < 0.05), followed by meadow, and needle-leaf forest with the lowest increasing trend, i.e., a linear trend of 0.3%/10 years. OPEN ACCESSRemote Sens. 2015, 7 15518Our results also suggested that the cumulative precipitation during the growing season had a dominant effect on the vegetation dynamics compared with temperature for all six vegetation types. In addition, the response of different vegetation types to climate variability exhibited considerable differences. In terms of anthropological activity, our statistical analyses showed that there was a strong correlation between the cumulative afforestation area and NDVI during the study period, especially in a pilot region for ecological restoration, thereby suggesting the important role of ecological restoration programs in ecological recovery throughout China in the last decade.

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Does the Green Great Wall effectively decrease dust storm intensity in China? A study based on NOAA NDVI and weather station data

Cited by 109 publications

References 39 publications

Sand and Dust Storms: Impact Mitigation

Sand and Dust Storms: Impact Mitigation

Characterizing Sand and Dust Storms (SDS) Intensity in China Based on Meteorological Data

Changes in Growing Season Vegetation and Their Associated Driving Forces in China during 2001–2012

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