Massive crop expansion threatens agriculture and water sustainability in northwestern China

Bibliographic Data

ID15547436
AuthorsJiameng Lai (0000-0002-8293-1938, Cornell University, corresponding author), Yanan Li (0000-0002-9456-4514, Texas State University), Jianli Chen (0000-0002-3124-7327, The University of Texas at Austin), Guo‐Yue Niu (0000-0003-2105-7690, University of Arizona), Guo-Yue Niu, Peirong Lin (0000-0002-7275-7470, Princeton University), Qi Li (0000-0003-3042-3584, Cornell University), Lixin Wang (0000-0002-1769-6935, Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis), Jimei Han (0000-0001-7466-8511, Cornell University), Zhenqi Luo (0000-0003-1245-5654, Cornell University), Ying Sun (0009-0008-7911-9034, Cornell University)
Year2021
Volume17
Issue3
Pages034003-034003
Publication date2021-12-29
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEnvironmental Research Letters (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1748-9326 • E-ISSN: 1748-9326
PublisherIOP Publishing (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1088/1748-9326/ac46e8
OpenAlexW4200233163
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited55

Northwestern China (NWC) is among the major global hotspots undergoing massive terrestrial water storage (TWS) depletion. Yet driver(s) underlying such region-wide depletion remain controversial, i.e. warming-induced glaciermelting versus anthropogenic activities. Reconciling this controversy is the core initial step to guide policymaking to combat the dual challenges in agriculture production and water scarcity in the vastly dry NWC toward sustainable development. Utilizing diverse observations, we found persistent cropland expansion by >1.2 × 10 4 km 2 since 2003, leading to growth of 59.9% in irrigated area and 19.5% in agricultural water use, despite a steady enhancement in irrigation efficiency. Correspondingly, a substantially faster evapotranspiration (ET) increase occurred in crop expansion areas, whereas precipitation exhibited no long-term trend. Counterfactual analyses suggest that the region-wide TWS depletion is unlikely to have occurred without an increase in crop expansion-driven ET even in the presence of glaciermelting. These findings imply that sustainable water management is critically needed to ensure agriculture and water security in NWC

Agriculture · Agroforestry · Agronomy · Climate change · Economics · Evapotranspiration · Food security · Geography · Global warming · Irrigation · Natural resource economics · Sustainability · Water resource management · Water resources · Water scarcity · Water security · Climate change and permafrost · Cryospheric studies and observations · Environmental Science · Hydrology and Watershed Management Studies · Ecology

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