Subscribe free to our newsletters via your




WATER WORLD
Last chance for oasis in China's desert
by Staff Writers
Munich, Germany (SPX) Sep 14, 2015


The Tarim basin in the Xinjiang region of northwestern China. Image courtesy Technical University of Munich. For a larger version of this image please go here.

Ten percent of the world's cotton is produced in the Xinjiang region in northwestern China. Irrigating the cotton fields, however, is causing ecological problems. After many years of research, a team of international researchers headed by Prof. Markus Disse at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has developed a set of recommendations aimed at preserving the local environment.

The Tarim basin in the Xinjiang region of northwestern China is unique. No other natural landscape is located as far from the ocean. It has an extremely dry climate with only around 50 millimeters of rain falling per square kilometer each year - and the majority of this evaporates. Despite these conditions, the Tarim river flows through this desert region, mainly fed by meltwater from high-altitude glaciers.

This water is a vital resource for a number of groups including:

+ Around ten million people who live along the banks of the Tarim
+ Local animal and plant species
+ The land surrounding the river

Farmers, however, are diverting the lion's share of the water to irrigate their cotton fields. "The natural land and water resources in this unique landscape have been ruthlessly exploited over the past 50 years. This has severely damaged the soils and the quality of water in the region," explains Professor Markus Disse from the Chair of Hydrology and River Basin Management at TUM. As a result, the soils have become increasingly saline. And this is bad news for the farmers. Non-saline soils can support yields of up to eight tons of cotton per hectare whereas soils with medium to high levels of salt can only produce three to four tons per hectare.

Disse has headed the "Sustainable Management of River Oases along the Tarim River" (SuMaRiO) project since 2011. The initiative is funded by Germany's Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and includes researchers from Germany and China.

Largest cotton producing region in China
"Cotton is the lifeblood of most farmers who live in the Tarim basin," says Dr. Christian Rumbaur, employee at the Chair of Hydrology and River Basin Management and coordinator of the German/Chinese project. Forty percent of China's cotton is produced here. This corresponds to around ten percent of global production.

The lack of rain is what makes the region suitable for cultivating this valuable plant. The cotton fibers need a dry climate to mature properly; in a damper environment, they would be susceptible to fungus. Yet the plants also need a lot of water to grow, and the farmers take this from the river.

Under these conditions, groundwater supplies cannot be regenerated. This is proving a threat to the Euphrates Poplar, which draws water from a depth of up to ten meters. Sixty to seventy percent of the world's population of this rare tree species are located in the Tarim basin. The forests act as a barrier against the sands from the neighboring Taklamakan desert. Without them, whole roads and fields would disappear under the advancing desert. The forests also help keep down temperatures through evaporation.

Despite these benefits, farmers are cutting down more and more poplars in order to enlarge their fields. Climate change is one of the factors driving this expansion. Snow on the glaciers is melting, causing more water to flow into valley, and this means more water for irrigation.

The fight against desertification
After years of measurements and investigation, the researchers will be presenting their findings at a conference in Xinjiang in September. They will also be unveiling their recommendations for improving water and land management.

The most important points here include:

+ Reforestation and renaturalization along a strip of land at least 50 to 100 meters wide along both banks of the river. This will allow the groundwater to be replenished during the annual summer flood and will also reduce erosion along the river banks.

+ Sustainable land use that factors in the different types of soil and their degree of salination. Cultivating the plant Apocynum pictum (a member of the dogbane family) on salinated soils will enable farmers to earn an income from poor soils.

+ Use of modeling tools to predict the impact of land use and climate scenarios. To this end, the SuMaRiO researchers developed a system that supports decision-making processes by enabling politicians to evaluate the consequences of different farming alternatives based on future changes in climate.

"We hope that this implementation workshop will herald a new era in sustainable land and water management in the region," adds Disse. "This is the only way that we can ensure long-term stability in this part of the world."


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


.


Related Links
Technical University of Munich
Water News - Science, Technology and Politics






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle




Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News





WATER WORLD
Longest Polish river reveals secrets amid drought
Warsaw (AFP) Sept 5, 2015
Archaeologists are having a field day in Poland's longest river, the Vistula, which because of a drought has hit a record low water level allowing them to uncover a treasure trove of ancient artifacts. "There are pieces of marble and stoneware and fragments of fountains, window sills, columns, concrete slabs, cannonballs," said Hubert Kowalski, a researcher at Warsaw University's archaeologi ... read more


WATER WORLD
Big China payouts for Tianjin firefighters' families

EU chief calls human traffickers 'murderers', urges crackdown

France Nears Completion of Chernobyl Steel Confinement Structure

France cash pledge for persecuted Mideast minorities

WATER WORLD
Mission team ready for Galileo launch

China Deploys New Security System to Ensure Safety at Military Parade

Galileo satellites fuelled and ready for launcher attachment

Denali, tallest peak in N.America, loses 10 feet

WATER WORLD
A one-million-year-old monkey fossil

Ancient human shoulders reveal links to ape ancestors

Did grandmas make people pair up?

New film aims to capture 'Human' experience

WATER WORLD
Climate change could leave Pacific Northwest amphibians high and dry

New calves raise hopes for world's rarest rhino

Biodiversity belowground is just as important as aboveground

Seal pups listen for long distance calls to locate their mothers

WATER WORLD
Preemptive drug should be routine in AIDS fight: study

US Army orders lab safety review, freeze in anthrax scandal

New Ebola death in Sierra Leone sets back efforts to beat epidemic

Pneumonic plague kills eight in Madagascar

WATER WORLD
You give music a bad name: Bon Jovi China gigs cancelled

China says Tibet Lama appointee missing for 20 years 'living normally'

China's government to 'manage' public dancing: Xinhua

After China escape, painful memories remain for blind activist

WATER WORLD
Army's role questioned in missing Mexican students case

Kenya's 'ivory kingpin' bail suspended

Rio airport agents bribed in Chinese immigrant scandal

All bets are off inside Laos' jungle sin city

WATER WORLD
China producer prices slump as Li warns of challenges

Change a heavy task in China's industrial heartland

China to step up fiscal incentives to boost growth

EU businesses warn China over 'slow' reforms




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.