Articles | Volume 29, issue 19
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-5049-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-5049-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
09 Oct 2025
Research article |
| 09 Oct 2025
| 09 Oct 2025
Soil salinity patterns reveal changes in the water cycle of inland river basins in arid zones
Gaojia Meng
College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Lanzhou Sub-Center, Remote Sensing Application Center, Ministry of Agriculture, Lanzhou 730000, China
Shiyang River Ecological Environment Observation Station, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Lanzhou Sub-Center, Remote Sensing Application Center, Ministry of Agriculture, Lanzhou 730000, China
Shiyang River Ecological Environment Observation Station, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Key Laboratory of Resource Environment and Sustainable Development of Oasis, Lanzhou 730000, China
Yinying Jiao
College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Lanzhou Sub-Center, Remote Sensing Application Center, Ministry of Agriculture, Lanzhou 730000, China
Key Laboratory of Resource Environment and Sustainable Development of Oasis, Lanzhou 730000, China
Dongdong Qiu
College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Lanzhou Sub-Center, Remote Sensing Application Center, Ministry of Agriculture, Lanzhou 730000, China
Key Laboratory of Resource Environment and Sustainable Development of Oasis, Lanzhou 730000, China
Yuhao Wang
College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Lanzhou Sub-Center, Remote Sensing Application Center, Ministry of Agriculture, Lanzhou 730000, China
Key Laboratory of Resource Environment and Sustainable Development of Oasis, Lanzhou 730000, China
Siyu Lu
College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Lanzhou Sub-Center, Remote Sensing Application Center, Ministry of Agriculture, Lanzhou 730000, China
Key Laboratory of Resource Environment and Sustainable Development of Oasis, Lanzhou 730000, China
Rui Li
College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Lanzhou Sub-Center, Remote Sensing Application Center, Ministry of Agriculture, Lanzhou 730000, China
Key Laboratory of Resource Environment and Sustainable Development of Oasis, Lanzhou 730000, China
Jiawei Liu
College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Lanzhou Sub-Center, Remote Sensing Application Center, Ministry of Agriculture, Lanzhou 730000, China
Shiyang River Ecological Environment Observation Station, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Longhu Chen
College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Lanzhou Sub-Center, Remote Sensing Application Center, Ministry of Agriculture, Lanzhou 730000, China
Key Laboratory of Resource Environment and Sustainable Development of Oasis, Lanzhou 730000, China
Qinqin Wang
College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Lanzhou Sub-Center, Remote Sensing Application Center, Ministry of Agriculture, Lanzhou 730000, China
Key Laboratory of Resource Environment and Sustainable Development of Oasis, Lanzhou 730000, China
Enwei Huang
College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Lanzhou Sub-Center, Remote Sensing Application Center, Ministry of Agriculture, Lanzhou 730000, China
Shiyang River Ecological Environment Observation Station, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Wentong Li
College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
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From 2015 to 2020, we studied the Shiyang River basin, which has the highest utilization rate of water resources and the most prominent contradiction of water use, as a typical demonstration basin to establish and improve the isotope hydrology observation system, including river source region, oasis region, reservoir channel system region, oasis farmland region, ecological engineering construction region, and salinization process region.
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In arid areas, the processes of water storage have not been fully understood in different vegetation zones in mountainous areas. This study monitored the stable isotopes in the precipitation and soil water of the Xiying River Basin. In the four vegetation zones, soil water evaporation intensities were mountain grassland > deciduous forest > coniferous forest > alpine meadow, and soil water storage capacity was alpine meadow > deciduous forest > coniferous forest > mountain grassland.
Guofeng Zhu, Zhigang Sun, Yuanxiao Xu, Yuwei Liu, Zhuanxia Zhang, Liyuan Sang, and Lei Wang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2022-75, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2022-75, 2022
Revised manuscript not accepted
Short summary
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We analyzed the stable isotopic composition of surface water and estimated its evaporative loss in the Shiyang River Basin. The characteristics of stable isotopes in surface water show a gradual enrichment from mountainous areas to deserts, and the evaporation loss of surface water also shows a gradually increasing trend from upstream to downstream. The study of evaporative losses in the river-lake continuum contributes to the sustainable use of water resources.
Yuwei Liu, Guofeng Zhu, Zhuanxia Zhang, Zhigang Sun, Leilei Yong, Liyuan Sang, Lei Wang, and Kailiang Zhao
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We took the water cycle process of soil–plant–atmospheric precipitation as the research objective. In the water cycle of soil–plant–atmospheric precipitation, precipitation plays the main controlling role. The main source of replenishment for alpine meadow plants is precipitation and alpine meltwater; the main source of replenishment for forest plants is soil water; and the plants in the arid foothills mainly use groundwater.
Guofeng Zhu, Yuwei Liu, Peiji Shi, Wenxiong Jia, Junju Zhou, Yuanfeng Liu, Xinggang Ma, Hanxiong Pan, Yu Zhang, Zhiyuan Zhang, Zhigang Sun, Leilei Yong, and Kailiang Zhao
Earth Syst. Sci. Data Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2021-79, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2021-79, 2021
Revised manuscript not accepted
Short summary
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We have established a stable water isotope monitoring network in the Shiyang River Basin. The monitoring station with six observation systems: river source area, oasis area, reservoir canal system area, oasis farmland area, ecological restoration area and salinized area.The data set includes the stable water isotopes of different water bodies and the meteorological and hydrological data in the Shiyang River Basin. So far, the data have been obtained for five consecutive years.
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Short summary
The Shiyang River basin is a typical inland river basin in the arid zone, and, through this study, it was found that its soil salinization area has a general trend of increasing, and the degree of salinization gradually increases. External water transfers have alleviated water shortage and salinization to a certain extent, but soil salinization has already occurred in its periphery.
The Shiyang River basin is a typical inland river basin in the arid zone, and, through this...