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LAND‐USE AND GROUNDWATER USE IN HEBEI PLAIN, CHINA
Author(s) -
Xu Y.,
Li S.,
Cai Y.,
Li X.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
water and environment journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.437
H-Index - 37
eISSN - 1747-6593
pISSN - 1747-6585
DOI - 10.1111/j.1747-6593.2005.tb00558.x
Subject(s) - groundwater , china , land use , water resource management , environmental science , hydrology (agriculture) , environmental planning , geography , geology , civil engineering , engineering , archaeology , geotechnical engineering
Rapid groundwater drawdown has become the biggest threat to social‐economic sustainability in the Hebei Plain. To determine the cause of the groundwater decline and develop a practical plan for long‐term groundwater use, water‐table fluctuation data were collected over a period of 20 years. Adopting a simplified water balance model, the average infiltration coefficient of precipitation and specific yield in the Hebei Plain from 1985–1995 were simulated and the groundwater level decline by water‐use sectors and crops was calculated. Analysis showed that agricultural water use was the main reason for groundwater drawdown. Winter wheat was the most water‐consuming crop, causing a significant decline of the water table. It is suggested that planting strategies should be adjusted and water‐saving agricultural practices be carried out, to achieve sustainable groundwater use in the Hebei Plain.