Integrated Small Watershed Management in the Loess Plateau of China

摘要

The Loess Plateau of China, coveting an area of 640,000km2, is located in the arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid area and can be classified into six sub-regions: wind erosion area, gullied-hilly loess area, gullied loess plateau area, loess terrace area, earth-rock mountainous area and upland grassland area. The author, taking the gullied-hilly loess area as a key region, introduces the definition, objectives and measures for integrated management. Small watershed management in China is to, on the basis of the ecosystem diagnosing and using a watershed ecosystem as a unit, protect, improve and rationally use resources of water, land and other renewable natural resources of the watershed, manage land resources in an integrated manner for promoting agriculture, forestry, grass and fruit production, comprehensively restore eroded land with bio- engineering measures, and eventually to achieve optimum ecological, social and economic benefits. The main measures for integrated management of small watershed include: ecosystem diagnosing; planning of use of water, land and other renewable natural resources; restoration of eroded land; integrated utilization of natural resources and evaluation of benefits.