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Compared with wood pulp, straw pulp and papermaking, because of lower cost and abundancy of raw material, has become an indispensable approach in paper industry of China. However, its further application is limited by huge water consumption and wastewater discharge. By employing substance flow analysis, this study built up an optimization model and a performance evaluation system of water saving for the water-use network of a straw pulp and paper enterprise, after identifying the problems in present water consumption. Accordingly, an optimization plan was proposed to combine man-made water circulation with natural water circulation system. Additionally, a contrast analysis between the present and optimized water use was conducted. At last, we applied the proposed optimization plan to one of the most important and largest enterprises of straw pulp and paper industry in China as an illustration. Theoretically, water consumption could be reduced by 75.4 % without wastewater discharge after optimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development and utilization of unconventional water resources has become a strategy to alleviate the agricultural water crisis in many countries and regions. To understand the research progress, hot spots, and future trends in the field of unconventional water agricultural irrigation (UWAI), this paper systematically analyzes 6738 publications based on the core database of Web of Science 1990–2023 using the scientific bibliometric analysis software CiteSpace, VOSviewer, and Scimago Graphica. The results showed that the research on UWAI is always rapidly developing. Soil science, crop science, and bioengineering are the main disciplines involved. Most research on WUAI has occurred in China and the United States. Countries with higher levels of development tend to have more influence. Collaboration among authors is fragmented, and collaboration between authors and states needs to be strengthened. Through keyword analysis, the research hotspots are summarized as follows: (1) The effects of traditional and emerging pollutants brought by unconventional water irrigation on soil physicochemical properties, crop growth, and groundwater quality; (2) the health threats caused by pollutants entering the food chain and groundwater; (3) unconventional water utilization technologies, including rainwater harvesting agriculture, precision agriculture, and urban agriculture. Future research hotspots will focus on the mechanisms of pollutant solute transport and transformation in the water–soil–crop system under non-conventional water irrigation conditions and crop physiological responses. We suggest that the research on traditional and emerging pollutants in unconventional water should be strengthened in the future, and the risk control system of unconventional water irrigation should be improved. International cooperation should be strengthened, especially with poor countries in arid regions, to promote the formation of unified international standards and guidelines for non-conventional water irrigation in agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The scarcity of water resources and environmental pollution in the coal mining areas of western China severely restricts high-quality mine development and construction there. Treating mine water as a valuable unconventional water resource for large-scale processing and efficient utilization is a crucial approach. This paper discusses the current status of mine water treatment technology in this region and provides a systematic comparison and analysis of common and emerging treatment technologies for mine water containing suspended solids, high salinity, and fluoride. The paper extensively elaborates on the fundamental principles, process routes, and technical features of these technologies, citing typical engineering cases. It also outlines the challenges that mine water treatment in the coal mining areas of western China is likely to face in the future. Based on the current status of mine water resource utilization in China, various pathways forward are clarified. Finally, this paper presents a scientific reflection and proposed solutions for mine water treatment technology and resource utilization in the coal mining areas of western China, concluding with a prospective outlook on the future development of this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China, the world's largest developing country, faces a severe water shortage. As the government has set a goal of limiting water use to 7000 × 108 m3 by 2035, how to control the increase in water use will be a thorny issue for China. Unbalanced and uncoordinated regional socio-economic development is an important feature of China. Research on the interaction between provincial water use will help to optimize the rational allocation of water resources and control of water use. In this paper, SNA (social network analysis) method is first used to explore the characteristics of social network relationship between inter-provincial water use, construct a two-stage model of SNA–LMDI, and decompose the driving factors of inter-provincial water use evolution. We found the following points. (1) From 2000 to 2018, the spatial correlation network structure of water use is tending to be stable, and the stability and risk resistance of the whole network are enhanced. (2) From different angles to quantify the centricity analysis, can be found that eastern provinces located right in the heart of water network, obviously larger impact on water resources utilization in other provinces, Shanghai and Beijing is located in the former two, and central and western provinces in the edge position. (3) The national water use spatial correlation network can be divided into four blocks, net beneficial block, bidirectional spillover block, brokers block, and net spillover block. (4) Technological progress and industrial structure adjustment were the primary and secondary factors inhibiting the increase of total water use, while income increase was the main factor promoting the increase of total water use, population scale expansion had a weak role in promoting the increase of total water use. Some policy implications are put forward related to our research conclusions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The urban water resource utilization efficiency is of great significance to solve the water crisis and promote the sustainable development of cities. The current paper aims to help areas with low water utilization efficiency in China to improve cross-regional coordination and improve water resource efficiency. Therefore, the current paper uses an SBM-undesirable model to study the water utilization efficiency of 14 cities in Gansu Province from 2010 to 2018. Then the Dagum Gini coefficient and kernel density estimation methods are used to study the regional differences in efficiency and its evolution trend. The results of the study are as follows: (1) There is a relatively large gap in water resource utilization efficiency among cities in Gansu Province. (2) The overall regional differences in water resource utilization efficiency in Gansu Province generally show a trend of increasing and then shrinking between 2010 and 2018. The inter-regional differences generally show an upward trend. (3) Water resource utilization efficiency of three regions has the characteristics of divergent distribution, and the degree of differentiation continues to decline. The conclusions and suggestions were provided for improving the sustainable development of urban water systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Irrigation & Drainage is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Strengthening the protection and utilization of water resources is very important for the development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB). The YREB spans the three regions of the East, Middle and West of China, which is not only the inland river economic belt with the largest economic aggregate in China, but also the leading demonstration belt for the construction of ecological civilization. This paper uses the minimum distance to the strong frontier (mSBM) model to evaluate the industrial water resources green efficiency (IWRGE) in the YREB from 2000 to 2018, taking the industrial gray water footprint as bad output, which can more accurately measure the water efficiency of the current industrial sector. Then, compared with the traditional industrial water resources utilization efficiency (IWRUE), the temporal and spatial differences and influencing factors of the IWRGE are further analyzed. The results are as follows: First, the IWRUE in the YREB has been improved to a certain extent in the sample period, and there are obvious differences in provinces. The IWRUE of economically developed provinces is higher than economically underdeveloped provinces. Second, the IWRGE after adding industrial gray water footprint is lower than the IWRUE in the YREB, indicating that the IWRUE without considering the cost of water ecological damage is "false high". Third, the IWRGE in the upper, middle and lower reaches of the YREB shows a "U" type change trend of "decreasing first and then rising". Fourth, the IWRGE in the YREB shows an obvious spatial distribution pattern of "both ends high and intermediate low". The pressure to save industrial water and reduce pollution is especially intense in the middle reaches. Finally, economic growth, property right structure, and opening up can significantly promote the IWRGE, while water endowment, water structure, technological progress, and environmental regulation significantly inhibit the improvement of the IWRGE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: With the rapid economic growth and urbanization development, regional environmental problems have attracted increasing attention. The study on analyzing cities' capacity on resource utilization and environmental protection is practically significant because of the industrial agglomeration in an urban area. This study aims to measure environmental efficiency of urban industrial water utilization by comparing input, output and undesirable outputs variables of cities. Design/methodology/approach: This paper combines data envelopment analysis basic approach with regression to discover the environmental efficiency score of cities and their influence factors. A set of slack-based measure (SBM) model is constructed for calculating the environmental efficiency score by considering both desirable and unendurable outputs. Findings: This paper analyzes the industrial water utilization efficiency for China from the city level by evaluating the performance for up to 200 mainland Chinese cities during 2012–2016 under SBM model. Then, 2C Tobit regression is used to measure the determining factors of industrial water utilization efficiency from the angle of natural, social, municipal and industrial structure factors. The empirical study results show huge room for improvement in industrial water utilization in China, while the average citizen efficiency scores maintain a level of about 0.5. Originality/value: Significant differences exist in the regional efficiency in different cities in China. Per capita GDP, a total length of drainage pipe and whether the area is coastal or not have significant positive impacts on the water utilization efficiency, while the proportion of secondary industry to GDP has a significant negative influence. Specific recommendations are proposed based on the local industrial water utilization efficiency scores, such as improving urban infrastructure and adopting a more flexible water pricing system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To depict the wet (April with a soil water content, SWC, of 37 %) and dry (October with a SWC of 24.8 %) seasonal changes in the water use and physiological response of a Eucalyptus urophylla plantation in subtropical South China characterized by monsoon climate, the whole-year (June 2012 to May 2013) transpiration of E. urophylla was monitored using the TDP method. Daily transpiration (ET) in October averaged 5.7 ± 2.9 kg d-1 and was 58.0 % higher than that in April (3.6 ± 2.3 kg d-1). The difference is consistent with that of the radiation and evaporative demand of the two months, while the nocturnal transpiration (ET-NOC) in the wet season (0.18 ± 0.021 kg d-1) was almost twice that in the dry season (0.11 ± 0.01 kg d-1). Trees displayed a higher stomatal conductance (GS) (53.4-144.5 mmol m-2 s-1) in the wet season and a lower GS (45.7-89.5 mmol m-2 s-1) in the dry season. The leaf-soil water potentials (ΨL) of the two months (April and October) were -0.62 ± 0.66 and -1.22 ± 0.10 MPa, respectively. A boundary line analysis demonstrated that the slight improvement in the GS by SWC in wet season was offset by a significant decrease in D, and the slope of GS sensitivity to D (dGS/dlnD) in response to GSref (references GS at D = 1 kPa) was affected by the variance of radiation instead of SWC. Specific hydraulic conductivity (ks) of trees of different sizes decreased by 45.3-65.6 % from the wet to the dry season. Combining the decreased maximum reference GS at D = 1 kPa (GSref-max) by 22.4 % with the constant max GS (GSmax) when ΨL < -1.2 MPa, we shed some light on the mechanism underlying the high water-use efficiency (WUE) of this Eucalyptus specie. With a slight change in GSref-max and high sensitivity of ks to decreasing ΨL, large trees used water more efficiently than small ones did. In addition, the -m in the dry season (0.53 ± 0.007) was lower than that in the wet season (0.58 ± 0.01) due to the difference in the ratio of GS to the boundary layer conductance (gb) in the two months. The negative relationship between -m (except when light is limited) and Q proved to be a plastic response to environmental changes for E. urophylla but did not change with decreased ks as expected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rice production is the agricultural activity with the highest energy consumption and carbon emission intensity. Water and fertilizer management constitutes an important part of energy input for rice production and a key factor affecting greenhouse gas emissions from paddy fields. Water–fertilizer integration management (AIM) is an automated water and fertilizer management system for large-scale rice production, which can effectively save water and fertilizer resources. At present, the energy utilization and environmental impact of AIM in rice production are not clear. To clarify whether AIM is a water and fertilizer management measure that combines energy conservation and carbon emission reduction, a comparative study between the widely used farmers' enhanced water and fertilizer management (FEM) in China and AIM was conducted in this paper. Field experiments were conducted to evaluate the rice yield, carbon emission, energy utilization, and economic benefits of the two management methods. The results showed that AIM reduced water and fertilizer inputs, energy inputs, and economic costs by 12.18–28.57%, compared to FEM. The energy utilization efficiency, energy profitability, and energy productivity under AIM were improved by 11.30–12.61%. CH4 and N2O emissions and carbon footprint were reduced by 20.79%, 6.51%, and 16.39%, respectively. Compared with FEM, AIM can effectively improve the utilization efficiency of water and fertilizer resources and reduce carbon emissions. This study presents a mechanized water and fertilizer management approach suitable for large-scale rice production systems in China. By analyzing rice yield, resource utilization efficiency, and environmental benefits, AIM can serve as a crucial management strategy for enhancing productivity, economic returns, and environmental conservation within profitable rice production systems. In the future, further investigation into the impact of AIM on the microbial mechanisms underlying rice yield formation and greenhouse gas emissions is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents a bibliometric review focusing on the utilization of water electrolysis as a means of generating hydrogen as an energy carrier. The analysis includes research conducted over the past decade, covering from 2014 to 2023 (till August). Several key aspects are highlighted, including publication trends, the leading country in research output, journal rankings, and a citation analysis of papers related to water electrolysis. The findings reveal a notable increase in publication trends, with China emerging as the leading contributor in this research area. Furthermore, the International Journal of Hydrogen Energy is identified as the highest-ranked journal in terms of both publication number and citation impact. Additionally, the top ten most cited research articles and review papers are investigated to determine their influence within the field. To gain a deeper understanding of water electrolysis methods, the three primary approaches: alkaline water electrolysis (AWE), proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysis, and solid oxide electrolysis (SOE) is examined. The analysis emphasizes that PEM electrolysis is the most prevalent method for hydrogen generation, particularly when integrated with renewable energy sources such as solar and wind power due to its rapid response to electrical input fluctuation. Finally, the challenges and future directions of water electrolysis in hydrogen production are highlighted, including an exploration of economic and environmental considerations at large scale, offering insights into the path forward for advancing this technology sustainably. • A comprehensive bibliometric analysis of water electrolysis for hydrogen production. • Publication trends, journal rankings, and citation analysis are highlighted. • China is identified as the leading contributor in water electrolysis publications. • International Journal of Hydrogen Energy: the highest-ranked journal in this field. • Specific electrolysis methods, including AWE, PEM, and SOE are examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Karst spring water dynamic characteristics and its response to atmospheric precipitation are of great significance for water resources utilization under the background of climate change. This paper selects Longzici spring area, North China, as the study area. Based on a long series of spring water flow and precipitation data, the dynamic characteristics of spring flow were analyzed and the numerical simulation of the groundwater flow model was established. The results show that the groundwater kept the sustained decline over the past decades which is in a negative equilibrium state, with a storage variable of − 2.26 million m3/year. The sensitivity of spring flow to precipitation under different precipitation scenarios shows that the water level changes in the recharge and drainage areas are similar about (3–5 cm) and slightly larger than that in the runoff area(1.5 cm) when minimum rainfall (287.24 mm) happens. When the precipitation is at its maximum (867.66 mm), the water level change in the runoff area can reach 95 cm which is much larger than those in the recharge and discharge areas. The results indicate that Longzici karst spring has a relatively good regulation water resource capacity and the runoff area is more sensitive which plays an important role in response to climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Yellow River Delta (YRD) is an important agricultural and industrial region in China, yet its water resources have been increasingly affected by shortages and pollution due to human activities and the impact of climate change. This has resulted in severe damage to the water ecosystem in the YRD, thereby necessitating the adoption of effective legal measures to safeguard these resources. This paper provides a comprehensive review of recent research findings on water resources and water ecology in the YRD. Specifically, it summarizes the changes and characteristics of the geographical distribution, quantity and quality of water resources in the region and analyzes the effects of climate change, economic development and population growth on water resources. In light of the vulnerability and risks to the water resources and ecosystems in this area, this paper evaluates the impact of human activities on regional water security and proposes strategies for the sustainable utilization of water resources and the protection of public health. The insights and measures presented in this paper provide valuable guidance and references for water resource management and environmental protection in the YRD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region in China is experiencing a serious ecological water scarcity problem in the context of climate warming and drying. There is an urgent need for practical adaptation measures to cope with the adverse impacts of climate change and provide a scientific basis for urban water supply planning, water resource management, and policy formulation. Urban ecological water can maintain the structure and function of urban ecosystems, both as an environmental element and as a resource. Current research lacks quantitative analysis of the impact of regional meteorological factors on ecological water use at the small and medium scales. Based on the meteorological data and statistical data of water resources in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei (BTH) region, this paper analyzed the trend of climate change and established an ecological climatic water model using gray correlation analysis, polynomial simulation, and singular spectrum analysis to predict the ecological water consumption. And, we assessed the climatic sensitivity of ecological water use and estimated the future ecological climatic water use in the BTH region based on four climate scenarios' data. The results showed that the average multi-year temperature was 13.2 °C with a clear upward trend from 1991 to 2020 in the BTH region. The multi-year average precipitation was 517.1 mm, with a clear shift in the period of abundance and desiccation. Ecological climatic water modeling showed that a 1 °C increase in temperature will increase ecological water use by 0.73 × 108 m3~1.09 × 108 m3 in the BTH region; for a 100 mm increase in precipitation, ecological water use will decrease by 0.49 × 108 m3~0.88 × 108 m3; under the four climate scenarios of SSP1–2.6, SSP2–4.5, SSP3–7.0, and SSP5–8.5, the regional ecological climatic water use will be 5.14 × 108 m3, 6.64 × 108 m3, 7.82 × 108 m3, and 9.06 × 108 m3 in 2035, respectively; and in 2050, the ecological climatic water use will be 8.16 × 108 m3, 9.75 × 108 m3, 10.71 × 108 m3, and 12.41 × 108 m3, respectively. The methodology and results of this study will support the quantification of climate change impacts on ecological water use in the BTH region and serve as a theoretical basis for future research on ecological water use adaptation to climate change. This study can provide a basis for the development of the overall planning of urban ecological water supply, and at the same time, it can lay a foundation for the study of measures to adapt to climate change by ecological water use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Long-distance water transfer is a critical engineering measure to rectify disparities in water resource distribution across regions. The effective operation and safety of such projects are paramount to their success, as localized issues can have cascading consequences, potentially disrupting the entire network. Conventional ground-based monitoring methods have limitations in measuring the deformation of large-scale structures. In this paper, InSAR is employed to monitor the deformation of the Shuangwangcheng (SWC) Reservoir, which features a long embankment dam as part of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project in China. We utilize data from both Sentinel-1 and TerraSAR-X satellites to derive 7-year deformation. Results reveal that the entire dam experiences continuous subsidence, with the maximum deformation in the line-of-sight direction measuring ~160 mm. While minor differential settlements are noted in different sections of the dam, the gradient is not significant due to the dam's substantial length. The InSAR deformation results from multiple geometries demonstrate good consistency, with the highest correlation observed between the Sentinel-1 ascending and descending datasets, exceeding 0.9. Validation against the GNSS observations of the three sites on the SWC Dam shows the accuracy of InSAR displacements is ~8 mm. Water level changes do impact deformation, but consolidation settlement appears to be the primary controlling factor during the monitoring period. This study underscores the potential of InSAR in long-distance water transfer projects and highlights that spatially continuous deformation is the most significant advantage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the rapid exploitation of water resources in the Huixian karst wetland in the southwest of China in the past decades, the wetland has suffered from shrinkage in size and serious degradation of ecological functioning. To assess how much water within the wetland could still be taken out for local supply purposes while the wetland can still be kept in its normal ecological functioning. Through the use of multi-methods, including field surveys by a multi-disciplinary team, water balance, Remote Sensing, GIS and numerical simulation, this paper characterizes the wetland regime of the study area and finally determines scenarios of water resource utilization for local water supply within acceptable parameters of wetland ecological health. Through the analysis of the methods, it was found that the hydrological characteristics of the study area were conditioned by not only the karst water but also the regional precipitation fluctuations. A zone of mobile watersheds for Lake Mudong was established as opposed to a conventional single watershed. If the wetland ecosystem is kept at the current status of class III, a scenario of withdrawal of up to 20% of lake inflows could be accommodated. The results and their approaches would provide much-needed information for the protection of the wetland and its sustainable water utilization per se. It would offer a basic reference for similar problems in karst areas of southwest China and other areas alike. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The utilization efficiency of agricultural water resources has an overall and long-term impact on agricultural development. However, owing to serious wastage of agricultural water resources for a long time, low utilization efficiency of such water resources has become a common problem in developing countries. Past studies have paid scant attention to the impact of soft factors, namely farmers' educational level and market-oriented reforms, especially in a quantified form, on the improvement of agricultural water utilization efficiency. This study adopted the system Generalized Method of Moments estimation method of a dynamic panel model and used provincial panel data from China for 2007–2020 period. The results show that the utilization efficiency of agricultural water resources can indeed be improved by either promoting farmers' education levels or deepening market-oriented reforms. However, with the advancement of market-oriented reforms, the influence of farmers' education level on the utilization efficiency of agricultural water resources gradually weakens, which is due to the "agricultural to non-agricultural" effect. Finally, this paper proposes policy suggestions to improve the utilization efficiency of agricultural water resources from three perspectives: improving the education level of farmers, optimizing the agricultural water pricing system, and improving the agricultural water rights trading system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Irrigation & Drainage is the property of Journal of Irrigation & Drainage Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

To achieve the transformation of water rights institution in China from the administrative management to the property rights institution, it is of high significance to discuss the principle of rights confirmation, institution connection, and change. In this paper, we present the process, result, experience, and problems of the authors' involvement in water rights confirmation and registration in Delingha as the methods designer of water rights confirmation. The conclusions of this paper follow: (1) Equity must be the priority while considering the principles of water rights confirmation. Complying and verifying the results of historical water distribution, strengthening public participation, and selecting persuasive and scientific indicators are the main components that are embodied in the concept of equity. (2) Water rights confirmation is to recognize and revise the distribution result of the old institution. Macroscopically, based on the administrative upper limits set by the "Three Red Lines" and ecologically sustainable requirements, the dual-control method of "matching water use and the Three Red Lines" and "matching water consumption and available water resources" was used to control the total distribution of water rights. From a microscopic point of view, the water abstraction permit was the core indicator of water rights confirmation, after checking with other data. (3) The institutional logic, the responsibilities and roles of the government, and the intellection of water users have changed after the confirmation of water rights. Registration is the key to distinguishing water rights from the traditional administrative institution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To increase its domestic gas production and achieve cleaner end-use utilization of its coal resources, China is actively promoting its coal-to-gas (CTG) industry. However, one of the major concerns for CTG development is the consequent significant water usage. To better understand this aspect, this paper presents a quantitative assessment of the water footprint (WF) for China's CTG industry. The results show that the WF of CTG in China is typically in the region of 0.055 m3 water per cubic meter of produced gas. In addition, the analysis of the components of this WF indicates that most of the water resources are used both in the process of CTG production itself, and also in the dilute discharge of pollutants. In terms of the planned production capacity of China's CTG projects, this paper finds that the water use in some regions of Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Shanxi and Liaoning may account 30–40% of regional water resources, which means the large-scale development of CTG projects may present significant risks to regional water resources. Therefore, this paper suggests that the status of regional water availability should be one of the key factors considered by policy makers in order to achieve sustainable development of the country's CTG industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Resources & Ecology is the property of Journal of Resources & Ecology and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Water saving management contract (WSMC) is a new water-saving strategy based on market mechanism. As a period for the water saving service company (WSSC) to provide funds and technology to water user, contract period is one of the key elements in WSMC projects. This paper attempted to establish a model to determine the optimal contract period based on equipment replacement. First, the performance degradation simulation of water-saving equipment was constructed based on degradation path model. Second, water-saving process simulation under equipment replacement was established based on measured renewal cycle of water-saving equipment. Third, a contract period optimization model for WSMC projects was built with the objective of maximizing WSSC profit net present value (NPV) and with constraints of water user incentive constraint, WSSC rational constraint, and minimal cooperation duration. Finally, a WSMC project case in China was studied and the solutions were compared with traditional model. The results showed that the optimal contract period in this paper was 3 years longer than the one in traditional model. Meanwhile, the measured equipment renewal cycle was 7 years and it was less than the estimated economic lifetime. Based on the 9-year contract, the water user's revenue was higher with 55.8% than original contract, while WSSC's profit loss was lower with 60.8% than the traditional results. The findings reveal that the implementation of an equipment replacement plan considerably boost the revenue of participants and assist WSSC in obtaining more profit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The collaborative governance of subsystems within a river basin can play a critical role in addressing challenges, such as water scarcity, soil erosion, flooding, sedimentation, and water pollution, to achieve sustainable utilization of water resources. However, the current literature only focuses on isolated observations of these subsystems, leading to uncertainty and water resource destruction. This paper examines the evolution of the collaborative governance of water resources, water conservancy facilities, and socio-economic systems through self-organization theory in the Xiangjiang River Basin, China. The coupling theory and gray Grey Model (1,1) model were utilized with panel data from 2000 to 2019 to assess and predict the governance synergies of five subsystems: natural water, water conservancy facilities, water resource development and utilization, ecological environment, and socio-economic systems. There are 22 indicators contributing to these subsystems that were selected. The results indicate an S-shaped trend in collaborative governance for water resources, water conservancy facilities, and socio-economic systems. The elements of each subsystem exhibit both synergistic and competitive relationships. The unpredictable precipitation triggers a butterfly effect, changing systemic governance coordination, which closely relates to developing the natural water subsystem. Effective water conservation and regulation of water conservancy facilities are the keys to improving water-use efficiency and safeguarding water ecology. This study provides insights into the collaborative governance among subsystems and the evolution of the water resources, water conservancy facilities, and socio-economic systems in the Xiangjiang River Basin to promote sustainable water resource utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objective The decrease in available water resources for agriculture in the South of China has made developing water-saving irrigation essential for rice production. This paper investigates the impact of an improved irrigation method on growth and water use of conventional rice and hybrid rice. Method The experiments were conducted from 2018 to 2020 in plots within a paddy field in the Irrigation Experimental Station of Jiaxing Pinghu in Zhejiang province. The rice varieties Xiushui 134 (conventional) and Yongyou 9 (hybrid) were used as the model plants. They were irrigated by conventional flooding irrigation and thin-water film irrigation by keeping the topsoil just saturated. In each treatment, we measured the leaf area index, total dry matter, root growth, grain yield, and water demand and consumption of each rice variety. Result Water demand and consumption of both rice varieties under thin-water film irrigation were lower than that under flooding irrigation (P<0.01). Under flooding irrigation, water demand and consumption of both varieties during their whole growth period increased with the increase in precipitation, albeit the conventional rice consumed slightly less water than the hybrid variety (P>0.05). Compared with conventional flooding irrigation, thin-water film irrigation reduced average daily water consumption by 22.6%-59.5%, with the hybrid rice consuming 1.3%-3.0% more water than the conventional variety. Compared with flooding irrigation, thin-water film irrigation increased average rice yield by 1.7%, especially the hybrid variety whose yield was 31.9% higher than that of the conventional variety. Thin-water film irrigation reduced water consumption by 30.1%-35.0%, in addition to its significant increase in WUEI and WUEET. Due to the difference in yield between the two varieties, there was an interactive effect between the irrigation method and rice variety, with their WUEI, WUEP and WUEET differing significantly.Conclusion The thin water-film irrigation was effective to increase the development of leaf area and dry matter accumulation, especially for the hybrid variety. Water demand and consumption of both varieties were affected not only by annual precipitation and evaporation, but also by irrigation method, though no significant difference was found between the two varieties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water saving management contract (WSMC) is an innovative water saving strategy based on market mechanism. As the minimum annual project water-saving revenue agreed with water saving service company (WSSC) and water user, water-saving revenue guarantee (WRG) is one of the key elements in WSMC projects. This paper attempted to establish a model to determine the optimal WRG based on simulation method. First, a nonlinear relationship between water-saving amount and initial investment was built by industry standards. Then, the quantitative influence of water-saving awareness on water-saving amount was built based on Markov chain. Next, a random process with decreasing variance over time was used to describe the fluctuation. Next, the failure maintenance cost in water-saving system was described by renewal function. After that, an unconstraint WRG optimization model of the WSMC was constructed with the WSSC total profit difference net present value (NPV) as the objective function and a solution algorithm was designed. Then, the sensitivity analysis was performed on fluctuation coefficient, estimated model parameters and project original variables. Next, the validities analysis on water-saving revenue and water-saving cost was provided. Finally, a WSMC project case in China was studied and the solutions were compared with traditional model. The results showed that the optimized WRG in this paper was 17% higher than the original one, and the WSSC total profit difference NPV was reduced by about 1200000 yuan. Reducing appropriate initial investment and increasing assistance to water user, like enhancing its water-saving awareness, are efficient methods to improve WRG for WSSC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The carbon emissions of the beer industry have always been a concern. To reduce environmental pollution, this paper systematically calculates the carbon emissions of the beer supply chain and studies the optimization of carbon emissions reduction through scenario simulation. In this study, the boundary of the beer supply chain carbon emissions system is constructed. The scenario simulation and simulation analysis are carried out based on five factors: water recycling utilization rate, power generation mode, weight–volume ratio, recovery ratio, and transportation mode. To obtain the optimal scheme of economic cost and emissions reduction, the cost of the beer supply chain is analyzed under the condition of carbon trading. The results show that the proportion of carbon emissions in each link of the beer supply chain is production, packaging, transportation, and storage, which are 59.58%, 22.27%, 17.67%, and 0.5%, respectively. The improvement of the water recycling utilization rate of manufacturing enterprises can reduce the overall carbon emissions of the supply chain, and the effect is obvious. The highest proportion of carbon emissions in the packaging link is the bottle consumption stage (22.43%). Raw materials transportation accounts for the highest proportion of total carbon emissions in transportation (63.73%). The waterway/railway ratio will be increased to 0.6/0.4, and the carbon emissions in the supply chain will be reduced by 5.7%. In the context of carbon trading, when the carbon trading price is higher than 49.16 yuan/ton, enterprises can achieve a win-win situation in reducing emissions and maintaining positive economic growth by the measures given in the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The arid endorheic basin of northwest China is characterized by rich land resources, water shortage, and a fragile ecological environment. The establishment of a credible coupling model of groundwater and surface water based on multi-source observation data is an effective means to study the change in basin water cycles and the sustainable utilization of water resources in the past and future. Based on the latest understanding of hydrogeological conditions, hydrology and water resource utilization data in the middle reaches of the Heihe River Basin (HRB), this paper constructs an up-to-date coupling model of surface water and groundwater to study the water balance change of the basin. The water resources data series under historical replay and CMIP5 climate model prediction are constructed to predict future changes in water resources. The study shows that, under the joint influence of natural conditions and human activities, the average annual recharge of groundwater in the study area from 1990 to 2020 is 17.98 × 108 m3/a, the average annual discharge is 18.62 × 108 m3/a, and the difference between recharge and discharge is −0.64 × 108 m3/a. The total groundwater storage is −19.99 × 108 m3, of which the groundwater storage from 1990 to 2001 was −17.52 × 108 m3 and from 2002 to 2020 was −2.47 × 108 m3. Abundant water from 2002 to 2020 in the basin significantly improved the loss of groundwater storage. Under the prediction of historical reappearance and the CMIP5 CNRM-CM5 model RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 pathways, the groundwater level of the Heihe River–Liyuanhe River inclined plain falls first because the HRB has just experienced a wet season and then rises according to future climate change. The groundwater level of the inclined plain east of the Heihe River and Yanchi basin decreases continuously because of the change in water cycle caused by human activities. The erosion accumulation plain is located in the groundwater discharge zone, and the water level is basically stable. Under the conditions of water resource development and utilization, the runoff of Zhengyixia hydrological station cannot meet the requirements of the "97 Water Dividing Plan" of the State Council in most years in the future, and the ecological and production water in the lower reaches of HRB cannot be effectively guaranteed. With the implementation of water-saving irrigation under the RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios, the runoff of Zhengyixia can meet the "97 Water Diversion Plan". It is suggested to further improve the level of agricultural water savings in the middle reaches of the HRB and control the reasonable scale of cultivated land in order to reduce water consumption in the middle reaches of the HRB and implement sustainable utilization of water resources in the HRB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The soybean in China northeastern black soil has low yield, low use efficiency of water and fertilizer, which has overly high amount of nitrogen residual. Three different drip irrigation mode amount (300 mm, 350 mm, and 400 mm) and five different amount of nitrogen was designed in this paper to study the influence of water and nitrogen controlling to the water and fertilizer use efficiency and the amount of nitrogen residual under drip irrigation mode. According to our experiment results, the water consumption of soybean increased with the growth of drip irrigation mode amount, and in all treatment, soybean consumed the most amount of water at seed filling period. There is no significant difference in water consumption amount between each treatment during seedling period, but there were significant differences in the water consumption of soybean at branching period, flowering and pod period, and seed filling period. Nitrogen fertilizer alone does not have significant influence on soybean water, but the interaction between nitrogen fertilizer and soybean had significant difference in water consumption amount. The yield reached the biggest amount of 3250 kg/hm² when nitrogen drip amount was 400 mm, and nitrogen application rate was 81 kg/hm². The yield increased with the growth of irrigation amount, but the yield increase rate became slow. When the nitrogen application amount was at a low level, there was a positive interaction between water and nitrogen, which showed a synergistic acceleration effect. When the nitrogen application rate was at a high level, there was a negative interaction between water and nitrogen. When the drip irrigation mode amount was 350 mm and the nitrogen application rate was 81 kg/hm2, the WUE was the highest, which was 0.60 kg/m3. In a certain range of nitrogen application, increasing irrigation amount can promote WUE, while the amount was over a certain range, WUE decreased. After harvest, the amount of nitrate nitrogen residual in the 0-100 cm soil varied greatly among different nitrogen fertilizer treatments, and the nitrogen fertilizer application amount was greater, the nitrogen residual was greater. In the W3N3 treatment which has the highest yield, the yield was at 42 kg/hm2 less than the W3N4 treatment at the highest amount of nitrate nitrogen residual, which is a reduction of 35.78%. The results showed that proper combination of water and nitrogen application could reduce nitrogen residual in soil after harvest. The research results can provide theoretical basis and technical support for the efficient utilization of water and fertilizer resources in the black soil region located in northeastern China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A shortage of water resources is a global issue of common concern. The contribution of the article mainly includes the following two parts. First is the study of water resources' green utilization efficiency (WRGUE) in 30 provincial administrative units of China from 2009 to 2019 by adopting the epsilon-based measure (EBM) model with undesirable outputs, which can yield a more accurate and reasonable assessment result. In addition, the spatial Durbin model was applied to analyze the driving factors of the WRGUE, which considers the spatial effects. The results are as follows: (1) The discrepancy of the WRGUE in different regions of China is conspicuous, with the highest in East China, followed by the central and the western region, while the Northeast is the lowest. A general decrease trend from China's southeast coastal area to the northwest inland is presented. (2) Global spatial autocorrelation analysis shows a significant positive spatial autocorrelation in the WRGUE of the 30 sample provinces. However, the local spatial autocorrelation analysis shows that the WRGUE in China presents stronger spatial homogeneity than heterogeneity. (3) The levels of technology advancement, economic development, and the Opening-up policy implementation serve as positive factors influencing the WRGUE in China. On the contrary, the urbanization level has a significant negative impact on the WRGUE. The results of this paper may have great value for sustainable water resource utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unconventional water is an important water resource for agricultural utilization in the drought and water shortage of Northeast China. Additionally, exploration in making full use of it is an important way to alleviate water shortage in China. This paper analyzed the effects of unconventional water through field trials on the accumulation of heavy metals in both cucumbers and the typical black clay soil (expressed as black soil) around the Anshan metallic ore. By exploring the effects of unconventional water after secondary treatment on the accumulation characteristics of heavy metals in cucumbers and the heavy metal balance in the soil–crop system under different conditions, the study shows that there are no significant differences in the heavy metal content when the quantity of unconventional water for irrigation varies. Unconventional water for short-term irrigation does not cause pollution to either the soil environment or the crops. Nor will it cause the accumulation of heavy metals, and the index for the heavy metal content is far below the critical value of the trade standard and national standard, which indicates that the crops irrigated with unconventional water during their growth turn out to be free of pollutants. Unconventional water brings less heavy metals into the black soil than crops. The input and output quantities have only small effects on the heavy metal balance in the black soil. This paper provides a reference for the safety control and evaluation of unconventional agricultural utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Level set method has been extensively used for image segmentation, which is a key technology of water extraction. However, one of the problems of the level-set method is how to find the appropriate initial surface parameters, which will affect the accuracy and speed of level set evolution. Recently, the semantic segmentation based on deep learning has opened the exciting research possibilities. In addition, the Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) has shown a strong feature representation capability. Therefore, in this paper, the CNN method is used to obtain the initial SAR image segmentation map to provide deep a priori information for the zero-level set curve, which only needs to describe the general outline of the water body, rather than the accurate edges. Compared with the traditional circular and rectangular zero-level set initialization method, this method can converge to the edge of the water body faster and more precisely; it will not fall into the local minimum value and be able to obtain accurate segmentation results. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated by the experimental results of flood disaster monitoring in South China in 2020. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aquifer diffusivity is a basic physical parameter used in hydrogeological calculations and is important for the evaluation and rational utilization of water resources, pollution prevention, and wetland protection. In this study, with the assumptions of aquifer isotropy, i.e., no vertical flow and constant saturated aquifer thickness, by using the Fourier transform and convolution theorem, a 1D analytical solution of the phase spectrum for an unconfined aquifer system was derived, which subsequently led to a phase spectrum solution for aquifer diffusivity. To test the efficacy, the proposed method was applied to a study site in the middle reach of the Hutuo River in the North China Plain. The estimated aquifer diffusivity ranged from 1.9 × 103 to 4.9 × 104 m2/d, with a mean of 2.2 × 104 m2/d, which was consistent with the results obtained using power spectral analysis, pumping tests, and inverse numerical models. The phase spectral approach proposed in this paper can estimate the aquifer properties on a larger scale. If long time series of hydraulic heads are available, it can estimate hydrogeological parameters accurately and quickly. Considering the similarity of the linearized governing equations, it can also be applied to the river–aquifer system and the confined aquifer system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The contradiction between water supply and demand in China is becoming increasingly prominent. A water allocation scheme that satisfies various water users can effectively solve it. In this paper, considering both individual rationality and collective rationality, a bilevel optimal allocation model for river basin water resources is established. Firstly, water users' satisfaction degree was defined, to characterize their satisfaction with the water resource allocation scheme, and principles of water users' satisfaction degree were mathematically expressed, to represent water users' negotiation activities in the initial water rights allocation. Then, based on the initial allocation results, water users' water intake quantity, water-saving amount, and water-trade amount were optimized by water rights trading. Finally, an algorithm based on the response surface was put forward for solving the proposed bilevel optimal allocation model. The validity and feasibility of the model and algorithm were verified by a case study in the Qingzhang River Basin in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drought has a direct impact on regional agricultural production, ecological environment, and economic development. The northwest region of China is an important agricultural production area, but it is also one of the most serious areas of water shortage due to drought and little rain. It is of great significance to make full use of agricultural resources to clarify the temporal and spatial distribution characteristics of the drought regime in Northwest China. Based on the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI), this paper used the methods of Mann–Kendall non-parameter trend, mutation test, and Morlet wavelet analysis to explore the drought characteristics in Northwest China from 1961 to 2017. The results showed that the spatial distribution of SPEI on annual and seasonal scales differed slightly in different regions, but from northwest to southeast, the distribution was generally wetter to drier. The drought intensity (Sij) had a step-like distribution with a range of 1.14–1.98. Based on Sij analysis, the frequency of drought in Northwest China was moderate, followed by extreme drought, severe drought, and light drought. The inter-annual drought station proportion (Pj) ranged from 7.4% to 84.1%. A total of 25, 18, 7, and 5 years of pan-regional drought, regional drought, partial region drought, and local drought occurred, respectively, based on Pj analysis. Moreover, from the whole study period, the regional drought changes tended to cause humidification to different degrees. The results of Morlet wavelet analysis showed that there were multiple time scales of 33–52, 11–19, and 4–7 years of SPEI in the entire time domain, and dry and wet trends occurred. The results of the present research can provide a reference for the efficient utilization of water resources, drought monitoring and early warning, drought prevention, and drought relief in Northwest China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In North China, the shortage of water resources is one of the main restricting factors of agricultural production. In order to alleviate the two problems of agricultural water shortage and mine water discharge and promote the safe utilization of mine water resources. In this paper, the soil column test was used to study the effects of different models of mine water irrigation on the vertical distribution of soil nutrients, salinity and metals. The results show that mine water irrigation can improve soil fertility, and increase the risk of soil and groundwater pollution; mine water irrigation can increase soil salinity, the contents of K+, Na+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Cl- and SO4 2- increased significantly in 0-10 cm and 60-80 cm soil layers, which did not cause soil salinization and alkalization in a short time, and the pH value of soil was not affected by irrigation water quality; mine water irrigation increased the concentrations of Cd and Pb in soil, which accumulated most obviously in 0-20 cm soil layer, which caused soil Cd exceeding the secondary soil environmental standard (Cd = 1.00 mg·kg-1); the mixed irrigation (mine water and clean water) and rotational irrigation could reduce the pollution risk of nitrogen of groundwater, soil salinization, alkalization, Cd and Pb metals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Danjiang River basin is an important water source for the Middle Route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project. With the shortage of water resources and the increase in pollution pressure, it is of great significance to study the hydrochemical characteristics of surface water in the Danjiang River basin and the risk to human health posed by polluted water bodies for the protection and utilization of water resources. In this paper, 40 surface water samples were collected and analyzed by innovatively adopting the sampling principle of "geological structure unit + landform unit + small watershed unit". Comprehensive mathematical statistical analysis, Piper trilinear diagrams, Gibbs diagrams, and ion ratio coefficients were used to analyze the hydrochemical composition, spatial distribution characteristics and influencing factors of surface water in the Danjiang River. The entropy weight comprehensive index method (EWQI) and the health risk assessment model recommended by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (HHRA model) were used to evaluate the water quality and potential non-carcinogenic risk of surface water in the Danjiang River source basin. The results showed that the pH of surface water in the study area was 7.02~8.77, with an average value of 8.26; and the TDS was ranged from 134 to 388 mg/L, with an average value of 252.75 mg/L. The main cations in the surface water were Ca2+ and Mg2+, accounting for 71% and 20% of the total cations, respectively, while the main anions were HCO3− and SO42−, accounting for 74% and 19% of the total anions, respectively. The hydrochemical type was HCO3− Ca·Mg. The hydrochemical genesis was mainly controlled by the weathering of carbonate rocks, while some ions were influenced by the weathering of silicate rocks, and human activities were also an important factor affecting the chemical characteristics of the water. The EWQI of surface water in the whole region was 8.95~25.69, and the health risk index (HI) of nitrate pollution ranged from 0.0122 to 0.2118, in which the HI ranges for children and adults were 0.0217~0.2118 and 0.0122~0.1333, respectively, indicating that the water quality of the entire study area met the Class I water standards, and the potential non-carcinogenic risk of nitrate was low. However, its impact on children was significantly higher than on adults, so it is recommended to monitor the water quality downstream of urban areas in the study area to reduce agricultural non-point source pollution and urban domestic sewage discharge and thereby reduce the potential health risks for young populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China' s economy is in the midst of a crucial transition from high-speed growth to high-quality development. Strengthening the rigid constraint of water resources and curbing the disorderly expansion of high water-consuming enterprises are crucial to alleviating structural overcapacity and realizing economic development transformation from a resource-driven to an innovation-driven mode. Based on the data of A-share listed companies from 2010 to 2021, this paper explored the impact of the water resource 'fee-to-tax' policy on the over-investment of high water-consuming enterprises from the perspectives of free cash flow and technological innovation. The research results showed that levying a water resource tax could significantly inhibit the over-investment of high water-consuming enterprises, and the conclusion was still robust after a series of robustness tests (the parallel trend test, the placebo test, the PSM-DID, changing the measurement method of explained variables, excluding other policy influences, and the instrumental variable test). The mechanism analysis showed that levying a water resource tax could restrain over-investment by reducing the free cash flow of high water-consuming enterprises and stimulating technological innovation. At the same time, the restraining effect of water resource taxes on excessive investment in high water-consuming enterprises was more obvious in state-owned enterprises, enterprises with higher financing constraints, and those with higher water intensity. Based on the above conclusions, this paper holds that the water resource 'fee-to-tax' policy should be continuously improved, and the incentive mechanism of water resource tax should be improved while increasing the promotion of water consumption monitoring equipment. The flexibility of policy implementation should be strengthened, and different strategies should be adopted to guide high water-consuming enterprises with different operating conditions and investment cycles to change their production methods and investment behaviors. To implement the policy of 'giving priority to saving water' systematically, we should not only strengthen the water-saving supervision, but also raise the awareness of water users to save water voluntarily. By exploring the impact of water resource tax on the over-investment of high water-consuming enterprises, this paper attempts to deepen the understanding of the water resource 'fee-to-tax' policy, enrich the relevant literature in the field of resource regulation research, and provide a policy reference for realizing the coordinated development of economy, society, and resource carrying capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of China Rural Water & Hydropower is the property of China Rural Water & Hydropower Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

As a water-scarce country and the world's largest trader of industrial products, China's industrial virtual water (VW) flow may exacerbate its water scarcity problem. Thus, industrial VW flows' spatial and temporal evolution in international trade should be analyzed, and influencing factors must be identified. This study developed the multiregional input–output (MRIO) model, combined with the Leontief inverse matrix, to measure and decompose the industrial VW flows between China and other economies from 2000 to 2014. This extended MRIO model considers intermediate production water consumption and indirect water use, which technically distinguishes the sources of pressure on water use more accurately, thus enabling a new elaboration of the composition of China's industrial water use. Then, the evolution of China's industrial VW trade is analyzed spatiotemporally, and the structural decomposition analysis (SDA) method is invoked to identify the endogenous drivers further. The results indicate the following. (1) China was a net exporter of industrial VW trade. The main VW export sectors in China were the manufacture of textiles and wearing apparel, paper products, and chemical products, which had the characteristics of high water consumption, high pollution, and low added value, respectively. (2) The net exports of industrial VW from China mainly went to the US, EU, ROW (rest of the world), and Japan. China's VW exports to the US and Japan are declining, while exports to the EU and Russia are increasing. (3) The decrease in the water-use coefficient in all industrial sectors in China was the most critical reason for inhibiting the increase in the country's industrial VW exports. The export structure effect of intermediate products, product structure effect of foreign final demand, and scale effect of foreign final demand were the primary reasons for the rise in VW exports, but all gradually diminished. Moreover, the structural effects of China on the use of domestic intermediate products had a significant positive effect on the increase in VW exports. In contrast, those of foreign products had an extremely weak effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because of the continuous deterioration of water environment, it is ensured that the basic water demand of ecological environment is the key task of water resources utilization and control in China. In view of the uneven distribution of domestic water resources "more in the South and less in the north, more in the East and less in the west," it is very necessary to optimize the allocation of water resources. This paper aims to optimize the allocation of water resources through simulated annealing algorithm (SAA), hoping to optimize the allocation of water resources through diversion, water intake, and storage measures such as pipelines. Based on this, this paper proposes an improved SAA pipeline construction algorithm. Aiming at the distribution of water sources in the Yangtze River Basin, the algorithm is used to optimize the objective function path to solve the unbalanced problem of rich and lack of regional water resources. And after optimizing the annealing simulation algorithm, the simulation optimization ability is significantly improved. Experiments show that the improved SAA can improve the optimal configuration by more than 50% and up to 96%, indicating that the improved algorithm has a more stable optimization planning function for the optimization of objectives and can often get a more perfect route. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Hydrogeology & Engineering Geology / Shuiwendizhi Gongchengdizhi is the property of Hydrogeology & Engineering Geology Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Agriculture-to-urban water transfer is currently an important measure to meet the increasing water demand resulting from rapid industrialization and urbanization in China. Measuring benefits of agriculture-to-urban water transfer is critical to assess water transfer proposals, and it can also provide reliable basis for redistributing the benefits of agriculture-to-urban water transfer. This paper has developed a comprehensive framework in which production function approach is applied to quantify the value of water use in agricultural and industrial sectors, and contingent valuation method is employed to investigate the value of water use in municipal consumption and ecological environment. A case study from Zhuji City in China verified the feasibility and validity of the method proposed in the paper. Results indicate that the agriculture-to-urban water transfer increases the water value created by improving allocation efficiency of water use in different sectors. The benefits of agriculture-to-urban water transfer mainly originate from the fact that the economic value in industrial water use is higher than in the other sectors' water use. Meanwhile, the urban residents have a stronger desire to improve the water eco-environment which leads to higher water value in urban area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The green building rating tools can be used to evaluate, and promote the building industry’s sustainability, but previous relevant research on the comparative analysis were mainly conducted at the general, category or criteria level, very little research has been done from the indicator level via statistical analysis. Especially, research on the comparison of water efficiency is rare. To this end, this paper will focus on a thorough and comprehensive comparison of the water efficiency between Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design (LEED, US) and Evaluation Standard of Green Building (ESGB, China). The comparison of the specific terms includes six aspects, i.e. macroscopic, building water use, landscape water use, heat and cooling system use water, nontraditional water source utilization and water monitoring system. The similarities and differences of water efficiency standards are described. In the end, the development direction of domestic water efficiency technology is pointed out and meanwhile, a more reasonable water efficiency standard in China is suggested. The LEED is also suggested to use the detailed items of the non-traditional water source utilization from ESGB for reference. The research results would serve as a useful reference for both industry practitioners and academics that are interested in green buildings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: As an important grain-producing area and the most populous plain area in China, the groundwater resources in the North China Plain are seriously exploited for agricultural irrigation and domestic water use, and it is of great ecological significance and socio-economic value to accurately monitor the changes of groundwater storage in the region and continuously recharge and restore the groundwater. Methods: The gravity satellite data were used to invert the groundwater storage changes in the North China Plain, and compared and analyzed with the hydrological model, precipitation information, South-North water transfer project and groundwater well information, and proposed a method to integrate shallow groundwater storage changes and deep groundwater changes to obtain the contribution of total groundwater. Re⁃ sults: The results show that: (1) Both gravity satellite and global land data assimilation system model estimated water storage changes in the North China Plain exhibit obvious seasonal characteristics. (2) The correlation coefficients between the gravity satellite inversions and the shallow groundwater well estimations are consistent in terms of interannual variability, multi-year trend variability and seasonal variability, with correlation coefficient greater than 0.8. (3) Considering the contribution of deep groundwater, the estimated results of integrating shallow and deep groundwater well information and the gravity satellite inversions are in better agreement than those using only shallow groundwater, and indicate that shallow groundwater is the main variation of groundwater storage change. (4) From 2003 to 2017, groundwater in the North China Plain is in a long-term deficit state, with a gravity satellite estimated groundwater deficit rate of-1.3± 0.6 cm/a. From 2018 to 2020, the gravity satellite estimated groundwater deficit rate is −1.9±0.7 cm/a, which is almost consistent with the total groundwater deficit rate of -1.8±0.8 cm/a during the same period taking into account the deep groundwater; the groundwater trend in 2021 is increasing, and the growth rate of gravity satellite inversion is 12.7±1.8 cm/a, which is more consistent with the total ground-water well estimation in the same period. The correlation coefficient is 0.98, and the weighted fused total groundwater storage change is more consistent than that estimated by using only shallow groundwater. (5) Precipitation and North-South water transfer project have a direct impact on water storage changes in the North China Plain, making a significant contribution to the mitigation of groundwater storage deficits and groundwater restoration. Conclusions: The research method in this paper provides a new way to accurately observe groundwater storage changes in the North China Plain, and provides reliable verification of gravity satellite monitoring results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Freshwater resources are becoming increasingly scarce in coastal areas, limiting crop productivity in coastal farmlands. Although the characteristic of crop water use is an important factor for water conservation in coastal farmlands, it has not been studied extensively. This study aimed to depict the water use process of soil–plant systems under saline stress in coastal ecosystems and optimize water management. An intensive observation experiment was performed within China's Yellow River Delta to identify the water use processes and crop coefficients (KC) and also quantify the impacts of salt stress on crop water use. The results show that shallow groundwater did not contribute to soil water in the whole rotation; KC values for wheat–maize, wheat–sorghum, and wheat–soybean rotation systems were 45.0, 58.4, and 57% less, respectively, than the FAO values. The water use efficiency of the maize (8.70) and sorghum (9.00) in coastal farmlands was higher than that of the soybean (4.37). By identifying the critical periods of water and salt stress, this paper provides suggestions for water-saving and salinity control in coastal farmlands. Our findings can inform the sustainable development of coastal farmlands and provide new insights to cope with aspects of the global food crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To overcome the difficulty that existing hydrological models cannot accurately simulate hydrological processes with limited information in irrigated paddy areas in southern China, this paper presents a prediction model combining the Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition (EEMD) method and the Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) network. Meteorological factors were set as the multivariate input to the model. Rainfall, regarded as the main variable affecting runoff, was decomposed and reconstructed into a combination of new series with stronger regularity by using the EEMD and K-means algorithm. The LSTM was used to explore the data laws and then to simulate and predict the runoff of the irrigated paddy areas. The Yangshudang (YSD) watershed of the Zhanghe Irrigation System (ZIS) in Hubei Province, China was taken as the study area. Compared with the other models, the results show that the EEMD-LSTM multivariate model had better simulation performance, with an N S E above 0.85. Among them, the R 2 , N S E , R M S E and R A E of the EEMD-LSTM (3) model were the best, and they were 0.85, 0.86, 1.106 and 0.35, respectively. The prediction accuracy of peak flows was better than other models, as well as the performance of runoff prediction in rainfall and nonrainfall events, while improving the N S E by 0.05, 0.24 and 0.24, respectively, compared with the EEMD-LSTM (1) model. Overall, the EEMD-LSTM multivariations model is suited for simulating and predicting the daily-scale rainfall–runoff process of irrigated paddy areas in southern China. It can provide technical support and help decision making for efficient utilization and management of water resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Basin ecosystems are vulnerable to natural resource depletion, ecological damage, and environmental pollution due to their fragile natural environment. Assessing the value of basin ecosystem services (ES) can facilitate informed decision making by policy makers and stakeholders in the context of competing resource use. The Konqi River Basin in China, an arid inland river basin, has suffered from degraded ecosystems due to overexploitation of soil and water resources. In response, the local government launched an ecological water conveyance (EWC) project in 2016 to enhance ecological restoration efforts. This paper analyzes and evaluates the value of ES in the Konqi River Basin based on land use and land cover (LULC) change characteristics before and after EWC in 2013 and 2020, respectively. Remote sensing data and related socioeconomic statistics data are used to assess a typical river basin from three unique locations in the Konqi River Basin, divided into upper and lower reaches. The results show that cropland and unused land are the most important land use types in the upper and lower reaches. The characteristics of ecosystem service value (ESV) changes in the study area are consistent with land use structure changes. The total ESV shows a decreasing trend in the upper reaches from 2013 to 2020, while the lower reaches show an increasing trend. The total ESV increases in the typical river reaches of the Konqi River Basin. Spatially, low-ESV areas are mainly located in ecologically fragile areas that are difficult to develop and use. The sensitivity indexes of the study area are all less than 1, making the results of this study credible. The Moran index shows a significant spatial correlation in the study area, indicating that the distribution characteristics of high-ESV areas are agglomerative. Hot spot areas in the upper reaches show an overall increasing trend, while in the lower reaches, former sub-hot spot areas transform into hot spot areas. Due to data limitations, this study is limited to demonstrating that the value of ES in the area changes due to a combination of EWC policies and other factors. Nevertheless, the analysis shows that EWC policies actively change the ESV of a typical river basin in Konqi. This study can provide a reference for evaluating ESV in inland river basins in the northwest arid region and a scientific basis for the rational development and utilization of water and soil resources in the study area, located in an arid and ecologically fragile area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to a series of societal factors, management of small rural water resources projects in China experience management problems. Based on the management mode of small water resources projects in three representative regions of Guangdong Province, the improved TOPSIS model is applied to evaluate the performance of management mode of small water resources projects through the combination with entropy weight method. Compared with the traditional TOPSIS model concerning the evaluation object of this paper, the evaluation value formulas of optimal and worst solutions of TOPSIS method are improved. The evaluation index system takes into account the coverage, hierarchy and systematization of indicators, and maintains a management mode with high environmental adaptability, so that the continuous operation of management mode can guaranteed. The results show that the management mode of water user association is most suitable for the development of small water resources projects in Guangdong Province. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water resource shortages have become a national issue in China. Population growth and climate change tend to further aggravate this problem. Water rights trading is an economic means for alleviating the shortages and inefficient utilization of water resources and effectively promoting their optimal allocation. As the strategy choice of both parties of the trading directly affects the efficiency of water rights trading, this paper systematically analyzes the relevant parameters affecting the bilateral strategy choice of water rights trading based on the evolutionary game theory. First, given the impact of the market competition environment on the efficiency of water rights trading, this paper assumes that market competition is the major risk factor leading to the breakdown of negotiations; establishes the income matrix of both sides of water rights trading based on the bargaining model with the risk of breakdown; and analyzes the position, stability, and system evolution mechanism of the equilibrium point under different circumstances. Second, to emphasize the important influence of the initial strategy point on the equilibrium result of the evolutionary game, this paper describes the relative competition conditions according to the number of potential partners on both sides and further determines the initial strategy point of the game system. On this basis, the stability of the bilateral strategy choice is analyzed by using evolutionary game theory. Finally, the case of water rights trading between Zhongning City and Jingneng Power Plant is simulated and analyzed with the help of MATLAB. The results show that the trading water volume, the water resource utilization level of the transferee, and market competition have a significant impact on the transaction price, and: ① The efficiency of water rights trading will be affected when the demand of the transferee for water rights is too low and the water rights saved by the transferor cannot be effectively split. On the contrary, the sharp increase in the comprehensive compensation cost will directly raise the expected price of the transferor and will also affect the efficiency of the water rights trading. ② When the transaction price and other conditions are given, the water use efficiency of the transferee is directly proportional to the convergence speed of the water rights trading game system. ③ When the water use efficiency of the transferee of water rights is high, the price of water rights trading can be appropriately increased to realize the paid use of water resources and ensure the property income of the transferor of water rights. ④ When the transaction price and other conditions are given, the more participants in the water rights trading market, the more conducive it is to the conclusion of water rights trading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Objective] Qingtongxia irrigation district is one of the irrigation districts in northwestern China which rely on Yellow River water for irrigation. Using the water footprint concept, this paper proposes a system dynamic model to help improve agricultural water use efficiency in this district. [Method] Blue and green water footprints of major crops in the district were calculated from their evapotranspiration and transpiration. A system dynamics model for agricultural water use efficiency was then established, and the model was solved using the Vensim software. [Result] Irrigation water is the primary water source for agriculture in the district, forming a production water use pattern in which blue water is the main source and green water is a supplementary source. The blue and green water footprints vary oppositely in order to meet the demand of crops for water. On the premise to ensure constant blue water use for the crops, we selected the green water use coefficient and irrigation water use coefficient as parameters in the modelling. The model results show that increasing green water utilization coefficient from 0.7 to 0.8 can increase wheat production by 2.7x105 t, rice production by 2x105 t, and corn production by 5.5x105 t. We also found that increasing the irrigation water utilization efficiency by 10 can increase wheat production by 4.7x105 t, rice production by 3.5x105 t, and corn production by 7.7x105 t. Collectively, increasing green water utilization coefficient and irrigation water utilization coefficient simultaneously can increase wheat production by 7.5x105 t, rice production by 5.5x105 t, and maize production by 1.32x107 t. [Conclusion] Agricultural production in Qingtongxia irrigation area should consider increasing utilization of green water and improving agricultural water use efficiency by improving engineering and non-engineering facilities to increase crop yields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]