Groundwater Systems and Eco-hydrological Features in the Main Karst Regions of China

Different karst water features and related water resources are present both in southern and northern China. There are over 3,358 well-developed karst ground river systems with total discharges in the dry season of about 420times108 m3 in the main karst regions in the southern part of China. Exploitation rates are only 8–15%. Over 100 larger karst spring systems in the main karst regions of northern China cover a catchment area from 500 km2 to over 4,000 km2, of which the average discharge appears to be from about 1 m3/s to 13 m3/s and the exploitation rates are 70–80%. Six aspects of the eco-hydrological features of some typical karst regions in China comprising water environment, ecological features, materials and structures between parent rock and soil, bio-geological processes and palynological studies (spore-pollen) are discussed. Qualitative evaluation of eco-geology and rocky desertification in the karst regions should be based on the main karst ecological conditions as well as artificial, i.e., man-made impacts.