黄土高原植被建设应从扩大面积向提升质量转变

 自1999年退耕还林还草政策实施以来,黄土高原的植被覆盖显著增加,有效遏制了该区水土流失。目前黄土高原的植被净初级生产力已经接近该区水资源承载力阈值,进一步扩大该区植被建设面积将不可避免地加剧水资源短缺等问题。为进一步巩固退耕还林成果,黄土高原未来的植被建设应从扩大面积向提升质量转变。

Vegetation construction in Loess Plateau: From area expansion to quality improvement

Since the implementation of the "Grain for Green Program" by Chinese government in 1999, the vegetation coverage of the Loess Plateau has increased significantly, which has effectively prevented the soil erosion in this region. The latest research shows that the vegetation net primary productivity (NPP) in the Loess Plateau has already approached the threshold of the regional water resource carrying capacity, thus a further expansion of the vegetation area will inevitably aggravate the situation of water shortage in this region. To further consolidate the achievements of "Grain for Green Program", the future vegetation construction in the Loess Plateau should change from expanding the area to improving the quality.