Vegetation Response to Groundwater Variation in Arid Environments: Visualization of Research Evolution, Synthesis of Response Types, and Estimation of Groundwater Threshold

Feng Huang, Danrong Zhang and Xi Chen
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Feng Huang: College of Hydrology and Water Resources, Hohai University, Nanjing 210098, China
Danrong Zhang: College of Hydrology and Water Resources, Hohai University, Nanjing 210098, China
Xi Chen: Institute of Surface-Earth System Science, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China

IJERPH, 2019, vol. 16, issue 10, 1-15

Abstract: Groundwater depth is an important environmental factor affecting vegetation growth and landscape dynamics in arid environments. This study applied a science mapping approach to visualize the development of groundwater-vegetation-related research, synthesized the vegetation response to changes in groundwater depth, and analyzed the change rate of the response curve to identify the groundwater threshold that is essential to conserve the groundwater-dependent terrestrial ecosystems. These ecosystems emerged as a research hotspot due to climate change, groundwater overexploitation, and the recognition of these ecosystems’ importance for sustainable development. There are two main types of response functions of vegetation to changes in groundwater depth—monotone and bell-shaped functions—among which the monotone function includes linear, curvilinear, and stepwise response. The shape of a response curve is mainly determined by the combined effects of oxygen stress, salinization, and water stress; oxygen stress and salinization dominate in shallow groundwater depth, while water stress dominates in deep groundwater depth. On a non-linear vegetation metric—groundwater depth response curve, the change rate analysis method is effective to identify the breakpoint that can be taken as a candidate threshold of groundwater depth. The results will add insight into the intellectual structure of the groundwater-vegetation interactions and provide practical reference for groundwater resource management, ecological conservation, and sustainable development in arid environments.

Keywords: groundwater; vegetation; research evolution; response types; threshold analysis; arid environments (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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