Optimizing regional cropping systems with a dynamic adaptation strategy for water sustainable agriculture in the Hebei Plain

Zhong, Honglin1; Sun, Laixiang1,2,3; Fischer, Guenther2; Tian, Zhan4; Liang, Zhuoran5

2019-07

10.1016/j.agsy.2019.02.005

AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS   影响因子和分区

0308-521X

1873-2267

Unsustainable overexploitation of groundwater for agricultural irrigation has led to rapid groundwater depletion and severe environmental damage in the semi-arid Hebei Plain of China. Field experiments have recommended annual winter fallowing (i.e., forgoing winter wheat production) as the most effective way to replenish groundwater. However, adopting the recommendation across the Hebei Plain would lead to a significant reduction in total wheat production. This research aims to find the most favorable water-sustainable cropping systems for different localities in the Hebei Plain, which at the regional aggregation level maintains the uppermost overall levels of wheat and grain production respectively. Our simulations indicate that in the Hebei Plain, an optimal allocation of a wheat-early maize relay intercropping system and an early maize-winter fallow cropping system across the Hebei Plain could lead to significant water savings while minimizing grain production losses to around 11%. Compared to the prevailing wheat and summer maize cropping system, to prevent a drop in the water table, 39% of the current wheat cropping land would need to be fallowed in winter, reducing irrigation water use by 2639 x 106 m(3). Replacing the prevailing wheat and summer maize cropping system with our optimized allocation system could lead to a 36% increase in total maize production and 39% decrease in total wheat production, resulting in total agricultural irrigation water savings of 2322 x 106 m3 and a total grain production reduction by 11%. The findings indicate the potential benefits of our cropping system adaptation method to meet the challenge of recovering local groundwater level with the least possible reduction of wheat and total grain production in the Hebei Plain.

Relay intercropping system Groundwater overexploitation Cropping system adaptation Water sustainable agriculture The Hebei Plain China

SCI

英语

其他

National Natural Science Foundation of China[51761135024] ; National Natural Science Foundation of China[41671113] ; National Natural Science Foundation of China[4160011367] ; National Natural Science Foundation of China[41601049]

Agriculture

Agriculture, Multidisciplinary

WOS:000467661800008

ELSEVIER SCI LTD

AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES

Web of Science

1.Univ Maryland, Dept Geog Sci, College Pk, MD 20742 USA
2.Int Inst Appl Syst Anal, Laxenburg, Austria
3.Univ London, SOAS, Sch Finance & Management, London, England
4.Southern Univ Sci & Technol, Sch Environm Sci & Engn, Shenzhen, Peoples R China
5.Hangzhou Meteorol Serv, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, Peoples R China

Zhong, Honglin,Sun, Laixiang,Fischer, Guenther,et al. Optimizing regional cropping systems with a dynamic adaptation strategy for water sustainable agriculture in the Hebei Plain[J]. AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS,2019,173:94-106.

Zhong, Honglin,Sun, Laixiang,Fischer, Guenther,Tian, Zhan,&Liang, Zhuoran.(2019).Optimizing regional cropping systems with a dynamic adaptation strategy for water sustainable agriculture in the Hebei Plain.AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS,173,94-106.

Zhong, Honglin,et al."Optimizing regional cropping systems with a dynamic adaptation strategy for water sustainable agriculture in the Hebei Plain".AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS 173(2019):94-106.