Search

In this study, spanning from 1938 to 2020, the hydrological changes in the Volga River and their repercussions on the Caspian Sea level were examined. Analysis reveals a correlation between high Volga River runoff and increased atmospheric precipitation in its basin. However, in recent years (2005–2020), a significant decline in the runoff coefficient at the Verkhneye Lebyazhie hydrological station, attributable to climate warming surpassing global temperature anomalies, has been observed. This warming's impact on river flow and sea level was quantified, resulting in a 133 cm decrease in sea level from 1977 to 2020. Notably, while, historically, Caspian Sea level changes mirrored Volga River runoff fluctuations until 2005, since 2006, the sea level has markedly dropped, decoupling from river runoff variations. Comparison with recent studies suggests that altered wind characteristics over the Caspian Sea, influencing surface evaporation, may have significantly contributed to this rapid sea level decline in recent years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The urbanization and industrialization of human society boost the socioeconomic growth but yet inevitably result in unprecedented damages to environment and organisms. One of the threats is the air pollution produced from anthropogenic activities. Moreover, the pollution concentrates longer in certain meteorological phenomena and exacerbates the impact on nature species and human health. This paper presents an association mining approach to identify the influential factors which result in a high volume of air pollution concentration, in particular, the particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter ≤ 2.5 μm (PM2.5). Since the literature showed that the identified factors are location and spatial-scale dependent, we chose a basin geography, Puli township, Taiwan, and inferred the association relationships with two different-scaled monitoring stations. The government-built supersite at Puli estimates the PM2.5 concentration for the entire township of the area around 150 km2, while the participatory microsites monitor air quality in a smaller region of a hundred thousand square meters. Our research was conducted with relevant data during 2017–2019. The mining result has unique findings as compared to the literature. The relative humidity, precipitation, wind speed and direction, which were identified as major factors in many previous studies, have less impact on air quality of our studied field than temperature and atmospheric pressure. The remarkable distinction is mainly attributed to the special weather patterns of basin geography. We investigated the impact of all national festivals and identified the most significant ones. The probability of observing PM2.5 concentrations greater than 35 μg/m3 in the activity hours of New Year's Eve is 50% which is significantly greater than 11.74%, the probability of observing the same concentration range over all days in the investigated years, while the Tomb Sweeping Day (TSD) has a varying impact on air quality depending on the order of the TSD date within the long holiday. The increase of PM2.5 concentration is remarkably more significant if the TSD is the last day in the long holiday than if it is the middle day. This finding can be taken into consideration when the government agent makes schedules for national festivals. Finally, it was learned in our study that different landmarks and land uses have various significant impacts on micro-scale air quality. The microsites monitor high PM2.5 concentrations at particular landmarks with a greater confidence than the mean confidence over all microsites. These pollution-associated landmarks with the confidence ranked from highest to lowest are night markets, crossroads, paper mills, temples, and highway exits. It is worth noting that the PM2.5 increase contributed by temples is negligible, which may be attributed to the citizen action for promoting reduction in joss paper and incense stick burning. The land uses have diverse impacts on air quality. Anthropogenic activities contribute higher PM2.5 concentrations in business districts and residential areas. The PM2.5 concentration monitored at high lands and agricultural lands is lower than the overall background due to fewer mass gathering and combustion activities in these land uses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, invasive alien plants (IAPs) have caused serious ecological disasters and economic losses in China. This study combined three IAP species richness-related indices (species richness of IAPs, first records of IAPs, and the relative species richness of IAPs), as well as indices reflecting distribution and dispersal patterns (average similarity coefficient of IAPs) and invasiveness (average risk score of IAPs), to conduct an integrated regional-invasion risk assessment based on the principal component analysis (PCA) method. Partial least-squares (PLS) regression was conducted to explore the explanatory power of 12 environmental and anthropogenic factors on different invasion indices. The results indicated that coastal provinces and Yunnan had high IAP introduction risk, as well as high synthetic-risk scores. The dispersal of IAPs in mid-latitude provinces should be particularly prevented. For species richness of IAPs, more environmental factors with variable importance for the project (VIP) values higher than 1 were retained in the optimal model, reflecting the importance of environmental filtering on IAPs. Visitors were the most important predictor for first records of IAPs. Compared to species richness (R2 = 79.5%), first records were difficult to predict (R2 = 60.4%) and were influenced by anthropogenic factors. There was spatial distribution congruence of various families of IAPs. Generally, the correlations of the residuals of species richness were still significant, with 0.421 (p < 0.05) as the lowest Pearson correlation coefficient, which indicated that external factors could not fully explain the spatial distribution congruence. These findings could enrich the relevant research on IAP invasion mechanisms and provide suggestions for regional IAP detection and response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although oak woodlands are a characteristic landscape component in the Swat Hindukush Mountain ranges, little is known about their current or historical stand population structure and regeneration dynamics related to environmental variables. Therefore, the present study assessed the stand structure, regeneration status, and relationship of oak communities with environmental variables. The study assessed 30 oak-dominated forest sites using the quadrates method, sampling 300 quadrates for evaluating the phytosociological and environmental variables. The stand structures of forests were dominated by four oak species, i.e., Quercus incana, Quercus baloot, Quercus dilatata, and Quercus semecarpifolia, distributed along with the elevation. The lower elevation stand structures were most diverse and dominated by Q. incana, having higher stand parameters, i.e., importance value index, basal area, and density. In contrast, the higher-elevation stand structures were dominated by Q. semecarpifolia, having stand parameters in moderate measures, while those at intermediate elevations have lower stand parameters. The environmental variables were negatively correlated with the stand structures, i.e., elevation (r = −0.51), precipitation (r = −0.47), and relative humidity (r = −0.77), whereas soil nutrients such as Potassium concentration have a significant negative relation with stands structure (r = −0.66) indicating their vital role in sustaining the oak communities. The communities were fairly regenerated, with an age structure between 12–36 years, indicating young communities. These results concluded that the observed wide range of variability in stand characteristics reflects the mechanisms that have shaped them. The recent anthropogenic factors, i.e., military operations and natural hazards such as the flood of 2010, have deliberately affected the communities under natural restoration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wildfires are one of the gravest and most momentous hazards affecting rich forest biomes worldwide; India is one of the hotspots due to its diverse forest types and human-induced reasons. This research aims to identify wildfire risk zones in two contrasting climate zones, the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary in the Western Ghats and the Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary in the Himalayas, using geospatial tools, analytical hierarchy process (AHP), and fuzzy-AHP models to assess the impacts of various conditioning factors and compare the efficacy of the two models. Both of the wildlife sanctuaries were severely battered by fires in the past, with more than 100 fire incidences considered for this modeling. This analysis found that both natural and anthropogenic factors are responsible for the fire occurrences in both of the two sanctuaries. The validation of the risk maps, utilizing the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) method, proved that both models have outstanding prediction accuracy for the training and validation datasets, with the F-AHP model having a slight edge over the other model. The results of other statistical validation matrices such as sensitivity, accuracy, and Kappa index also confirmed that F-AHP is better than the AHP model. According to the F-AHP model, about 22.49% of Kedarnath and 17.12% of Wayanad fall within the very-high risk zones. The created models will serve as a tool for implementing effective policies intended to reduce the impact of fires, even in other protected areas with similar forest types, terrain, and climatic conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Bumbu River Watershed is an essential source for the drinking and sanitation needs of settlement communities within Lae, Papua New Guinea. However, poor sanitation and waste management practices have led to concerns over the safety and integrity of the watershed's resources. In this study, we explored the effect of these factors on water quality in the Bumbu river and its tributaries using water quality (22 sampling stations), geospatial (degree of urbanisation), and community survey (sanitation and hygiene practices) data. Water Quality Index (WQI) was calculated based on the Canadian Council of Ministers of Environment (CCME) template using pH, Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), conductivity, turbidity, alkalinity, calcium, magnesium, total hardness, mercury, manganese, iron, and Escherichia coli. Using geospatial techniques, principal component analysis, and forward regression analysis, we found that better water quality outcomes coincided with better community health conditions of Crime and Pollution, and better household health outcomes. Land-use itself was not significantly correlated with water quality, but distressingly, we found 19 of 22 water samples to be of "poor" quality, indicating a need for better community water regulation. The methodology and results presented can be used to inform policy decisions at the provincial/national level, and to aid future research activities in other watersheds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vagueira Beach, on the central Portuguese coast, is known as one of the places in Europe most affected by coastal erosion. The area has suffered more than 156 m of coastline retreat from the period 1958 to 2001. With the aim of evaluating the influence of local factors on coastal erosion, this paper assesses the anthropogenic and natural factors that are related to the retreat of the coastline by adopting statistical correlation and regression analyses. Through Pearson's correlation coefficient (r), it was observed that local factors, such as annual dredging at the Aveiro Port entrance (r = 0.93), the total length of groins in the Espinho–Vagueira section (r = 0.89), and storm events (r = 0.52), are directly related to coastline retreat in the area. A multiple linear regression model was developed in which coastline retreat is explained by these same factors over the period 1980–2006. With a coefficient determination of R2 = 0.91, it was observed that the length of groins (significant at the 1% level), the dredging of the port entrance (significant at the 5% level), and precipitation (as a proxy for storm events; significant at the 10% level) are significantly correlated with coastline retreat. Hence, it is shown that anthropogenic factors are the main drivers of coastline retreat in Vagueira Beach. This study provides an innovative approach for the assessment of coastal erosion, resulting in important information that could be used for decision-making related to coastal zone management as it allows us to understand in greater detail the main drivers of coastal erosion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Light is arguably the most important abiotic factor for living organisms. Organisms evolved under specific lighting conditions and their behavior, physiology, and ecology are inexorably linked to light. Understanding light effects on biology could not be more important as present anthropogenic effects are greatly changing the light environments in which animals exist. The two biggest anthropogenic contributors changing light environments are: (1) anthropogenic lighting at night (i.e., light pollution); and (2) deforestation and the built environment. I highlight light importance for butterfly behavior, physiology, and ecology and stress the importance of including light as a conservation factor for conserving butterfly biodiversity. This review focuses on four parts: (1) Introducing the nature and extent of light. (2) Visual and non-visual light reception in butterflies. (3) Implications of unnatural lighting for butterflies across several different behavioral and ecological contexts. (4). Future directions for quantifying the threat of unnatural lighting on butterflies and simple approaches to mitigate unnatural light impacts on butterflies. I urge future research to include light as a factor and end with the hopeful thought that controlling many unnatural light conditions is simply done by flipping a switch. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to analyze the main factors influencing air quality in Tangshan during COVID-19, covering three different periods: the COVID-19 period, the Level I response period, and the Spring Festival period. Comparative analysis and the difference-in-differences (DID) method were used to explore differences in air quality between different stages of the epidemic and different years. During the COVID-19 period, the air quality index (AQI) and the concentrations of six conventional air pollutants (PM 2.5 , PM 10 , SO 2 , NO 2 , CO, and O 3 -8h) decreased significantly compared to 2017-2019. For the Level I response period, the reduction in AQI caused by COVID-19 control measures were 29.07%, 31.43%, and 20.04% in February, March, and April of 2020, respectively. During the Spring Festival, the concentrations of the six pollutants were significantly higher than those in 2019 and 2021, which may be related to heavy pollution events caused by unfavorable meteorological conditions and regional transport. As for the further improvement in air quality, it is necessary to take strict measures to prevent and control air pollution while paying attention to meteorological factors.

Simple Summary: The mechanisms on how alien species naturally affect the native species in the real aquatic environment are infrequently studied. This study explores the potential effects of alien fishes on the native fish community, well-being, and trophic preferences in selected rivers of Klang Valley, Malaysia. We found that alien fishes benefited from the impacts of anthropogenic activities in their surrounding habitats, while their plasticity in feeding habits might help them to invade, survive, and dominate. This study revealed the natural mechanisms on the establishment of alien fish species and their potential ecological impacts on native fishes in the rivers of Klang Valley, Malaysia. This study explores the potential effects of alien fishes on the native fish community, well-being, and tropic preferences in selected rivers of Klang Valley, Malaysia. Following the Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit assessment, most of the alien fishes (80%) are invasive. The alien species occurrences correlated positively (p < 0.05) with poor water quality, such as rivers with high ammonia-nitrogen and nitrite, but negatively with phosphate and dissolved oxygen. Anthropogenic characteristics, such as rivers with high pollution levels and ease of accessibility to the fish habitat, are mainly associated positively (p < 0.05) with the occurrences of alien fish species. In general, the results of fish stomach contents analyses and their associated indices, together with stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes, revealed domination by alien fishes or diet overlaps between both alien and native fish species. This finding indicates that alien fishes benefited from the impacts of the anthropogenic activities in their surrounding habitats, while their plasticity in feeding habits might help them to invade, survive, and dominate in the rivers of Klang Valley, Malaysia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to explore the spatiotemporal changes and driving factors of soil organic carbon (SOC) in the agro-pastoral ecotone of northern China, we took Aohan banner, Chifeng City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region as the study area, used the random forest (RF) method to predict the SOC from 1989 to 2018, and the geographic detector method (GDM) was applied to analyze quantitatively the natural and anthropogenic factors that are affecting Aohan banner. The results indicated that: (1) After adding the terrain factors, the R2 and residual predictive deviation (RPD) of the RF model increased by 1.178 and 0.39%, with root mean square errors (RMSEs) of 1.42 g/kg and 1.05 g/kg, respectively; (2) The spatial distribution of SOC was higher in the south and lower in the north; the negative growth of SOC accounted for 55.923% of the total area, showing a trend of degradation; (3) Precipitation was the main driving factor of SOC spatial variation in the typical agro-pastoral ecotone of northern China, which was also affected by temperature, elevation, soil type and soil texture (p < 0.01). (4). Anthropogenic factors (carbon input and gross domestic product (GDP)) had a greater impact on SOC than did climate factors (temperature and precipitation), making anthropogenic factors the dominant factors affecting SOC temporal variation (p < 0.01). The results of this work constitute a basis for a regional assessment of the temporal evolution of organic carbon in the soil surface, which is a key tool for monitoring the sustainable development of agropastoral ecotones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land degradation and development (LDD) has become an urgent global issue. Quick and accurate monitoring of LDD dynamics is key to the sustainability of land resources. By integrating normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and net primary productivity (NPP) based on the Euclidean distance method, a LDD index (LDDI) was introduced to detect LDD processes, and to explore its quantitative relationship with climate change and human activity in China from 1985 to 2015. Overall, China has experienced significant land development, about 45% of China's mainland, during the study period. Climate change (temperature and precipitation) played limited roles in the affected LDD, while human activity was the dominant driving force. Specifically, LDD caused by human activity accounted for about 58% of the total, while LDD caused by climate change only accounted for 0.34% of the total area. Results from the present study can provide insight into LDD processes and their driving factors and promote land sustainability in China and around the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Models based on multifactorial interactions are needed to deal with the dynamics taking place in the eutrophication processes of coastal lagoons. However, as the number of indirect drivers stemming from anthropogenic factors increases, temporal disorders between anthropogenic activities may increase, thus hindering the understanding of their dynamics. We have built multifactorial pathways to deal with the dynamics associated with the cultural eutrophication process of a coastal lagoon. The pathways guided the identification of potential temporal disorder patterns between anthropogenic activities, which may exert influence on the disturbances associated with eutrophication process. The identification of temporal disorder patterns derived from anthropogenic activities belonging to different pathways resulted in a valuable form of support for analyzing and evaluating relationships between public policies, technological skills and environmental culture programs. All of which exert influence on the eutrophication process, which in turn cause changes on the trophic state and on the landscape of the coastal lagoon. Pathways composed of multifactorial interactions that take into account spatial and temporal aspects, contribute to improving the understanding of the inherent dynamics of the eutrophication process of coastal lagoons. Temporal disorders between anthropogenic activities may be seen to emerge, thus exerting changes on the trophic state and spatial damage on the landscapes of coastal lagoons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of climate change, in situ conservation of plant genetic resources is becoming increasingly important as it supports natural (ecological and evolutionary) adaptations of plants to the changing environment. The aim of this study was to synthesize a comprehensive general methodology for the maintenance of genetic reserve sites of medicinal plants based on the analysis of relevant legal documents, literature sources, databases, and authors' own experience. A methodology was developed for the application of various maintenance measures for target species populations in genetic reserve sites to ensure their long-term sustainability. It uses a systematic approach to the intervention measures by grouping them into habitat-specific and factor-specific ones, and follows the specific principles of biodiversity conservation, such as the concept of ecosystem, priority of in situ conservation, caution and validity of decision-making, and regional approach. An extensive discussion on major intervention measures is provided. The methodology is intended to be used as a tool for the preparation and implementation of management plans of individual medicinal plant genetic reserve sites by the responsible agencies and protected area managers and is directly linked to the implementation of the EU (European Union) Biodiversity Strategy to 2030 at the national level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, global warming and intense human activity have been responsible for significantly altering vegetation dynamics on the Mongolian Plateau. Understanding the long-term vegetation dynamics in this region is important to assess the impact of these changes on the local ecosystem. Long-term (1982–2015), satellite-derived normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) datasets were used to analyse the spatio-temporal patterns of vegetation activities using linear regression and the breaks for additive season and trend methods. The links between these patterns and changes in temperature, precipitation (PRE), soil moisture (SM), and anthropogenic activity were determined using partial correlation analysis, the residual trends method, and a stepwise multiple regression model. The most significant results indicated that air temperature and potential evapotranspiration increased significantly, while the SM and PRE had markedly decreased over the past 34 years. The NDVI dataset included 71.16% of pixels showing an increase in temperature and evaporation during the growing season, particularly in eastern Mongolia and the southern border of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous region, China. The proportion indicating the breakpoint of vegetation dynamics was 71.34% of pixels, and the trend breakpoints mainly occurred in 1993, 2003, and 2010. The cumulative effects of PRE and SM in the middle period, coupled with the short-term effects of temperature and potential evapotranspiration, have had positive effects on vegetation greening. Anthropogenic factors appear to have positively impacted vegetation dynamics, as shown in 81.21% of pixels. We consider rapid economic growth, PRE, and SM to be the main driving factors in Inner Mongolia. PRE was the main climatic factor, and combined human and livestock populations were the primary anthropogenic factors influencing vegetation dynamics in Mongolia. This study is important in promoting the continued use of green projects to address environmental change in the Mongolian Plateau. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: The North China leopard is a subspecies of leopard distributed in China, but little is known about its population status. This study selected the most active areas of North China leopards to determine the population density and distribution of North China leopards. We found that different prey had different effects on the density distribution of North China leopards. Environmental factors and human factors are also important factors affecting the population density distribution of North China leopards. These results provided an effective basis for the protection of North China leopard population and management evaluation of the reserve. It also provided effective methods for the protection and management of other endangered species. The North China leopard (Panthera pardus japonesis) is a rare leopard subspecies distributed only in China. In this study, we conducted camera-trap surveys of a North China Leopard population in Tie Qiao Shan Nature Reserve, Shanxi Province, China. We estimated population abundance and density distribution, and explored the effects of distribution of different prey populations, habitat, and anthropogenic factors on the spatial distribution of North China leopard density. Our results suggested that the North China leopard density was 4.23 individuals/100 km2, and that 17.98 individuals might live within the study area. The population density of the North China leopard increased with the distribution of wild boars, and, on the contrary, decreased with the distribution of roe deer. We found that habitat environmental factors and anthropogenic interference also significantly affected the population density and spatial distribution of the North China leopard. These insights informed us that in order to protect this predator, which is only distributed in China, we should adopt a comprehensive customized adaptive landscape protection strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Poyang water system in Jiangxi Province, China, is important for floodwater storage, diversity maintenance, and the economy of the Poyang Lake watershed. In recent years, pollution has destroyed the ecosystem and impacted human health and the related economy. The water quality of the Poyang Lake watershed and the impact of human interference must be assessed. Conventional analysis and high-throughput sequencing were used to evaluate the structure of both zooplankton and fungi in six sub-lakes of the Poyang Lake watershed under different anthropogenic influences. The sub-lakes included were Dahuchi Lake (in natural preserve, DHC), Shahu Lake (in natural reserve, SH), Nanhu Lake (out of natural preserve, NH), Zhelinhu Lake (artificial reservoir, ZLH), Sixiahu Lake (agricultural lake artificially isolated from Poyang Lake, SXH), and Qianhu Lake (urban lake, QH). The densities and biomass of the zooplankton in DHC, SH, NH were higher compared with those in SXH, ZLH and QH (p < 0.05). Zooplankton distribution of SXH was the most strongly associated with total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP) and chlorophyll a (Chl a), while QH was highly associated with pH, conductivity (Cond), and water temperature (WT). For fungal diversity, a large number of beneficial fungi, Basidiomycota (phylum level) and Massarina (genus level) were obtained from DHC (55.3% and 27.5%, respectively), SH (54.4% and 28.9%, respectively), and NH (48.6% and 1.4%, respectively), while a large number of pathogenic Chytridiomycota (at phylum level) were identified from SXH (21.0%), ZLH (5.5%), and QH (7.5%). Manmade pollutants have impacted the natural hydrology and water quality and promoted variation between the zooplankton and fungi in the six sub-lakes, reducing the relative abundance of beneficial fungi and increasing the number of pathogens in the environment, which threatens human health and economic production. Understanding the diversity among the zooplankton and fungi in the six sub-lakes of the Poyang Lake watershed may help guide future water management practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forestry systems, including afforestation and reforestation land uses, are prevalent in drylands and aimed at restoring degraded lands and halting desertification. However, an increasing amount of literature has alerted potentially adverse ecological and environmental impacts of this land use, risking a wide range of ecosystem functions and services. The objective of this paper is to demonstrate the potentially adverse implications of dryland forestry and highlight the caution needed when planning and establishing such systems. Wherever relevant, establishment of low-impact runoff harvesting systems is favored over high-impact ones, which might cause extensive land degradation of their surroundings. Specifically, both in hillslopes and channels, scraping, removal, or disturbance of topsoil for the construction of runoff harvesting systems should be minimized to prevent the decrease in soil hydraulic conductivity and increase in water overland flow and soil erosion. In order to negate suppression of understory vegetation and sustain plant species richness and diversity, low-density savanization by non-allelopathic tree species is preferred over high-density forestry systems by allelopathic species. Wherever possible, it is preferable to plant native tree species rather than introduced or exotic species, in order to prevent genetic pollution and species invasion. Mixed-species forestry systems should be favored over single-species plantations, as they are less susceptible to infestation by pests and diseases. In addition, drought-tolerant, fire-resistant, and less flammable tree species should be preferred over drought-prone, fire-susceptible, and more flammable species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the continuous enhancement of point source pollution control, non-point source (NPS) pollution has become an important factor in the deterioration of surface water quality. Meanwhile, due to the soaring global population, long-term effects of anthropogenic factors on non-point source pollution in large river basins have increasingly attracted worldwide attention. The Yangtze river is the largest river basin of China, and protecting its ecological environment has great significance on protecting the lifeline of the entire Yangtze river. In this study, the improved output coefficient and nutrient losses empirical model were used to conduct space–time simulations of non-point source pollution in the upper reaches of the Yangtze river (URYR) based on GIS during 1960–2003. This method reveals the anthropogenic effects of non-point source pollution in the upper reaches of the Yangtze river. The results indicate that the impacts of anthropogenic factors on dissolved pollutants increased significantly, while those on sediment and adsorbed pollutants increased first and then decreased during the simulation year. Agricultural land use and atmospheric deposition, as well as rural life, were the main sources of dissolved pollutants. In addition, dry land and paddy fields were the major sources of sediment and adsorbed pollutants. For the load intensities, the long-term effects of anthropogenic factors on dissolved pollutants increased rapidly, and those on the load intensity of sediment and adsorbed pollutants increased first and then decreased. Therefore, the study would propose some corresponding environmental management measures to strengthen environmental protection and non-point source pollution control in the upper reaches of the Yangtze river. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]