The riparian zone of the Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR) has experienced substantial erosion that may severely deteriorate the reservoir ecosystem. To calculate soil erosion characteristics, field investigations have been conducted in the TGR area and 12 erosion-monitoring transects have been set in the middle TGR. The results showed that the dominating drive forces are water wave, gravity and surface runoff. In summer when the reservoir ran at lower water levels, wave erosion led to bank instability and bank collapses. Simultaneously, due to a number of heavy storms, surface runoff erosion was also severe. In other seasons when the reservoir ran at relative higher levels reaching the highest level in winter, water wave prevailed due to the wide range of water surface and heavy waterway transportation. Soil erosion was the most severe in the mainstream where higher frequency and intensity of waves occurred. The rates of wave erosion were around 37 mm/year with the highest being 53 mm/year, and surface runoff erosion was up to 15 mm/year in the main stream riparian zone.
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Research Article|September 17 2013
Soil erosion in the riparian zone of the Three Gorges Reservoir, China
Yuhai Bao
Yuhai Bao
1Key Laboratory of Mountain Surface Processes and Ecological Regulation, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041, China
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Qiang Tang
Qiang Tang
1Key Laboratory of Mountain Surface Processes and Ecological Regulation, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041, China2University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
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Xiubin He
Xiubin He
1Key Laboratory of Mountain Surface Processes and Ecological Regulation, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041, China
E-mail: xiubinh@imde.ac.cn
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Yunhua Hu
Yunhua Hu
1Key Laboratory of Mountain Surface Processes and Ecological Regulation, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041, China2University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
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Xinbao Zhang
Xinbao Zhang
1Key Laboratory of Mountain Surface Processes and Ecological Regulation, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041, China
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Hydrology Research (2013) 46 (2): 212-221.
Article history
Received:
November 18 2012
Accepted:
July 30 2013
Citation
Yuhai Bao, Qiang Tang, Xiubin He, Yunhua Hu, Xinbao Zhang; Soil erosion in the riparian zone of the Three Gorges Reservoir, China. Hydrology Research 1 April 2015; 46 (2): 212–221. doi: https://doi.org/10.2166/nh.2013.291
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