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Springer Geography

Wei Zhou
Jianlong Li
Tianxiang Yue

Remote Sensing
Monitoring and
Evaluation of
Degraded Grassland
in China
Accounting of Grassland Carbon Source
and Carbon Sink
Springer Geography
The Springer Geography series seeks to publish a broad portfolio of scientific books,
aiming at researchers, students, and everyone interested in geographical research.
The series includes peer-reviewed monographs, edited volumes, textbooks, and
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More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/10180

Wei Zhou Jianlong Li Tianxiang Yue
• •

Remote Sensing Monitoring

and Evaluation of Degraded
Grassland in China
Accounting of Grassland Carbon Source
and Carbon Sink

123
Wei Zhou Jianlong Li
Department of Geographic Information School of Life Science
and Land Resources Nanjing University
Chongqing Jiaotong University Nanjing, China
Chongqing, China
School of Geographical Sciences
Southwest University
Chongqing, China

Tianxiang Yue
Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural
Resources Research (IGSNRR)
Chinese Academy of Sciences
Beijing, China

ISSN 2194-315X ISSN 2194-3168 (electronic)

Springer Geography
ISBN 978-981-32-9381-6 ISBN 978-981-32-9382-3 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-32-9382-3
© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2020
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Singapore
Contents

1 Research Progress of the Grassland Carbon Cycle and Grassland

Degradation in China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.1 General Situation of Grassland in China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Related Definitions and Model Formulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.2.1 Basic Process of Carbon Cycle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.2.2 Observation and Simulation of NPP and Carbon
Sinks in Grassland Ecosystem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.3 Literature Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1.3.1 Overview of Grassland Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1.3.2 Grassland Degradation Monitoring Method . . . . . . . . . . . 8
1.3.3 Driving Factors of Grassland Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
1.3.4 Ecological Restoration Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
1.4 Problems in Carbon Sinks Accounting and Grassland
Degradation Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 12
1.4.1 Studies on the Driving Mechanism of Grassland NPP
in China Are Few . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 12
1.4.2 Research on the Grassland Carbon Sinks Evaluation
in China’s National Scale Area Few . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 12
1.4.3 Lack of Remote Sensing Monitoring and Driving
Mechanism Quantitative Assessment of Grassland
Degradation in China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 13
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 13
2 Grassland Coverage Inter-Annual Variations and Its Coupling
Relation with Hydrothermal Factors in China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
2.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
2.2 Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.2.1 Normalized Difference Vegetation Indices (NDVI) . . . . . . 19
2.2.2 Meteorological Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.2.3 Land-Cover Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

v
vi Contents

2.2.4 Estimation of Grass Coverage and Its Accuracy

Validation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 20
2.2.5 Grassland Vegetation Coverage Trend Analysis . . . . .... 22
2.2.6 Correlation Analysis of Grass Coverage and Climate
Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 23
2.3 Implementations and Comparisons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 23
2.3.1 Spatial Distribution of Long-Term Mean Grass
Coverage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 23
2.3.2 Temporal Changes of Grass Coverage in China . . . . .... 24
2.3.3 Correlation Analysis of Grass Coverage and
Temperature, Precipitation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
2.3.4 Comparisons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
2.4 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
3 Spatial–Temporal Dynamics of Grassland Net Primary
Productivity in China and Its Response to Climate Factors . . . . . . . 39
3.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
3.2 Data Source and Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
3.2.1 GIMMS NDVI Data and Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
3.2.2 Meteorological Data and Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
3.2.3 Grassland-Type Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
3.3 Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
3.3.1 CASA Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
3.3.2 Validation of CASA Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
3.3.3 Inter-annual Variation Trend of Grassland NPP . . . . . . . . 44
3.3.4 Correlation Coefficient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
3.4 Results and Discussions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
3.4.1 Spatial Distribution Characteristics of Grassland NPP
in China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... 45
3.4.2 Time Dynamic Analysis of Grassland NPP in China . ... 46
3.4.3 Correlation Analysis Between Grassland NPP and
Temperature and Precipitation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
3.4.4 Discussions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
3.5 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
4 Inter-annual Variation in Grassland Net Ecosystem Productivity
and Its Coupling Relation to Climatic Factors in China . . . . . . . . . . 55
4.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
4.2 Data Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
4.2.1 Study Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
4.2.2 Data Source and Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Contents vii

4.3 Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
4.3.1 BEPS Model Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
4.3.2 Research Indicators and Statistical Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . 61
4.3.3 Implementations and Discussions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
4.3.4 Spatial Distribution of Grassland NEP in China . . . . . . . . 64
4.3.5 Inter-annual and Monthly Changing Trend
of Grassland NEP in China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 66
4.3.6 Inter-annual Variation Trend of Grasslands’
CSE and RUE in China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 67
4.3.7 Correlation Analysis of Grassland NEP with
Temperature and Precipitation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 68
4.3.8 Lag Analysis Between Grassland NEP and Precipitation
and Temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
4.3.9 Connection Between PD and Grassland NEP . . . . . . . . . . 71
4.3.10 Comparisons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
4.4 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
5 The Variation of Landscape and NPP of Main Pastoral
Grasslands in China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
5.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
5.2 Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
5.2.1 Study Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
5.2.2 Land-Use Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
5.2.3 Landscape Metrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
5.2.4 CASA Model to Estimate NPP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
5.2.5 Model Accuracy Verification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
5.3 Implementations and Discussions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
5.3.1 Analysis of Spatial and Temporal Dynamic Changes
of Grassland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
5.3.2 Changes in Pattern of Grassland Landscapes . . . . . . . . . . 90
5.3.3 Changes in NPP of Grassland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
5.3.4 Comparisons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
5.3.5 Effects of Ecological Restoration Measures
on Grassland Productivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
5.4 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
6 Grassland Degradation Remote Sensing Monitoring and Driving
Factors Quantitative Assessment in China from 1982 to 2010 . . . . . 105
6.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
6.2 Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
6.2.1 Study Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
6.2.2 Data Sources and Processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
viii Contents

6.2.3 Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

6.2.4 Calculation of Fractional Vegetation Cover . . . . . . . . . . . 111
6.2.5 Slope of Grassland NPP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
6.2.6 Grassland Degradation Status Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
6.2.7 Scenarios Design and Quantitative Assessment Method
of Grassland Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
6.3 Implementations and Discussions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
6.3.1 Spatial Distribution of Grassland Degradation Status . . . . 113
6.3.2 Quantitative Assessment of Grassland Degradation
or Restoration in China from 1982 to 2010 . . . . . . . . . . . 115
6.3.3 Comparative Analysis of the Driving Contribution
of Two Factors in the Nine Provinces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
6.3.4 Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
6.4 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
7 Grassland Degradation Restoration and Constructing Green
Ecological Protective Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
7.1 Overview of the Green Ecological Protective Screen Policy
in China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
7.2 Restoration Technology of Degraded Grassland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
7.2.1 Grassland Degradation in China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
7.2.2 Restoration of Degraded Grassland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
7.2.3 Restoration Technology of Degraded Grassland . . . . . . . . 128
7.3 Sustainable Use of Rangeland Resource . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
7.3.1 Grassland Improvement and Artificial Grass Planting
in Pasturing Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
7.3.2 Strengthening Laws and Regulations and Implementing
Grassland Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
7.3.3 Control the Excessive Utilization of Grassland . . . . . . . . . 131
7.3.4 Improving the Compensation Mechanism for Grassland
Ecological Construction and Strengthening the Reward
Mechanism for Ecological Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
7.3.5 Establishing a Comprehensive System of Grassland
and Livestock Products Industrialization According
to Local Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
7.3.6 Adjusting Ecological Restoration Project Reasonably . . . . 134
7.4 Construction of Grassland Green Ecological Protective Screen . . . 135
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Chapter 1
Research Progress of the Grassland
Carbon Cycle and Grassland
Degradation in China

Abstract Grasslands, one of the most common vegetation types in the world,
account for nearly 20% of the global land surface. The vast land cover and carbon
sequestration potential make it become the important composition of the terrestrial
carbon cycle. In China, grasslands mainly locate in the arid and semi-arid areas in
the northwest and the Tibetan Plateau alpine climate regions, which make it sensitive
and vulnerable to climate change and frequent human intervention. Along with the
global warming and population explosion, substantial land-use and cover change has
occurred in China due to overgrazing, grassland reclamation, and over-mining explo-
rations. All these changes had led to serious ecological problems, such as grassland
degradation, desertification, and future changes of the global carbon cycle. In recent
decades, Chinese government has initiated several ecosystem restoration programs
to mitigate the environment degradation. Meanwhile, along with the development
of remote sensing technology, grassland carbon sequestration can be simulated by
ecological remote sensing model in large scale, and previous studies showed that
grassland of China is carbon sink. Grazing is one of the main ways of grassland
resource utilization and is also the main factor of grassland degradation. About 35%
of the degraded grasslands in the world are caused by overgrazing, which accounts
for more than 20% in China. However, the spatial–temporal dynamic of carbon sink
or source of grassland of China, and the driving mechanism of grassland degradation
in China need deep analysis.

Keywords Grassland ecosystem · Carbon sink · Grassland degradation ·

Ecological project · Remote sensing

1.1 General Situation of Grassland in China

Grassland is one of the most widely distributed vegetation types on the earth’s surface.
The global grassland area is about 24 million km2 , accounting for 20% of the global
land area. Alpine, tropical, and temperate natural grasslands are very sensitive to
regional climate change (Asner and Martin 2004; Wang et al. 2002). At the same
time, the huge distribution area may make the grassland play an important carbon
sink function in the global carbon cycle (Parton et al. 1993; Scurlock and Hall 1998).
© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2020 1
W. Zhou et al., Remote Sensing Monitoring and Evaluation of Degraded
Grassland in China, Springer Geography,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-32-9382-3_1
2 1 Research Progress of the Grassland Carbon Cycle …

The study also showed that grassland ecosystem vegetation and soil carbon storage
accounted for 34–37% of global terrestrial carbon storage (2500 Pg C) (Matthews
et al. 2000). In addition, 90% of the carbon storage of grassland ecosystem was
stored in the soil, while the above-ground vegetation biomass accounted for only
10% (Sharrow and Ismail 2004). The rate of soil carbon decomposition in grassland
ecosystems is relatively slow, so it is a potential carbon sink (Conant et al. 2001).
Grassland of China is a natural barrier for ecological environment protection. It is
mainly distributed in the temperate continental semi-arid climate zone and the Qing-
hai–Tibet Plateau alpine climate zone. The area is about 4 million km2 , accounting for
41.7% of the country’s land area (Ren et al. 2008), accounting for 6–8% of the global
grassland area, while China’s grassland carbon reserves account for about 9–16%
of global grassland carbon storage (Ni 2002). However, the ecological environment
of grassland distribution areas in China is fragile and sensitive to climate change.
In recent years, disturbances in human activities have intensified, especially over-
grazing, grassland reclamation, excavation of herbs, and mining. The combination
of warming and drying of the climate and human disturbances led to changes in the
structure and function of grassland ecosystems in China, and large-scale degradation
and desertification of grassland.
Grassland degradation in China began in the 1960s. In the mid-1970s, the country’s
degraded grassland accounted for 15% of the total grassland area. With the sharp
increase of population in the 1980s, with the sharp increase in population, the demand
for food and livestock products increased, grassland overloaded grazing, grassland
reclamation and grassland degradation. The phenomenon is becoming more and more
serious. By the mid-1980s, the grassland degradation area accounted for 30% of the
total grassland area, and in the mid-1990s, it reached more than 50%. The grassland
ecological environment is deteriorating (Fan et al. 2007). Grassland degradation will
lead to simplification of grassland community structure, degradation of grassland
ecological environment function, showing decline in grassland cover, height and
productivity, reduction of grassland species diversity, reduction of ecological service
value (Levy et al. 2004; Li 1997; Turner II et al. 2001), reduction of perennial herb,
and proportion of inedible grass increase (Milchunas and Lauenroth 1993; Milton
et al. 1994). At the same time, grassland overload grazing reduces the amount of
surface litter and biomass entering the soil and reduces soil carbon input. On the
other hand, trampling of livestock also lead to the change of soil water permeability
and soil hydro-thermal conditions, increasing soil erosion, eventually leading to
a decrease in grassland NPP (Millington et al. 2007; Snyman and Fouché 1991)
and an increase in soil organic carbon release (Wang et al. 2002). Severe grassland
degradation will lead to a decline in grassland carbon sequestration and a reduction
in ecological function.
Climate warming has an important impact on the global carbon cycle and terres-
trial carbon balance, and especially in the late 1980s, with the acceleration of global
industrialization and urbanization and population expansion, the dynamic changes
of the global carbon cycle are closely related to climate change and human activities,
and have become the focus of attention of scientists and governments (Houghton
et al. 2001). As an important part of the global carbon cycle, terrestrial ecosystems
1.1 General Situation of Grassland in China 3

are also important sources and sinks of CO2 in the atmosphere. Vegetation and soil, as
two major components of terrestrial ecosystems, play an important role in the global
carbon cycle. Vegetation fixes CO2 in the atmosphere through photosynthesis, while
the respiration of vegetation and soil releases CO2 into the atmosphere.
Land-use and cover change (LUCC) is one of the ways in which humans can
change the natural environment on land. Studies on terrestrial ecosystems show
that human activities contribute to one-third of the world’s land surface cover as
an unsustainable ecosystem type (Vitousek et al. 1997). LUCC not only changes
the vegetation cover type and distribution pattern on land surface, but also has an
important impact on terrestrial carbon cycle. However, some studies have suggested
that the implementation of land use and management measures can make 60–70%
of the released carbon refixed and absorbed by terrestrial vegetation (Lal 2002).
LUCC has reduced the carbon sequestration potential of ecosystems by 5% in the last
20 years of the twentieth century (DeFries et al. 1999). Therefore, the unreasonable
LUCC profoundly affects the material and energy cycle of the ecosystem (Imhoff
et al. 2004).
In order to alleviate grassland degradation, restore the ecological environment
barrier of grassland, actively play the role of grassland carbon sequestration, and
reduce the damage of sandstorms to the natural environment and the serious impact
on human survival and life. The Chinese government has implemented a nationwide
large-scale ecological restoration project, such as the project of returning farmland
to forests and grasslands, which was implemented in 1999, and the implementation
of the project of returning grazing to grassland in 2003. The implementation of the
two major ecological restoration projects led to changes in land use types, grassland
cover areas and vegetation community structures, and grassland production capacity
and ecological service functions. The implementation of ecological measures pro-
motes the mitigation of grassland grazing pressure and is conducive to the increase
of soil organic carbon in grassland (Wang et al. 2011). Especially in key imple-
mentation areas, such as key counties and counties in Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi, and
Ninxia, the effects of land desertification and grassland degradation are significant,
and sandstorms are controlled to some extent (Wang et al. 2012).
The driving mechanism of grassland degradation is complex; however, overloaded
grazing is considered to be the leading driver of grassland degradation (Peng 1993).
With the application of remote sensing technology, grassland degradation remote
sensing monitoring has higher effectiveness and reliability than traditional field
observation methods (Alfredo et al. 2002; Lu et al. 2007) and has high spatial resolu-
tion and temporal resolution, which makes grassland degradation dynamic monitor-
ing and degradation classification more efficient and convenient. However, previous
researches on the status and driving forces of grassland degradation have focused on
grasslands in northern China, typical grasslands in Inner Mongolia, and alpine grass-
lands on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau (Li 1997; Liu et al. 2004). There are few studies
on grassland degradation and degradation dynamics across the country and for long
periods of time. Insufficient quantitative evaluation of the driving mechanism, due
to differences in degradation indicators and research methods, and differences in
research areas and time periods, leads to differences in grassland degradation and
4 1 Research Progress of the Grassland Carbon Cycle …

land desertification driving (Wang et al. 2006; Zheng et al. 2006). Therefore, the
quantitative evaluation method of grassland degradation driving mechanism is con-
structed, and the dominant factors of grassland degradation in different regions of
China are identified. This is of great significance for the evaluation of grassland
degradation and the effective implementation of ecological restoration measures in
China.
In summary, in the context of the implementation of global climate change and
ecological restoration projects, we will study the grassland productivity and grassland
carbon sinks dynamics in China for the past 30 years, analyze the impact of climate
change and human activities on grassland NPP, simulate the accounting of grassland
carbon sinks in China, explore the dynamics of grassland degradation, quantitatively
assess the driving contribution of climate change and human activities to grassland
degradation, and clarify the dominant drivers of grassland degradation in different
regions. This is of great theoretical significance for further promoting the rational
and effective implementation of ecological restoration projects, actively exerting the
carbon sequestration potential of grassland in China, and promoting the rational use
of grassland resources.

1.2 Related Definitions and Model Formulation

1.2.1 Basic Process of Carbon Cycle

As one of the most widely distributed types of vegetation in the world, grassland
accounts for 20% of the global land area; the huge distribution area makes grass-
land play an important role in the terrestrial carbon cycle. Carbon storage in grass-
land ecosystems and soil accounts for 34–37% of global terrestrial carbon storage
(Matthews et al. 2000). Therefore, the assessment of grassland ecosystem carbon
cycle and carbon sinks function is a key link in understanding terrestrial ecosystems
and even the global carbon cycle.
Plants, litter, and soil humus constitute the three major carbon pools of grassland
ecosystems. While the grassland ecosystem carbon cycle is carried out in the atmo-
sphere, grassland vegetation, and soil (Yu et al. 2003), the carbon stocks and carbon
fluxes in each carbon pool are estimated, and the study of its changing trend is the
core of the whole grassland carbon cycle research (Qi et al. 2003).
For grassland ecosystems, green plants convert atmospheric CO2 into organic
matter through photosynthesis and store it in plants. This process is an important
part of carbon input from the atmosphere to the grassland ecosystem. It is also
the material and energy basis of the carbon cycle of grassland ecosystems, which
include both above-ground and underground parts (Tao et al. 2001). Due to the wide
distribution and diversity of grassland ecosystems, there is significant spatial hetero-
geneity in grassland vegetation composition, soil, and climatic conditions. Therefore,
there are also large differences in the factors affecting the grassland carbon cycle.
1.2 Related Definitions and Model Formulation 5

Among them, temperature, precipitation, atmospheric CO2 concentration, growth

season length, and soil texture all play an important role in driving grassland carbon
cycle. These factors indirectly affect grassland ecosystem carbon by affecting plant
community composition, plant physiological characteristics, and hydrothermal con-
ditions (Zhang et al. 2006). Human factors such as grazing and reclamation have
significant interference effects on grassland coverage, vegetation growth conditions,
and soil nutrient turnover rate, which in turn affects the formation and distribution
of grassland net primary productivity (Niu 2001).
Part of the grassland vegetation primary production of carbon is eaten by herbi-
vores, eaten by the animal, part of which is used to maintain its own metabolism and
complete secondary production, and the other part is returned to the soil in the form
of feces. The aerial part of the plant that is not eaten by animals inputs carbon into
the soil by forming litter, and the underground part inputs carbon into the soil by
forming plant roots, which is the main source of soil organic carbon.
Carbon emissions from grassland ecosystems include autotrophic respiration of
plants, soil roots, soil microbes, and soil animals. Respiratory grassland soil res-
piration is an important pathway for CO2 release from grassland ecosystems. Car-
bon emissions from grassland ecosystems include autotrophic respiration of plants,
heterotrophic respiration of soil roots, soil microbes, and soil animals. Respiratory
grassland soil respiration is an important pathway for CO2 release from grassland
ecosystems. Compared with forest and farmland ecosystems, the carbon storage of
above-ground biomass of grassland ecosystem is not obvious. Carbon is mainly dis-
tributed in soil. The global grassland ecosystem has carbon storage of about 308 Pg,
of which about 92% is stored in soil and less than 10% in above-ground biomass (Yu
et al. 2003).

1.2.2 Observation and Simulation of NPP and Carbon Sinks

in Grassland Ecosystem

(1) Grassland NPP simulation

With the development of global change research and remote sensing computer tech-
nology, the modeling of terrestrial carbon fluxes and reserves has been developed
rapidly at regional and global scales, and NPP is the main measure of terrestrial
carbon flux among them. The existing NPP estimation models are summarized as
four types: climate productivity model, light utilization model, physiological and
ecological process model, and ecological remote sensing model (Ruimy et al. 1994).
(a) Climate productivity model: Such models only consider the impact of climatic
conditions on productivity in the estimation of NPP. There are many climate pro-
ductivity models, including Miami model (Lieth and Box 1972), Thornthwaite
Memorial model, Chikugo model, and Zhou Guangsheng model (Uchijima and
Seino 1985).
6 1 Research Progress of the Grassland Carbon Cycle …

(b) Physio-ecological process model: A physiological–ecological model based on

plant growth and development and individual-level dynamics and a simulation
model based on the internal function process of ecosystem is to simulate the
process of ecosystem structure and functional change on homogeneous patches.
The simulated spatial scale is small, neglecting the influence of spatial hetero-
geneity. This kind of model mainly has compartment models such as CARAIB
(Running and Hunt 1993; Warnant et al. 1994), BIOME-BGC (Running and
Hunt 1993), CENTURY (Parton et al. 1993); big-leaf model TEM (McGuire
et al. 1997), SILVAN (Kaduk and Heimann 1996), and KGBM (Kergoat 1998).
The advantages of these models are that they have clear mechanism and can be
coupled with atmospheric circulation model, but the disadvantages are that the
process model is more complex and needs too many parameters, so it is difficult
to be popularized and applied in large-scale space.
(c) Ecological remote sensing coupling model: First, combining the physiological
and ecological process model with remote sensing technology, the spatial distri-
bution and dynamic change of NPP on regional and global scales were studied.
For example, the NASA earth observation system uses the improved PEM model
to estimate NPP for MODIS data. Second, Boreal Ecosystem Productivity Sim-
ulator model was developed by combining LAI with remote sensing data, such
as the BEPS model based on FOREST-BGC and LAI, and the InTEC model
was developed on this basis (Chen et al. 2000).
(d) Light utilization model.
Estimation of vegetation NPP using the light energy utilization rate model is based
on the resource balance theory (Field et al. 1995). Monteith proposed to estimate
NPP by using APAR of absorbable photosynthetic effective radiation of vegetation
and the utilization ratio of light energy, which is known as Monteith’s equation.

NPP = APAR × ε

In the formula, ε, the light energy utilization rate of plants is affected by the
conditions of water, temperature, and nutrients.
In recent years, the model of light energy utilization has been widely applied in
global NPP simulation. The main models in this area are CASA (Potter et al. 1993),
GLO-PEM (Prince and Goward 1995), SDBM (Knorr and Heimann 1995), and so
on.
(2) Carbon sinks observation and simulation
Net ecosystem productivity (NEP) is the result of a balance between the two basic
physiological processes of photosynthesis and respiration in the ecosystem (Valentini
et al. 2000). At present, the estimation of NEP mainly includes two ways: On the one
hand, it can be obtained by model simulation; on the other hand, it can be obtained
by observation method. Biome-BGC model, Century model, and TEM model are
widely used in the simulation of carbon flux at small homogeneous plot level, and
the dynamic changes of ecosystem NEP can be obtained on both the day scale and the
1.2 Related Definitions and Model Formulation 7

year scale. Eco-remote sensing coupling models such as BEPS model, LPJ model,
and InTEC model are applied to the simulation and dynamic study of ecosystem
carbon flux at regional and global scales. InTEC model can also predict the future
changes of NPP and NEP in ecosystem carbon flux.
The methods of observing carbon flux NEP in terrestrial ecosystem mainly
include the following four methods: chemical method, box method, micrometeo-
rology method, and soil concentration profile method. Micrometeorological method
and box-type method are the two most widely used methods at present (Burkart
et al. 2007). Box method has been widely used in grassland, farmland, and forest
ecosystems in China (Zhou et al. 2004). Micrometeorology is a method of calculating
carbon and water fluxes by measuring gas concentration changes and near-surface
turbulence. It mainly includes energy balance method, mass balance method, and
aerodynamic method and eddy covariance method. The eddy covariance method
(EC) is a method to calculate the material and energy exchange between atmosphere
and vegetation by measuring the fluctuation of gas and wind velocity at a certain
height. Compared with conventional methods, the vorticity correlation technique
has higher measurement accuracy, and the sampling area of this method ranges from
hundreds of meters to thousands of meters longitudinally (Schmid 1994). On the
time scale, the method can measure carbon and water fluxes of ecosystems on the
scale of half an hour to several years (Baldocchi et al. 2001). With the establishment
of global flux websites, vorticity correlation method has gradually become the stan-
dard method for direct measurement of carbon flux at the ecosystem level, while box
method is still widely used in small scale.

1.3 Literature Review

1.3.1 Overview of Grassland Degradation

The concept of grassland degradation has many definitions. In recent decades, domes-
tic scholars have carried out a lot of research on grassland degradation. Li Bo pointed
out that grassland degradation is a state in which grassland ecosystem deviates from
top-level succession under artificial activities such as grazing, reclamation, and log-
ging (Li 1990). Huang Wenxiu believes that grassland degradation is a process of
livestock production decline due to the decrease in livestock carrying capacity (Huang
1991). Some scholars believe that grassland degradation is the main form of land
desertification. It is the degradation of grassland vegetation and soil quality caused
by disturbance of human activities and unfavorable changes of natural environment.
It is also the reduction of productivity, livestock potential and ecological services,
environmental degradation and biodiversity, and weakening of ecological restoration
(Li 1997).
Grassland degradation is a universal problem in the world, and grassland degra-
dation has become a serious ecological environment problem facing the interna-
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