Identifying and warning against spatial conflicts of land use from an ecological environment perspective: A case study of the Ili River Valley, China.

Spatial conflicts of land use (SCLU) arise during land-use change, which causes an imbalance of land-use spatial patterns and negatively affects society, the economy, and ecology. Previous research has focused on identifying and measuring SCLU, with less attention on the negative effects. The incorporation of risk assessment methods to evaluate potential conflict risks has been limited. The current study presents methods for measuring SCLU and assessing potential conflict risks from the ecological environment perspective. The spatial comprehensive conflicts index and potential conflict risk index were used to identify and measure the SCLU and to assess and warn against potential conflict risks, respectively, based on a case study in the Ili River Valley in China. The impacts of terrain restriction and land-use change on the SCLU were explored. Results indicate that (1) the SCLU area in the Ili River Valley decreased by 2,608 km2 from 2010 to 2020, compared to the previous decade, the degree of conflict weakened, and the main body of the SCLU gradually shifted northwest. (2) The potential risk areas cover 20,268 km2 in 2020-2030 and are mainly distributed in the "Khorgas City-Huocheng County-Yining City-Yining County" group of towns, as well as along the Ili-Kunes rivers and in the ecological protection zone in the south of the Ili River Valley, which shows the clustering along the city and distribution along the river in the spatial pattern. (3) Topography had a significant impact on the SCLU, and the main types of land-use change in the severe-conflict zone were the reduction of grassland and the expansion of arable and built-up land. For future conflict mitigation in the Ili River Valley, cautioning against urban sprawl and safeguarding land ecological security is critical. This study systematically investigates and analyzes SCLU across three dimensions: theory, methodology, and application to produce a theoretical and practical framework to identify SCLU and assess potential conflict risks.

Distinct Composition and Assembly Processes of Bacterial Communities in a River from the Arid Area: Ecotypes or Habitat Types?

The composition, function, and assembly mechanism of the bacterial community are the focus of microbial ecology. Unsupervised machine learning may be a better way to understand the characteristics of bacterial metacommunities compared to the empirical habitat types. In this study, the composition, potential function, and assembly mechanism of the bacterial community in the arid river were analysed. The Dirichlet multinomial mixture method recognised four ecotypes across the three habitats (biofilm, water, and sediment). The bacterial communities in water are more sensitive to human activities. Bacterial diversity and richness in water decreased as the intensity of human activities increased from the region of water II to water I. Significant differences in the composition and potential function profile of bacterial communities between water ecotypes were also observed, such as higher relative abundance in the taxonomic composition of Firmicutes and potential function of plastic degradation in water I than those in water II. Habitat filtering may play a more critical role in the assembly of bacterial communities in the river biofilm, while stochastic processes dominate the assembly process of bacterial communities in water and sediment. In water I, salinity and mean annual precipitation were the main drivers shaping the biogeography of taxonomic structure, while mean annual temperature, total organic carbon, and ammonium nitrogen were the main environmental factors influencing the taxonomic structure in water II. These results would provide conceptual frameworks about choosing habitat types or ecotypes for the research of microbial communities among different niches in the aquatic environment.

Metagenomic binning and assembled genome analysis revealed the distinct composition of resistome and mobilome in the Ili River.

Rivers play an important role in receiving and transporting the resistome among different environmental compartments. However, the difference in resistome and mobilome between the water and sediment and their underlying mechanisms were still poorly understood. In this study, the Ili River, an important water source in the arid area of Central Asia, was selected as the studied target. The comprehensive profile of resistome and mobilome and their host in water and sediment were studied based on metagenomic binning and assembled genome (MAG) analysis. The relative abundance of resistome and mobilome in sediment were 28.0 - 67.8 × /Gb and 46.5 - 121.1 × /Gb, respectively, which were significantly higher than those in water (23.1 - 52.8 ×/Gb and 25.3 - 67.7 ×/Gb). Multidrug and macrolides-lincosamides-streptogramin (MLS) resistance genes were the main ARG types in both water and sediment from relative abundance. Transposases dominated the relative abundance of mobilome, followed by insert elements and integrases. Strong correlations were found between the relative abundance of resistome and mobilome (r > 0.6 and p < 0.01) in both water and sediment, indicating the mobilome played an important role in the propagation of resistome in the Ili River. The main hosts for multidrug resistance genes via MAG analysis differed in water (Alphaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria) and sediment (Gammaproteobacteria). Distinct compositions of resistome and mobilome existed between water and sediment in the Ili River. Specificity-occupancy analysis of the differential resistome and mobilome showed that occurrence frequencies and habitat selections of the differential ARGs shaped the resistome of water and sediment. In contrast, habitat was the main driver that shaped the mobilome in the Ili River.

Analysis of meteorological dryness/wetness features for spring wheat production in the Ili River basin, China.

Understanding the impacts of climate change on crop yield is important for improving crop growth and yield formation in northwestern China. In this study, we evaluated the relationship between meteorological dryness/wetness conditions and spring wheat yield in the Ili river basin (IRB). The climate and yield data from 1961 to 2013 were collected to analyze characteristics and correlations between these two variables using the standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI), yield detrending method, modified Mann-Kendall test and Spearman correlation analysis. Main results were as follows: (1) correlations between monthly SPEI values (MSV) and climatic yield of spring wheat indicated that the dryness/wetness condition in May was a key factor affecting yield in the whole region; (2) although the MSV in May and yield fluctuated from negative to positive values in time, the severely and extremely dryness events were in good agreement with the higher yield losses; (3) each increase of 0.5 MSV in May promoted over 3% increase of yield in most part of IRB; however, the larger variability of MSV in May resulted in larger yield fluctuations; and (4) the Tibetan Plateau index in April showed significant correlations with the MSV in May and yield, which provided a precursory signal for decision-makers to better understand potential yield fluctuations.

Macro-micro correlation analysis on the loess from Ili River Valley subjected to freeze-thaw cycles.

The Ili River Valley in Xinjiang, China, is a typical seasonal frozen area where loess landslide disasters have become increasingly common during the freeze-thaw periods in recent years. This study analyzed the macroscopic mechanical strength and microstructure changes of the Ili loess under different freeze-thaw cycles (FTCs) through the post-freeze-thaw triaxial compression test on the unsaturated soil in laboratory. Apart from the scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), the macro-micro correlation analysis and the cluster-principal component analysis were applied for the theoretical discussion. The results indicated that the cohesive force of the loess exhibits an initial decreases, followed by the increases, and eventually keep stable after various FTCs, while the internal friction angle showed the opposite developing trend before the final constant. Similar to the strong correlation between the cohesive force and the particle abundance, the internal friction angle is also closely related to the abundance and orientation fractal dimension of the loess particles. However, the principal component analysis results showed that cohesive force strongly correlates with the average maximum pore size and the pore size fractal dimension, for which the internal friction angle most strongly affected by the average maximum particle size. The possible reason is that the extracted principal components represent a class of microscopic parameters with the same or similar change trend, although there may be a certain offset between them. The mechanical deterioration of loess is attributed to the repeated frost heaving force and the migration potential caused by FTCs. The alterations of the microstructure accelerated the deterioration of the macroscopic mechanical properties of the loess, which further widens the understanding of the mechanism behind the deterioration of loess mechanical strength in the Ili River Valley under FTCs, and contributes to the prevention and management of the local landslide disasters.

[Characteristics and Source Apportionment of PM2.5 in the Core Area of Ili River Valley in Spring].

To explore the characteristics and sources of PM2.5 in the core area of Ili River Valley in spring, a total of 140 PM2.5 samples were collected at six sampling sites during April 20-29, 2021, and 51 chemical components including inorganic elements, water-soluble ions, and carbon components were analyzed. The results showed that ρ(PM2.5) was at a low level during sampling, ranging from 9 µg·m-3 to 35 µg·m-3. Si, Ca, Al, Na, Mg, Fe, and K were the most abundant elements, accounting for 12% of PM2.5, indicating that PM2.5 was affected by the dust sources in spring. The spatial distribution characteristics of elements depended on the surrounding environments of the sampling sites. The new government area was affected by coal-fired sources, so the value of As concentration was high. Yining Municipal Bureau and the Second Water Plant were greatly affected by motor vehicle sources, so the values of Sb and Sn concentration were higher. The enrichment factor results showed that Zn, Ni, Cr, Pb, Cu, and As were mainly emitted from fossil fuel combustion and motor vehicles. The concentration of water-soluble ions accounted for 33.2% of PM2.5. Among them, ρ(SO42-), ρ(NO3-), ρ(Ca2+), and ρ(NH4+) were (2.48±0.57), (1.22±0.75), (1.18±0.49), and (0.98±0.45) µg·m-3, respectively. The higher Ca2+ concentration also reflected the contribution of dust sources. The ratio of n(NO3-)/n(SO42-) was between 0.63 and 0.85, which indicated that the influence of stationary sources was more important than that of mobile sources. Both Yining Municipal Bureau and the Second Water Plant were affected by motor vehicle exhaust; therefore, their n(NO3-)/n(SO42-) ratios were high. Yining County was in a residential area, and therefore its n(NO3-)/n(SO42-) ratio was lower. The average ρ(OC) and ρ(EC) in PM2.5 were 5.12 µg·m-3(4.67-6.25 µg·m-3) and 0.75 µg·m-3(0.51-0.97 µg·m-3), respectively. Yining Municipal Bureau was significantly affected by motor vehicle exhaust from both sides, so the values of OC and EC concentration were slightly higher than those in other sampling sites. The SOC concentration was calculated by the minimum ratio method, and the results showed that the values of SOC concentration in the New Government Area, the Second Water Plant, and Yining Ecological Environment Bureau were higher than those in other sampling sites. The results of the CMB model showed that PM2.5 in this area mainly came from the contribution of secondary particulate matter and dust sources, which accounted for 33.3% and 17.5%, respectively. Secondary organic carbon (16.2%) was the main contribution source of secondary particulate matter.

Interannual and seasonal relationships between photosynthesis and summer soil moisture in the Ili River basin, Xinjiang, 2000-2018.

Soil moisture (SM) is essential for controlling terrestrial carbon uptake, as it directly provides moisture for photosynthesis, especially in arid and semiarid regions. We selected the arid and semiarid Ili River basin (IRB) of Xinjiang as the study area, and investigated the spatial and temporal characteristics and interrelationships with SM and photosynthesis from 2000 to 2018 using the ERA5 products and solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF). SM and photosynthesis showed a decreasing trend during the study period. Compared with those in spring and autumn, the variation of summer SM and SIF was more consistent with the interannual variation. Anomaly analysis showed that negative SM anomalies were most profound in 2012-2015, 2008, and 2014. Additionally, we quantified the effect of seasonal SM deficits on photosynthesis by performing model-based experiments. The results indicated that the gross primary productivity (GPP) simulated by the P-model could capture the characteristics of photosynthesis in the IRB, which had a high correlation with SIF (R2 = 0.82, p < 0.001). In 2012-2015, 2008, and 2014, SM deficits caused more GPP reduction in the summers than in the springs or the autumns. The trends were mainly visible in the northern IRB, where GPP was below 40 % of the multi-year mean, and SM was below 23 %. GPP decreased more significantly in grassland than in the forest under the influence of SM deficit. This study reveals seasonal differences in the effects of SM deficit on photosynthesis and emphasizes that the summer SM deficit was the main factor responsible for decreases in GPP in the IRB during the study period. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the relationships between photosynthesis and environmental factors, and provide a reference for an accurate assessment of the regional carbon cycle.

Spatial distribution and potential sources of arsenic and water-soluble ions in the snow at Ili River Valley, China.

Trace elements and water-soluble ions in snow can be used as indicators to reveal natural and anthropogenic emissions. To understand the chemical composition, characteristics of snow and their potential sources in the Ili River Valley (IRV), snow samples were collected from 17 sites in the IRV from December 2018 to March 2019. Inverse distance weighting, enrichment factor (EF) analysis, and backward trajectory modelling were applied to evaluate the spatial distributions and sources of water-soluble ions and dissolved arsenic (As) in snow. The results indicate that Ca2+ and SO42- were the dominant ions, and the concentrations of As ranged from 0.09 to 0.503 µg L-1. High concentrations of As were distributed in the northwest and middle of the IRV, and the concentrations of the major ions were high in the west of the IRV. The strong correlation of As with F-, SO42-, and NO2- demonstrates that As mainly originated from coal-burning and agricultural activities. Principal component analysis showed that the ions originated from a combination of anthropogenic and crustal sources. The EFs showed that K+, SO42-, and Mg2+ were mainly influenced by human activities. Backward trajectory cluster analysis suggested that the chemical composition of snow was affected by soil dust transport from the western air mass, the unique terrain, and local anthropogenic activities. These results provide important scientific insights for atmospheric environmental management and agricultural production within the IRV.

[Characterization and Formation Mechanism of Water-soluble Inorganic Ions in PM2.5 and PM10 in Summer in the Urban Agglomeration of the Ili River Valley].

The simultaneous observation and analysis of atmospheric particles on a regional scale is an important approach to developing control strategies for air pollution. To study the spatial distribution characteristics of particulate matter and water-soluble inorganic ions in the Ili Valley Urban agglomeration, PM2.5 and PM10 samples were synchronously collected from July 19 to July 29, 2021 in Yining City and the surrounding three counties, and then nine types of water-soluble inorganic ions (WSIIs) were analyzed. The spatial distribution characteristics, existence form of WSIIs, and influencing factors were discussed in depth. The results showed that the average ρ(PM2.5) and ρ(PM10) in the Ili River Valley urban agglomeration in summer were 23 µg·m-3 and 59 µg·m-3, respectively. The emission of local industrial and mobile sources in Yining City was higher than that of the surrounding three counties, resulting in the highest ρ(PM2.5) in the region (25 µg·m-3). Due to the influence of dust sources and topography, the ρ(PM10) in Yining county was the highest in the region (63 µg·m-3). Huocheng county is located upwind of the region, and these favorable diffusion conditions resulted in the lowest ρ(PM2.5) and ρ(PM10) (20 µg·m-3 and 49 µg·m-3, respectively). The concentrations of WSIIs in PM2.5 and PM10 ranged from 28.2%-29.9% and 16.0%-20.2%, respectively. The four main ions (SO42-, NO3-, NH4+, and Ca2+) accounted for approximately 90% of WSIIs mass concentrations. The concentration order of the four main ions in PM2.5 was SO42->Ca2+>NH4+>NO3- and SO42->Ca2+>NO3->NH4+ in PM10. The results of correlation analysis showed that the similar SO42- concentrations in the four cities were mainly caused by regional transport. Ca2+ was the highest-concentration ion in PM10 of Yining City and Qapqal Xibe Autonomous county, and the proportion of Ca2+ was significantly higher than that in most cities in China, which reflected that the cities in the core area of the Ili Valley were greatly affected by the dust sources. The ratios of n(NO3-)/n(SO42-) in PM2.5 and PM10 were 0.78 and 0.76, respectively, indicating that the influence of stationary sources was greater than that of mobile sources. The ratio of n(NO3-)/n(SO42-) in Yining City>Huocheng county>Yining county>Qapqal Xibe Autonomous county, which was consistent with the motor vehicle populations of the four cities, reflecting that Yining City was affected by motor vehicle sources more than the surrounding three counties. The secondary components mainly existed in the form of (NH4)2SO4, NH4HSO4, and NH4NO3. There was excess ammonia after the reaction between NH4+ and SO42- in each city. NH4NO3 mainly existed in Yining City, which was mainly related to high NO2 in Yining City. The NOR of the four cities were 0.03-0.10 and 0.03-0.16 in PM2.5 and PM10, respectively, and the secondary transformation of NO3- was weak due to the influence of high temperatures in summer. The SOR were 0.21-0.41 and 0.23-0.44, respectively. The SOR of Qapqal Xibe Autonomous county was the highest due to the relatively high humidity, whereas the SOR of Huocheng county was higher than that of the three sites in Yining City due to the influence of regional transportation. The formation mechanisms showed that SO42- in Qapqal Xibe Autonomous county and Yining City were mainly produced by the heterogeneous reaction, and in Yining county it was mainly formed via the homogeneous reaction. However, the formation mechanism in Huocheng county was complex and was affected by both homogeneous and heterogeneous reactions.

Assessment of uranium migration and pollution sources in river sediments of the Ili River Basin using multiply statistical techniques.

Uranium (U) is a highly toxic radioactive element and limited to < 30 µg/L in drinking water by the World Health Organization. In this study, the concentration, distribution, possible source, and correlation with other elements of U were investigated in river sediments of the Ili River Basin. Metal contamination factors (CFs) and geoaccumulation index (Igeo) were calculated, and both of them indicated that U in the survey region was unpolluted, slightly polluted, or moderately polluted (its concentration was ranged from 1.37 to 5.99 mg/kg). Notably, U pollution in the tributaries near the Wusun Mountain was evidently higher than those in the main streams of the Ili River and the Tekes River. Principal component analysis (PCA), cluster analysis (CA), and correlation analysis revealed that U was significantly positively correlated with Pb, and both of them might have originated from the dense coal mines in the areas of the Wusun Mountain. Sediment U in the main streams of the rivers was unpolluted or slightly polluted, which might be strongly influenced by the U contamination in their upstream tributaries. The results from this work showed that the source control of the coal-derived U pollution near the Wusun Mountain was critical to protect the aquatic environment in the Ili River Basin.

[Hydrochemical and Isotopic Characteristics of the Lake Balkhash Catchment, Kazakhstan].

Lake Balkhash is one of the largest lakes in the world. It is located in arid Central Asia and receives major water from the Ili River, which is an international river flowing across China and Kazakhstan. Hydrochemical and isotopic measurements of waters can provide an improved understanding of hydrogeochemical processes and environmental characteristics, which is useful for water resource management in arid regions. In this study, δD, δ18 O, and major ions in water samples from the Lake Balkhash catchment were analyzed using an integration of mathematical statistics, Piper diagrams, Gibbs model, and principal component analysis (PCA). Water types and main mechanisms controlling the hydrochemistry presented a clear spatial heterogeneity. The chemical composition of lake waters was dominated by SO4-Na and Cl-Na type, whereas river waters were classified as a HCO3-Ca type. The chemical composition downstream of the Ili River evolved from HCO3-Ca to SO4-Na-Cl type. Gibbs model suggested that the main mechanisms controlling the lake water chemistry were evaporation-crystallization processes, and that major ions in the river water were affected by rock-weathering and evaporation processes. The main controlling factors of the water chemistry changed from the upstream to the downstream, and may have related to spatial differences whereby the upstream area experienced higher rainfall and snow melt, and the downstream area experienced relatively higher evaporation. PCA analysis showed that human activities also played an important role in the chemical composition of water sampled from the lake, middle and lower reaches of the Ili River, and other rivers. The isotopic compositions of the lake and river waters varied spatially. In the lake waters, positive isotopic ratios and negative deuterium-excess values indicated that evaporitic enrichment dominated the changes in the isotopic signature of the lake water. In river waters, isotope values located near the global meteoric water line (GMWL) and lower slopes of the regression lines (r=0.91, P<0.001 for Ili River, and r=0.63, P<0.001 for other rivers), were associated with a stronger influence of rainfall and weaker evaporation. Correlation analysis showed that there were significant relationships between isotope values and chemical parameters in the lake water, especially in the eastern area, thus suggesting that extensive evaporation led to simultaneous enrichment of isotopes and ions in the lake water.

Land-use impacts on profile distribution of labile and recalcitrant carbon in the Ili River Valley, northwest China.

There is a growing evidence that the decomposition of recalcitrant carbon (C) can be stimulated by environmental changes, such as fresh C supply and increased temperature. However, the effect of land-use on profile distribution of recalcitrant C content is still poorly understood. In this study, soil samples were collected to a depth of 100cm from pastures and four major croplands including maize field, wheat field, paddy and apple orchard in the Ili River Valley, northwest China, to investigate the effects of land-use on profile distribution of labile organic C (LOC), semi-labile organic C (SLOC), recalcitrant organic C (ROC) and their relative proportions in total organic C (TOC), and evaluate whether such effects can be different between topsoil (0-20cm) and subsoil (20-100cm). The results showed that soil ROC accounting for 49.4-66.3% of TOC for different land-uses, implying that ROC is the major form of soil organic C (SOC). Soil TOC contents of croplands were 20.4-85.2% lower than those of pastures along the soil profile, indicating that SOC pool may be decreased by agricultural land-uses. The lower contents of LOC, SLOC and ROC in croplands than in pastures suggested that the decreases in TOC content in croplands are not only due to the decreases in labile C pool but also the reductions in recalcitrant C pool. The differences in SOC fractions among land-uses were similar in topsoil and subsoil, while the proportions of each SOC fraction in TOC did not differ significantly between the two soil layers in most cases, indicating that each SOC fraction in subsoil can be also influenced by land-use types. Therefore, it is suggested that the ROC in subsoil, which plays a crucial role in C sequestration, should be taken into account when estimating the effect of land-use on SOC kinetic.