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Abstract
The sediment load of the Loess Plateau has shown a sharp decreasing trend in the past decades. This paper gives a comprehensive review of the driving factors of the sediment decrease with respect to human activities, including soil and water conservation, dam construction, and vegetation restoration. Also presented is an overview of the main achievements of soil and water conservation and the main soil erosion control programmes implemented in the Loess Plateau. The paper concludes with suggestions for further policy modifications that could move management towards ecological sustainability and will be greatly beneficial to the regional water resources management and restoration of an eco-environmental system in the Loess Plateau.
Acknowledgements
Financial support is acknowledged from the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (Nos.YX2011-35 and TD2011-2), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 41001362 and 30972419), and the Special Fund of Forestry Industrial Research for Public Welfare of China (201104005-01-C and A). The authors would also like to thank Prof. Asit K. Biswas and Dr. Cecilia Tortajada of the Third Word Centre for Water Management for their insightful comments and editing.