Understanding the climate-land-sediment relationships in the context of coupled nature-human system of high mountain watersheds
Xie, Mingyue
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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/127393
Description
Title
Understanding the climate-land-sediment relationships in the context of coupled nature-human system of high mountain watersheds
Author(s)
Xie, Mingyue
Issue Date
2024-12-05
Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)
Cai, Ximing
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Cai, Ximing
Committee Member(s)
Sivapalan, Murugesu
Markus, Momcilo
Li, Yu
Department of Study
Civil & Environmental Eng
Discipline
Civil Engineering
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
hydrology
climate adaptation
land use change
coupled nature-human system
Abstract
In high mountain watersheds, the intricate interdependencies between climate change, land use evolution, and sediment dynamics have profound implications for both ecosystems and human societies. Global warming has markedly altered climatic regimes, exacerbating the water cycle and intensifying hydrological responses. Concurrently, anthropogenic activities have driven significant land use changes, further entangling the relationship between climate and land, with far-reaching, synergistic impacts on sediment yield and watershed management. Understanding these complex interactions within the framework of coupled nature-human systems (CNHS) is imperative for developing sustainable management strategies, especially in fragile, high-altitude environments.
This dissertation tackles these challenges through a multi-faceted methodology framework exemplified by a case study in the Upper Lancang River Basin (LRB) situated in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau. The projection of climate-vegetation cover-land use interrelations, grounded in statistical methods and integrated with hydrological simulations, examines the synergistic impacts of climate change and land use modifications on hydrological processes, providing a quantitative analysis of how these factors interact to shape watershed dynamics. To further delve into the intricacies of the CNHS, the dissertation introduces a novel modeling framework, in which a coupled Cellular Automata-Agent-Based Model (CA-ABM) is bi-directionally integrated with a hydrologic-agronomic model (SWAT+), enabling explicit modeling of land use decision making, the feedback between natural and human systems, and the effects on environmental outcomes. Ultimately, this framework is extended for future land use projection, emphasizing the feedback mechanisms and coevolutionary dynamics between human behaviors and environmental emergent properties, and exploring adaptive land use decision behaviors and policies that can mitigate adverse environmental consequences while promoting sustainable development.
With an emphasis on the dynamic interactions between natural processes and anthropogenic activities, this dissertation addresses synergistic and coevolutionary features of climate-land-sediment dynamics in high mountain watersheds in the context of CNHS. By illuminating the feedback mechanisms and emergent properties, this work offers critical insights for policymakers and environmental managers aiming to fortify the resilience and sustainability of river basin systems amid ongoing climatic and land use transformations.
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