Sediment source analysis using the fingerprinting method in a small catchment of the Loess Plateau, China

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to use the composite fingerprinting method to reconstruct the environmental history after the Grain-for-Green Project and to provide effective sediment management and soil erosion-control strategies. Materials and methods This study used a composite fingerprinting method based on 45 geochemical properties and a mixing model to investigate sediment core changes in the sediment source in an agricultural catchment with little native vegetation. The samples consisted of 77 source samples (i.e., gully, grassland, forest, cropland, and fallow land) and five sediment cores. Genetic algorithm (GA) optimization has been recently used to find the best optimum source contribution to sediments. Results and discussion The results demonstrate that gully is the main sediment source in this catchment, constituting 34.7 %, followed by cropland (28.2 %), forest (21.5 %), grassland (12.7 %), and fallow land (2.9 %). However, the relative contribution of each source type was variable in all five sediment cores. The sediment that derived from grassland was relatively stable in the five cores. The relative contribution of forest was higher in the downstream portion of the check dam and lower in the upstream portion and gradually increased in the direction of the runoff pathway. As the forest matured, the sediment that derived from the forest gradually decreased. Changes in the hydro-ecological environment would lead to the leaf litter and understory being poorly developed and the soil being bare in the forest, making it more vulnerable to erosion. Conclusions Reforestation and fallow are the key ecological strategies for reducing soil erosion. However, at the beginning of the Grain-for-Green Project, the young forest contributed 21.5 % of the sediment, indicating that natural fallow may be a better-designed sediment management and soil erosion-control strategy.