Grasslands on the Third Pole of the World: Structure, Function, Process, and Resilience of Social-Ecological Systems 3031394844, 9783031394843

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Shikui Dong · Yong Zhang Hao Shen · Shuai Li · Yudan Xu

Grasslands on the Third Pole of the World Structure, Function, Process, and Resilience of Social-Ecological Systems

Grasslands on the Third Pole of the World

Shikui Dong • Yong Zhang • Hao Shen • Shuai Li • Yudan Xu

Grasslands on the Third Pole of the World Structure, Function, Process, and Resilience of Social-Ecological Systems

Shikui Dong School of Grassland Science Beijing Forestry University Beijing, China

Yong Zhang College of Wetlands Southwest Forestry University Kunming, China

Hao Shen School of Grassland Science Beijing Forestry University Beijing, China

Shuai Li College of Resource and Environment Shanxi Agricultural University Taigu, Shanxi, China

Yudan Xu College of Grassland Science Shanxi Agricultural University Taigu, Shanxi, China

ISBN 978-3-031-39484-3 ISBN 978-3-031-39485-0 https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-39485-0

(eBook)

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors, and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland Paper in this product is recyclable.

Salutation

We are greatly honored to deliver this book as a gift to our most respected and beloved mentor, Professor Jizhou Ren, to celebrate his centenary and to appreciate his inestimable contributions to education, research, outreach in grassland science and beyond. Prof. Ren was born on November 7, 1924, in Shandong Province, China. He obtained his bachelor’s in Animal Husbandry from Chinese National Central University in 1948. He studied in forage science as a visiting scholar supervised by Prof. Dong Wang at the Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary, Chinese National Central University, from 1948 to 1950. He worked as a lecturer, associate professor, and full professor in the Department of Grassland Science, Gansu Agricultural University from 1948 to 1981, during which he served as a vice dean of the Department of Animal Husbandry (founded in 1946), first dean of the Department of Grassland Science (founded in 1972), and vice president of Gansu Agricultural University. He was founder and the first Director of Gansu Grassland Ecological Research Institute. He is honorary dean of Pratacultural College, Gansu Agricultural University (founded in 1994), honorary dean of the College of Pastoral Agriculture Science and Technology, Lanzhou University (founded in 2004), honorary dean of v

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the College of AGRO-Grassland Science, Nanjing Agricultural University (founded in 2012), and honorary dean of the School of Grassland Science, Beijing Forestry University (founded in 2018). He served as Vice President of the Chinese Grassland Society (1979–1994) and Honorary President of 2008 joint IGC-IRC (International Grassland Congress-International Rangeland Congress). He was elected as an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering in 1995. Prof. Ren is a creator of the grassland climate-land-vegetation comprehensive sequential classification system (CSCS). He introduced the moisture-heat index into the grassland classification system in the CSCS, which became one of the six grassland classification systems in the world. He proposed the theory on the improvement system of alpine grasslands on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and suggested the animal production unit (APU) as a new index in evaluating the productivity of grassland, which has been adopted as a national standard in China and used worldwide. The theory corrected the defects of the index based on livestock numbers and made it possible to compare various categories of animal products. He raised the theory of seasonal animal husbandry, which significantly raided the yield of grassland animal production and was adopted extensively in the nomadic area. He developed the theory of the agro-grassland system, including four production levels (pre-plant production level, plant production level, animal plant production level, post-biotic production level) and three interfaces (plant-environment interface, grassland-herbivores interface, grassland animals-marketing interface), which have been widely accepted by academic circles in China, and completed the transition from traditional grassland science to precultural science. He proposed the theories of system coupling and system contradiction of the agro-grassland system, which deepened the theories and methodologies of grassland science and was successfully applied in the Hexi Corridor of Northwestern China, the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau in southern China, and the Loess Plateau of northern China. He has opened door for education and research in Chinese Agro-Ethics at the age of 90. Due to his great achievements in research and education, Messay University in New Zealand, Lanzhou University, Gansu Agricultural University, Beijing Agricultural University, and Qingdao Agricultural University in China established the Ren Jizhou Scholarship to award outstanding students in Grassland Science majors. He donated his lifelong earnings as scholarships to several universities including Lanzhou University, Gansu Agricultural University, Nanjing Agricultural University, and Beijing Forestry University for students and staff majored in grassland science to advance their professions and high schools for poor students to finish their education. As an editor-in-chief, Prof. Ren initiated three journals, Abroad Animal and Grassland Sciences (renamed Grassland and Turf), Pratacultural Science, and Acta Pratacultural Sinica. He initiated four courses for college students who majored in Grassland Science, i.e., Grassland Management, Grassland Survey and Planning, Grassland Eco-chemistry, and Agro-grassland Ecosystem, and authored the textbooks for these subjects. He edited 4 conference books and 41 volume series. He authored over 20 books and more than 100 peer-reviewed papers in national and international journals. He won the third prize of the National Award for Scientific and Technology Progress, one first-class prize and five second-class prizes of the

Salutation

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provincial award for Scientific and Technology Progress, and the second-class prize of Outstanding Science and Technology Book. He was granted as the National Outstanding Expert with Significant Contribution in 1991. He won the Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation Award for Science and Technology Progress in 1999. He was named the National Outstanding Worker of Agricultural Science and Technology in 2000; won the National Teaching Achievement Award in 2009; was awarded the first “Outstanding Meritorious Award” by the China Grass Society in 2010, Youcheng Poverty Alleviation Research Achievement Price” by the State Council Poverty Alleviation Office in 2011, China Resource Science Achievement Price by China Society of Natural Resources in 2013, Lifetime Achievement Price in Grassland Science by Chinese Grassland Society, “The Most Beautiful Striver” for the 70th Anniversary of People’s Republic of China by Propaganda Department of the CPC Central Committee in 2019, and Gansu Provincial Merit in Science and Technology by Gansu Provincial Government in 2021.

Foreword

The Third Pole of the World (TPW) is narrowly referred to as Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) or Tibetan Plateau (TP), which is the highest plateau in the world, with a total area of 2.5 million km2 and an average altitude of 4000 ~ 5000 m. It is the birthplace of many great rivers in Asia and is known as the “Water Tower of Asia”. The TPW has a series of unique natural features due to its high altitude, large area, young history and unique location. Grasslands cover over 60% of the TPW’s land territory, with a usable grassland area of nearly 110 million ha, ranking first among all grasslands in various eco-regions across China. The TPW’s grasslands serve as one of the main pastoral production bases in China, on which Tibetan pastoralists and agro-pastoralists have depended for their livelihood for thousands of years. The TPW’s grasslands are critically important in terms of the many ecosystem services they provide for millions of people upstream and billions of people downstream. They support free-ranging native and domestic animals, provide essential habitats for many endangered flora and fauna and are critical sources of wood, medicinal plants, wild food, fiber and freshwater for millions of humans living in both upstream and downstream regions. Human disturbance and climate change have interlinked impacts on the sustainability of TPW grasslands. In recent decades, the increased coupling between resource overexploitation and climate change has augmented the TPW’s grassland degradation, leading to accelerated biodiversity loss, soil erosion, greenhouse gas emission, productivity decline, etc., and thereafter lowered ecosystem service and thus declined human well-being. All of these negative consequences of grassland degradation on the TPW can be delivered from local to regional and even global levels through upstream and downstream relationships. More concentrated and coordinated efforts and actions are required to promote the sustainable development of the critical and unique assets of the TPW’s grassland with global importance. It is imperative to disseminate the improved understandings of the TPW’s grasslands as broadly as possible, making both the policies and the practices for sustainable grassland management as widespread as possible. Therefore, the publication of “Grasslands on the Third Pole of the World: Structure, Function, Process, and Resilience of Social-ecological Systems” is far-sighted and inspirational. The ix

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information in this book can provide the foundations for innovative policy-making and technical improvement for sustaining the TPW’s grasslands in the future. The best management practices, such as climate change mitigation and adaptation, closeto-nature restoration and rotational grazing regimes with moderate grazing intensity, should be employed to strengthen the resilience of the TPW grasslands, to foster grassland social-ecological systems, to enhance ecosystem services and thus to promote the sustainability of the TPW grasslands. As an experienced researcher and educator in the field of grassland sciences, particularly on the TPW over 70 years, I am delighted to see this book be published at the right time. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first book that fully introduces the TPW’s grasslands in depth from multiple dimensions. I congratulate the authors, the leading scholars in grassland and TPW studies, for their presenting new research findings on TPW grasslands from ecological, social and economic perspectives and addressing new issues of resilience, adaptation and stability of unique but precious grassland ecosystems in the world. This book provides a compendium of information and insights that will prove valuable for designing research/monitoring projects and planning policy programs in grassland areas of the TPW or even similar regions across the world. I highly recommend this book to scientists, planners, government officials and public organizations concerned with the protection and sustainable development of grasslands worldwide. Academician, Chinese Academy of Engineering, Professor, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China

Jizhou Ren

Preface

Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) is a globally unique eco-geographical region called “the Third Pole of the World (TPW)” or “Roof on the Earth” because of its elevation and alpine environments. It is also the source of many large rivers in Asia. Of 2.5 million km2 of total QTP’s territorial land, grasslands cover more than 60% of the whole region. The TPW/QTP’s grassland ecosystems are important parts of the Palearctic region, which features alpine vegetation cover and low oxygen. The TPW/QTP’s grasslands not only provide important ecosystem functions such as biodiversity conservation, carbon storage, water resource regulation, climate control, and natural disaster mitigation at a global scale but also provide critical ecosystem services such as pastoral production, cultural inheritance, tourism, and recreation at local and regional scales. It is estimated that over 2.0 billion people in East Asia, Southeast Asia, and South Asia live directly or indirectly on the ecosystem services provided by the TPW/QTP’s Grasslands through upstream-downstream connections and delivery. In recent decades, the TPW/QTP’s grasslands have been increasingly undergoing degradation due to climate change and human disturbance. Grassland degradation on the TPW/QTP has decreased ecosystem function and services as a water reservoir, carbon pool, climate regulator, pastoral production base, and Tibetan social-culture carrier from different perspectives, resulting in not only environmental disasters such as biodiversity loss, productivity decrease, soil erosion, and land desertification in the local region but also environmental problems such as water scarcity, sediment build-up, and dust storms in downstream regions. The degradation of the TPW/QTP’s grasslands is seriously limiting the sustainable development of ecological, social, and economic systems and increasingly exerting negative impacts on ecological security, environmental quality, and social sustainability at both local and regional scales. These critical situations have challenged both professionals and practitioners in China and worldwide to find the right ways to enlighten the future of the TPW/QTP’s grasslands for sustaining the social-ecological environments of headwater areas and maintaining the upstream-downstream relationships along the major rivers in Asia. xi

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Within this context, the authors wrote the book Grasslands on the Third Pole of the World: Structure, Function, Process, and Resilience of Social-Ecological Systems to synthesize their research findings, which cover the topics of land degradation and restoration, biodiversity conservation and ecosystem functions, climate change and adaptations, and sustainable grazing management of the TPW/QTP’s grasslands. In addition, they collected and commented on other professionals’ new insights and viewpoints for the sustainability of the TPW/QTP’s grasslands. In this monograph, the authors aimed to attract the attention of international audiences to realize the importance of the TPW/QTP’s grasslands and call for the actions of global communities to effectively protect and sustainably use the TPW/QTP’s grasslands by addressing the following critical questions: (1) What are the special features of the TPW/QTP’s grasslands? (2) How do climate change and human activities drive changes in the structures and functions of the TPW/QTP’s grasslands? (3) How can actors cope with land degradation and climate change through innovative restoration and protective actions for TPW/QTP’s grasslands? (4) How can actors promote the sustainable development of the social-ecological systems of TPW/QTP’s grasslands through best adaptive management practices? I am very excited to see the publication of this timely, precious monograph. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first introduction of unique social-ecological systems of the highest grasslands in the world, the TPW/QTP’s grasslands, with a detailed description of the structures, functions, and processes of the TPW/QTP’s grasslands from multiple dimensions across geographical, ecological, social, cultural, and economic perspectives. Most importantly, this book contains updated information on the latest findings, hot topics, new insights, and breaking viewpoints in science and practices of TPW/QTP’s grasslands. I am privileged to write the foreword and recommend this book to researchers, educators, planners, policymakers, and anyone who are interested in the sustainability of TPW/QTP’s grasslands and worldwide grasslands as well. Academician of Chinese Academy of Science, International Honorary Member of American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Distinguished Professor of Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China

F. U. Bojie

Acknowledgments

This book is produced under the generous support and help of many friends, colleagues, and organizations. We express our deep thanks to esteemed Prof. Jizhou Ren, Academician, Chinese Academy of Engineering, and distinguished Prof. Bojie Fu, Academician, Chinese Academy of Science, for writing the forewords for this book. We also offer our sincere gratitude to Dr. Richard Brdgett, Professor of Ecology at Manchester University, Dr. Randall Boone, Professor of Natural Resource Ecology at Colorado State University, and Dr. Xinquan Zhao, Professor and former Director of Chengdu Institute of Biology at Chinese Academy of Sciences to present the insightful commentaries for this book. We record our great appreciation to Prof. Shangying Liu from the China Central Academy of Fine Arts, Prof. Xinshi Lu and Dr. Zhouyuan Li from Beijing Forestry University, and Mr. Shizhong Dong from the Art Academy of Linxia Prefecture, Gansu Province, China, for offering their paintings in this book. We acknowledge the substantial efforts of Mr. Henry Rodgers, Mr. Aaron Schiller, and Ms. Marion Schneider, the editors from Springer, to publish the manuscript. We are grateful to many contributors whose names are not presented in the front cover, Prof. Shiliang Liu, Dr. Jianbin Shi, Dr. Xiaowen Li from Beijing Normal University, Prof. Zhanhuan Shang from Lanzhou University, Prof. Huakun Zhou from Chinese Academy of Sciences, especially Prof. Shikui Dong’s former students including Dr. Lu Wen, Dr. Yuanyuan Li, Dr. Xuexia Wang, Dr. Jinpeng Li, Dr. Xukun Su, Dr. Yv Li, Dr. Pu Wang, Dr. Moses Fayian, Dr. Zhenzhen Zhao, Dr. Xiaoxia Gao, Dr. Jiannan Xiao, Dr. Wenjing Yang, Mr. Lei Zhu, Ms. Xiaoyan Li, Ms. Yu Wu, Ms. Lin Tang, Mr. Chen Zhao, Ms. Haidi Zhao, Ms. Feiying Lu, Mr. Xiaoyu Wu, Mr. Wei Sha, Ms. Yangliu Zhi, Ms. Emmanuella A. KWAKU, Ms. Jing Zhang, Mr. Mingyue Yang, Ms. Xinyue Zhao, Mr. Zhiyuan Mu, and Ms. Jing Bai. We thank all our collaborators, including farmers/herders, professionals, and practitioners, who have kindly provided assistance in our project research and book writing. We would also like to thank funding organizations such as the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China for supporting Second Tibetan Plateau Scientific Expedition and Research Program (2019QZKK0307), National Key R&D Program of China (2021YFE0112400), National Natural Science Foundation of China xiii

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Acknowledgments

(U20A2007–01, 32201389, 31901394), Major Science and Technology Projects from National Forestry and Grassland Administration of China (LCZD202007), Hot-spots Tracking Project from Beijing Forestry University (2021BLRD), Central University Basic Scientific Research Business Expenses Special Funds from Beijing Forestry University (BLX202166), and First Class Course Construction Projects of Shanxi Agricultural University (2022-JXZL-15). We are privileged to deliver our salutation to the most respected and beloved mentor, Prof. Jizhou Ren, who opened the door for us to study the grasslands on the Third Pole of the World (TPW) or Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP). We are most grateful to our family members for their support, love, and patience when we were conducting our field studies and writing the book.

Contents

1

Introduction to the Third Pole . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1 An Overview of the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2 Natural and Social Systems of the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.1 The Formation and Uplift of the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.2 Physical Geography Profile of the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.3 The Air Temperature in the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.4 Precipitation in the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.5 Soil Texture and SOC in the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.6 The Vegetation in the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.7 The Biodiversity in the Third Pole . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.8 Social Systems in the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3 Issues on the Sustainability of the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.1 Ecological Degradation of the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3.2 Ecological Restoration Efforts in the TPW . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1 1 7 7 8 9 12 12 13 20 20 23 23 25 28

2

Overview of the Third Pole’s Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1 Grassland Types and Distribution on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1.1 Grassland Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1.2 Grassland Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1.3 Grassland Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2 Plant Biomass Accumulation and Decomposition in the TPW’s Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.1 Accumulation of Plant Biomass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.2 Defoliation and Decomposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.3 Plant Phenology and Growth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3 Climate Resources of the TPW’s Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.1 Alpine Meadow Climate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.2 Alpine Steppe Climate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.3 High-Cold Semi-Desert and Desert Climate . . . . . . . . .

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2.4

Grassland Water Resources of the TPW’s Grasslands . . . . . . . . 2.4.1 Rivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.2 Lakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.3 Marshes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5 Soil Resources of the TPW’s Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.1 Characteristics of the TPW’s Grassland Soil . . . . . . . . . 2.5.2 Types of the TPW’s Grassland Soils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6 Biological Resources of the TPW’s Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6.1 Plant Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6.2 Animal Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6.3 Microbe Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7 Cultural Resources of the TPW’s Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7.1 Ethnic Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7.2 Production Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7.3 Living Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7.4 Spiritual Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8 Values of the TPW’s Grassland Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8.1 Livestock Production Value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8.2 Ecological Service Value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

48 48 51 52 53 53 54 57 57 59 62 62 63 64 66 67 70 70 71 71

Third Pole’s Grasslands in a Global Context . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1 Overview of Global Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.1 Definition of Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.2 Classification and Types of Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.3 Origin and Distribution of Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.4 Grassland Size and Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.5 Social Features of Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.6 Values and Importance of Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.7 Sustainability of Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2 Global Importance of TPW’s Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.1 Key Biome of Alpine Grasslands in the World . . . . . . . 3.2.2 Key Ecoregions of Alpine Grasslands in the World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.3 Typical Highland Pastoralism in the World . . . . . . . . . 3.3 Regional Importance of TPW/QTP’s Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.1 Position of TPW/QTP’s Grasslands on the Eurasian Continent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.2 Role of TPW’s Grasslands in Regional Socioeconomic Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

73 73 73 74 78 79 81 82 85 86 86 87 89 91 91 93 97

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Grassland Plant–Soil Interfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1 Plant–Soil Interface in Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.1 Carbon and Nitrogen Cycles at the Plant–Soil Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.2 Soil Microbial Role in the Plant–Soil Interface . . . . . . . 4.1.3 Changes in the Soil Nutrient Pool with Grassland Degradation and Restoration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2 Case Studies in Plant–Soil Interfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.1 Case I: Soil C and N Pools Reflecting the Plant–Soil Interface in the Processes of Grassland Degradation and Restoration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.2 Case II: Soil Seed Banks Reflecting the Plant–Soil Interface of Potential Grassland Degradation and Restoration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.1 Implication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.2 Case III: Vegetation Characteristics Reflecting the Plant–Soil Interfaces Resulting from Grassland Degradation and Restoration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.3 Case IV: Target Plants Reflecting Plant–Soil Interfaces of the Success of Grassland Restoration . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.4 Case V: Responses of the Plant–Soil Interface to Grazing Management Strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Grassland Biodiversity and Conservation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1 General Information About Grassland Biodiversity on the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2 Approaches to Investigating Grassland Diversity on the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.1 Minimum Plot Size for Estimating Grassland Plant Biodiversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.2 Applicable Sampling Methods for Grassland Plant Diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.3 Feasible Diversity Indices for Estimating Alpine Grassland Plant Diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.4 Novel Approaches to Investigating Large Mammals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2.5 Methods for Estimating Microbial Composition and Diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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114 120 125 131 132 135 135 138 138 138 141 142 143

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5.3

Impacts of Environmental Changes on TPW Grassland Plant Diversity and Adaptive Conservation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.1 Impacts of Environmental Factors on Grassland Plant Diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.2 Impacts of Climate Change and Nitrogen Deposition on Grassland Plant Diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.3 Identifying Priority Areas for the Conservation of Endangered Plant Species . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4 Impacts of Environmental Changes on TPW’s Grassland Large Mammals and Adaptive Conservation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.1 Tibetan Antelope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.2 Wild Yak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.3 Tibetan Wild Donkey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.4 Snow Leopard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5 Impacts of Environmental Changes on TPW Grassland Microbe Diversity and Practical Mitigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.1 Impacts of Nitrogen Deposition and Warming on Microbial Diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.2 Impact of Livestock Grazing on Soil Microbial Diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.3 Mitigation of Microbe Diversity Degradation through Revegetation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.6 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Grassland Ecosystem Function and Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1 Ecosystem Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1.1 Defining Ecosystem Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1.2 Ecosystem Functions of Grasslands on the TPW/QTP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2 Ecosystem Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.1 Definition and Classification of Ecosystem Services . . . 6.2.2 Trade-Offs of Ecosystem Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.3 Evaluation of Ecosystem Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3 Value Chain Analysis of the Outputs of the Grasslands of the TPW/QTP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3.1 Values of Grasslands in All of China and the Chinese TPW/QTP Region . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3.2 Value Chain Analysis of the Grasslands of the TPW/QTP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.4 Ecosystem Functions and Services of Degraded Grasslands . . . . 6.4.1 Case I: Ecosystem Functions of Degraded Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.4.2 Case II: Ecosystem Services of Degraded Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

146 146 151 153 155 155 159 159 163 163 163 164 167 169 171 173 173 173 173 174 174 175 176 176 176 179 181 181 184

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6.5

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Ecosystem Functions and Services of Restored Grasslands . . . . . 6.5.1 Case I: Ecosystem Functions of Restored Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5.2 Case II: Ecosystem Services of Restored Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

8

Grazing Management and Pastoral Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.1 Challenges of Grazing Management on the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2 Case Studies of Rotational Grazing on the TPW . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2.1 Case I: Rotational Grazing in an Alpine Meadow in Nagqu, Tibet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2.2 Case II: Rotational Grazing in an Alpine Meadow-Steppe in Tiebujia, Qinghai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3 Grazing Exclusion and Its Management on the TPW . . . . . . . . . 7.3.1 Responses of the Plant Community to Grazing Exclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3.2 Responses of Inhabitants to Grazing Exclusion . . . . . . . 7.4 Indigenous Knowledge and Inhabitants’ Participation in Grassland Management and Pastoral Production . . . . . . . . . . 7.5 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Grassland Social-Ecological Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.1 Definition of Grassland Social-Ecological System . . . . . . . . . . . 8.2 Status of Grassland SES in the Third Pole . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3 Cases of the TPW’s Grassland SES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3.1 Case I: Strengthening Local Mitigation and Adaptation to Changes in Grassland SES . . . . . . . . 8.3.2 Case II: Reducing Ecological, Productive, and Livelihood Trade-Offs of Grassland SES Through Best Management Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3.3 Case III: Enhancing the Resilience of Grassland SES Through Land Tenure Transformation . . . . . . . . . 8.3.4 Social, Economic, and Ecological Consequences of Grassland Management Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3.5 Key Factors Impacting Pastoralists’ Choice of Grassland Management Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3.6 Case IV: Balancing Ecological Protection and Pastoral Development for Sustainable Grassland SES Through Enhanced Household Decision-Making . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.4 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

188 190 192 196 199 199 203 203 214 218 218 222 225 228 228 231 231 234 236 237

245 250 253 254

256 263 266

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10

Contents

Grassland Degradation and Restoration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.1 Causes of Grassland Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.1.1 General Status of Grassland Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . 9.1.2 Internal Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.1.3 External Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.1.4 Cause of Grassland Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.2 Mechanisms of Grassland Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.2.1 The Hydrothermal Hole Hypothesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.2.2 Excessive Plant Compensatory Growth Hypothesis . . . . 9.3 Diagnosis of Grassland Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.3.1 Diagnosis of Grassland Degradation Based on Plant Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.3.2 Diagnosis of Grassland Degradation Based on the Soil Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.3.3 Diagnosis of Grassland Degradation on the Integrated Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4 Impacts of Grassland Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4.1 Case I: Impacts of Grassland Degradation on Vegetation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4.2 Case II: Impacts of Grassland Degradation on Soil Quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4.3 Case III: Impacts of Earthquake on Vegetation . . . . . . . 9.5 Ecological Restoration of Degraded Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.5.1 Design and Self-design Theories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.5.2 Restoration Techniques of “Bare Land” . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.5.3 Ecological Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.6 Restoration Performance of Degraded Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . 9.6.1 Case I: Restoration Performance of Vegetation . . . . . . . 9.6.2 Case II: Restoration Performance of Plant Biomass Allocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.6.3 Case III: Restoration Performance of Soil Quality . . . . . 9.6.4 Case IV: Restoration Performance of Carbon Stocks . . . 9.6.5 Case V: Restoration Performance of Soil Microbes . . . . 9.6.6 Case VI: Predicting Restoration Succession . . . . . . . . . 9.6.7 Case VII: Assessing Ecosystem Resilience . . . . . . . . . . 9.7 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Climate Change and Adaptation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.1 Climate Change and Grassland Adaptation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.1.1 Climate Warming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.1.2 Nitrogen Deposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.1.3 Adaptation of Grassland Ecosystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.2 Case Studies in Climate Change and Adaptation of Grassland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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10.2.1

Case I: Physiological Adaptation of Individual Plants to Warming and N Deposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.2.2 Case II: Ecophysiological Adaptation of Functional Groups to N Deposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.2.3 Case III: Responses of Multifaceted Plant Diversity to N Deposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.2.4 Case IV: Soil Nutrients and Stoichiometry Response to N Deposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.2.5 Case V: Responses of Soil Carbon Stability to Warming and Nitrogen Deposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.2.6 Case VI: CH4, CO2, and N2O Emissions Under Warming and N Deposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.3 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

313 319 324 329 333 337 343 344

Future of the Third Pole’s Grasslands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347

Book Commentaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355 Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357

About the Authors

Shikui Dong is dean and full professor at the School of Grasslands, Beijing Forestry University, China, and an adjunct professor at Cornell University, USA. His research focuses on Alpine Grassland Management and Sustainable Development, Alpine Ecosystem Restoration and Protection, and Coupled Human-Natural Systems in Environmental Protection. He participated and coordinated over 20 projects from National Science Foundation of China (NSFC), Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) of China, Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) of China (MAC), National Forestry and Grassland Administration (NFGA), and international funding resources such as UNEP to examine the problems and solutions in sustainable grassland development in rural Western China and fragile areas of Hindu Hush Himalayan regions since the beginning of twenty-first century. He serves on the international editorial board of peer-reviewed journals such as Restoration Ecology and Scientific Report. He has published over 350 publications, with 16 books (including 3 books published by Springer). His research has been published in peerreviewed journals such as Agriculture Ecosystem and Environment, Soil Biology and Biochemistry, Bioscience, Ecology and Society, Ecohealth, Ecological Engineering, Journal of Environmental Management, PLOS One, Plant and Soil, and The Rangeland Journal. He serves as regional chair for Northeast Asia, Commission of Ecosystem Management, IUCN, and deputy directorgeneral for China Grassland Society. His e-mail: [email protected] xxiii

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About the Authors

Shuai Li obtained his Ph.D. from Beijing Normal University in 2020. He currently serves as an associate professor at the College of Resource and Environment, Shanxi Agricultural University. His specialism is the impacts of climate change on mechanisms of species coexistence in fragile ecosystems in China, especially on Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP). He authored (co-authored) around 20 peer-reviewed papers and attended 4 international symposiums. His e-mail: [email protected]

Hao Shen obtained his Ph.D. from Beijing Normal University in 2021. He is currently a lecturer at the School of Grassland, Beijing Forestry University. His research interests focus on eco-physiology and ecology of alpine grassland plants, particularly their adaptation strategies to climate change and livestock grazing. He has authored (co-authored) over 30 peer-reviewed papers on grassland science. His e-mail: [email protected]

Yudan Xu obtained his Ph.D. from Beijing Normal University in 2021. He currently serves as an associate professor at the College of Grassland Science, Shanxi Agricultural University. His specialty is the restoration and management of degraded grassland ecosystem, especially the restoration theories and practices of alpine grasslands on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP). He has conducted 1 project from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), authored (co-authored) over 20 peer-reviewed papers, and attended 5 international symposiums. His e-mail: [email protected]

About the Authors

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Yong Zhang obtained his Ph.D. from Beijing Normal University in 2017. He serves currently as an associate professor at the National Plateau Wetlands Research Center, Southwest Forestry University. His research interests focus on ecological issues in alpine grasslands, e.g., land degradation diagnosis, plant diversity protection, and grassland sustainable management, in the Third Pole of the World (TPW) or Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP). He has published over 40 peer-reviewed papers and 2 books in recent years on the responses of the plant–soil system to environmental changes in the TPW. His research team proposed a compensatory growth-driven theory to explain the degradation of alpine meadows under grazing conditions in the TPW in 2020. Moreover, his team developed a new way to identify the degradation thresholds of alpine meadows based on geo-coding and abruption analysis in 2021. His e-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]

Chapter 1

Introduction to the Third Pole

1.1

An Overview of the TPW

The Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) is the highest plateau in the world and is known as the “Roof of the World.” The QTP is also called the Third Pole of the World (TPW) because it has the largest stock of ice outside the North Pole and the South Pole (Qiu 2015). The TPW includes all of Tibet Autonomous Region and Qinghai Province, western Sichuan Province, northwestern Yunnan Province, southern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, and part of Gansu Province in China. It also includes parts of Bhutan, Nepal, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan broadly. The total area of the TPW is over 2.5 million km2, and the average altitude of the WTP is 4000 ~ 5000 m (Fig. 1.1). The elevation gradually decreases from northwest to southeast across the TPW. Along this direction, there are many gigantic mountain ranges (e.g., Himalayas Mountains, Karakoram Mountains, Gangdisi Mountains, Nyainqntanglha Mountains, Dangla Mountains, Kunlun Mountains, Qilian Mountains, and Hengduan Mountains) that roll thousands of miles (Figs. 1.2 and 1.3). Ten large rivers in Asia including Yellow, Yangtse, Lancang-Mekong, Nu-Salween, DulongIrrawaddy, Brahmaputra, Ganges, Indus, Amu Darya, and Tarim originate from the TPW (Fig. 1.2). In the north–south direction, ridges of the Hengduan Mountains wrinkle up the land and form the famous “Three Parallel Rivers (Yangtze River, Lancang-Mekong River, Nu-Salween River)” in Yunnan Province, southeastern TPW (Fig. 1.2). Because of high elevation, abundant water, and rich diversity, the TPW is also termed as “Roof of the World,” “Ecological Shelter of Central and Southern China,” “Climate Engine/Regulator in China,” “Water Tower in Asia,” and “Alpine Biodiversity Pool” in different perspectives. Due to long-standing civilizations maintained by indigenous ethnic groups (mainly Tibetans) with cultural, linguistic, and religious

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 S. Dong et al., Grasslands on the Third Pole of the World, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-39485-0_1

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Introduction to the Third Pole

Fig. 1.1 The Third Pole and the world. The GEBCO_2022 Grid, which is a global terrain model for ocean and land with a spatial resolution of 15 arc seconds, was used in this global map to show the location and elevation of the Third Pole of the World (TPW). The TPW is also termed as QinghaiTibetan Plateau (QTP)

diversity, the TPW is regarded as “Humanities Holy Land in the world.” As a result of uniqueness and fascination, the TPW has become a global hot spot for natural exploration and discovery, but also a worldwide focal point for creation of novel literature and arts (Figs. 1.4 and 1.5). On top of these mountain ranges are numerous snow-capped peaks, including Mount Qomolangma, Kawagarbo Peak, Mount Gongga, and Qogir Peak. According to a cursory statistic, every single eight-thousander and the vast majority of seventhousanders on Earth, as well as the countless six-thousander and five-thousander peaks, all reside on the QTP. In addition, the colossal force that created the QTP was transmitted to the surroundings, causing the already elevated regions to rise even higher. Eventually, across the vast land of China, a prominent “three-step ladder” terrain appeared. Alpine highland plateau (i.e., the TPW) (>3000 m a.s.l.) distributes in the first ladder. Three plateaus (i.e., Inner Mongolian Plateau, Loess Plateau, and Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau) and lots of middle mountains (1000–3000 m a.s.l.) are located in the second ladder. In the third ladder, there are vast expanse of fertile lands (i.e., the Northeast China Plain, North China Plain, and Middle-Lower Yangtze River Plain) and numerous hills (