Impact of land use on carbon dynamics in cold-temperate rivers: A case study of the Ussuri (Wusuli) River basin, Northeast China

IF 4.7 2区地球科学 Q2 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Anthropocene Pub Date : 2026-09-01 Epub Date: 2026-08-31 DOI:10.1016/j.ancene.2026.100575

Ruiqi Zhang, Xinchu Wang, Si-Liang Li, Jiaxu Han, Shiwei Li, Haoyang Wang, Yunshan Liang

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

In the Anthropocene, intensifying land-use change fundamentally alters riverine carbon composition and CO₂ dynamics by modifying landscape-scale exports of ions and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC). This effect is particularly critical in cold-temperate basins, yet empirical constraints remain sparse. We investigated the Ussuri (Wusuli) River basin in northeast China by analyzing major ions, DIC, DOC, POC, δ¹³C_DIC and pCO₂, and examined their linkages with catchment land-use composition. Land-use gradients were distinct: upstream sub-catchments were dominated by farmland (87%), middle reaches by urban areas (17%), and downstream reaches by forest (26%). Cropland-dominated sub-catchments exhibited higher mean DIC (96.6 ± 26.5 mg L⁻¹) and pCO₂ (3065.2 ± 2242.1 μatm), alongside more negative δ¹³C_DIC (–10.47‰). In contrast, forest- and wetland-influenced tributaries had lower DIC (65.2 mg L⁻¹) and more positive δ¹³C_DIC (–9.93‰), reflecting stronger soil-CO₂ inputs, in-stream processing, and CO₂ outgassing. Nutrient and major-ion distributions aligned broadly with agricultural and urban inputs, though land-use correlations were modest and should be viewed as spatial associations rather than causal evidence. Cropland proportion correlated positively with POC and C/N ratios, indicating enhanced export of soil organic matter. DOC concentrations were elevated in forest-dominated catchments compared to urban-cropland ones, suggesting land-use change modulates biogenic carbon mobilization and transport. Collectively, our findings demonstrate that anthropogenic land-use intensification acts as a primary driver reshaping both the concentration and isotopic composition of riverine carbon exports in this cold-temperate system. This work underscores land-use configuration as a first-order control on water quality and coupled inorganic–organic carbon transport, highlighting the urgent need for sustainable land management to mitigate human-induced perturbations to the carbon cycle.

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寒温带河流土地利用对碳动态的影响——以乌苏里江流域为例

在人类世，土地利用变化的加剧通过改变景观尺度上离子和溶解无机碳（DIC）的输出，从根本上改变了河流碳组成和二氧化碳动态。这种效应在寒温带盆地尤为重要，但经验限制仍然很少。通过对乌苏里江流域主要离子、DIC、DOC、POC、δ13CDIC和pCO2的分析，探讨了它们与流域土地利用组成的关系。土地利用梯度明显：上游子集水区以农田为主（87%），中游以城市为主（17%），下游以森林为主（26%）。以农田为主导的子集水区平均DIC（96.6 ± 26.5 mg L−1）和pCO2（3065.2 ± 2242.1 μatm）较高，δ13CDIC为负（-10.47‰）。相比之下，受森林和湿地影响的支流DIC较低（65.2 mg L−1），δ13CDIC较高（- 9.93‰），反映了更强的土壤-CO2输入、河内加工和CO2排放。养分和主要成分的分布与农业和城市投入大体一致，但土地利用相关性不大，应被视为空间关联而非因果证据。耕地比例与POC和C/N呈正相关，表明土壤有机质输出增强。与城市农田区相比，森林主导的集水区DOC浓度升高，表明土地利用变化调节了生物源碳的动员和运输。总的来说，我们的研究结果表明，在这个寒温带系统中，人为的土地利用集约化是重塑河流碳输出浓度和同位素组成的主要驱动因素。这项工作强调了土地利用配置是对水质和耦合无机-有机碳运输的一级控制，强调了可持续土地管理的迫切需要，以减轻人为对碳循环的干扰。

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来源期刊

Anthropocene Earth and Planetary Sciences-Earth and Planetary Sciences (miscellaneous)

CiteScore

6.30

自引率

0.00%

发文量

审稿时长

102 days

期刊介绍： Anthropocene is an interdisciplinary journal that publishes peer-reviewed works addressing the nature, scale, and extent of interactions that people have with Earth processes and systems. The scope of the journal includes the significance of human activities in altering Earth’s landscapes, oceans, the atmosphere, cryosphere, and ecosystems over a range of time and space scales - from global phenomena over geologic eras to single isolated events - including the linkages, couplings, and feedbacks among physical, chemical, and biological components of Earth systems. The journal also addresses how such alterations can have profound effects on, and implications for, human society. As the scale and pace of human interactions with Earth systems have intensified in recent decades, understanding human-induced alterations in the past and present is critical to our ability to anticipate, mitigate, and adapt to changes in the future. The journal aims to provide a venue to focus research findings, discussions, and debates toward advancing predictive understanding of human interactions with Earth systems - one of the grand challenges of our time.