Study On Peatland Change And Restoration Strategies In The Altai Mountain, NW China

This paper analyzed distribution and changes of peatland of Altai , through the application of 3S technology, based on using field survey and visual interpretation, choosing 1990 and 2010 years of Landsat TM remote sensing image as data source . At the same time, the paper analyzed driving factors of peatland changes and gave appropriate restoration measures according to situation of study area.(1) Classification results show that total area of peatland is 66,336.45 hectares in 1990, accounting for 2.42% of total area of Altai. Total area of wetland is 157,022.34 hectares in 1990. The total area of peatland in1990 accounts for 42% of wetland in the Altai. Data show that the main wetland of Altai in 1990 is peatland;(2) Classification results show that total area of peatland is 38,326.14 hectares in 2010, accounting for 1.42% of total area of Altai. Total area of wetland is 108,811.8 hectares in 2010. The total area of peatland in1990 accounts for 35.2% of wetland in the Altai. Data show that the main wetland of Altai in 2010 is still peatland;(3)According to the distribution map of peatland, peatlands mainly distributed northwest and southeast in the Altai Mountains. There is almost no peatland in the meddle part of Altai. According to the distribution map of peatland, Qinghe county's peatland area is the largest, Fuyun county's peatland area is the smallest among the six counties of Altay region;(4) This paper conducted the slope analysis to the study area, using DEM data with support of GIS software ArcGIS Arcsense module Slope function. The results showed that the peatland occur in low slope areas. As to the Alpine peatland , 0°-17°is the best slope for peatland formation;(5) The area peatland of Altai decreased from 66,336.45 hectares to in 38,326.14 hectares 1990 to, the change is -28,010.31 hectares. The dynamic degree shows thate peatlands study area decreased 4.22% every year over the past 20 years, the annual rate of 4.22%. Data show that degradation of peatland particularly evident; (6) The main driving factors affecting the peatland include climatic factors and human factors. Climatic factors include temperature and precipitation. The human factors include overgrazing, disorderly exploitation of natural resources and tourism;(7) The main driving factors affecting the peatland include climatic factors and human factors. To get better results of restoration, it must solve the human disturbance. The common methods peatland restoration in foreign countries include the re-wetting and top soil removing;...