Table of Content

20 November 2017, Volume 32 Issue 11 Previous Issue    Next Issue

Theoretical Discussion

Designing the Statement Form of Physical Balance Sheet of Water Resources QIN Chang-hai, GAN Hong, WANG Lin, JIA Ling, YOU Jin-jun, ZHOU Pu 2017, 32 (11):  1819-1831.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20161021 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (1006KB) ( )   Save With the deepening reform in China, the ecological civilization construction has become an important task, which includes accelerated establishment of a national unified accounting system and formulation of local and national balance sheets for natural resources. It is a new territory to formulate the balance sheet for water resources (BSW). The goal of this paper is to build the basic statement forms of the BSW, which can provide fundamental platform for developing statistical accounting on water resources. |||Based on current balance sheets for natural resources and the concepts and principles of balance sheet of assets and liabilities, the authors propose two kinds of the physical statement forms of BSW. The first one can be adopted to water resources assets accounting for independent water entities in basis of accounting, and the second one can be used for economically aggregated counties/regions in basis of statistics and economics. The statement forms were designed following the regulations of “accrual basis” and “double entry bookkeeping” as normal balance sheet follows. The two forms could describe the status of obligatory right of creditors and obligations of debtors on water among/between water entities or between economic entity and environmental entity of counties/regions, so they can be employed in accounting water resources assets either in an independent enterprise or in an administrative region.||| In the BSW of water entities, the individual owners or water entities are taken as accounting subject in the statistics of stock and flow changes of the asset and debt of water resources during the accounting period. Water resources debt is mainly embodied as the debtor-creditor relationship among water entities of BSW. The BSW of counties/regions will record the influence of water utilization on water resources, environment and eco-system in economic society. References | Related Articles | Metrics

Resource Ecology

Impacts of Returning Farmland to Forest on Regional Air Temperature in Different Climatic Zones HUANG Lin, ZHAI Jun, NING Jia 2017, 32 (11):  1832-1843.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20161061 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (4812KB) ( )   Save Land use and land cover change influences regional climate through both biogeochemical and biogeophysical processes. Afforestation has been one of the most intensive human activities on land cover. It results in the increase of carbon sequestration and has been proposed as a most effective strategy to mitigate climate change. However, considering only carbon storage would lead to underestimation or overestimation of the impact of afforestation on climate regulation. This paper aimed to disclose the impacts of returning farmland to forest on regional temperature by the carbon budget and surface energy balance in different climatic zones. The results showed that if only the carbon regulation effect was considered, the returning farmland to forest was in the carbon sequestration process with 241.6-470.2 Mg CO2-eq hm-2, and was carbon sinks of 2.2-16.5 Mg CO2-eq hm-2 in various climate zones, which means the cooling effect on air temperature, especially in subtropical and humid regions. If only the biophysical process was considered, the returning farmland to forest in northern arid and semiarid regions resulted in more increase in net radiation than increase in latent heat flux, so the returning farmland to forest had warming effect on temperature. However, it resulted in decreased net radiation and increased latent heat flux in southern subtropical regions, and less increase in net radiation than increase in latent heat flux in Tibetan Plateau and temperate humid regions, so the returning farmland to forest had cooling effects on temperature in those regions. Therefore, when taking into account both the carbon regulation and land surface energy balance, the cooling effects of the returning farmland to forest in southern subtropical regions is 1.25 to 1.45 times more than that when only the carbon regulation was considered, while the cooling effects in northern arid and semiarid regions is about half of that when only the carbon regulation was considered References | Related Articles | Metrics

The Responses of the Net Primary Productivity of the Dryland Ecosystems in Central Asia to the CO2 and Climate Changes during the Past 35 Years ZHU Shi-hua, YAN Yan, SHAO Hua, LI Chao-fan 2017, 32 (11):  1844-1856.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20160983 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (8447KB) ( )   Save More than 80% of world's temperate desert locates in Central Asia, dryland that experienced strong warming and significant changes in precipitation pattern in recent decades. The objectives of this study was to quantify spatio-temporal patterns of net primary productivity in Central Asia over the past 35 years, and investigate the relative contribution and interactive effect of climate controls including temperature, precipitation and CO2, using the Arid Ecosystem Model (AEM), which performed well in predicting the dryland ecosystems' responses to climate changes according to our evaluation. The results show the 35-year averaged annual NPP of Central Asia amounted to 1 125±129 Tg C/a (1 T=1012), or 218±24 g C /(m2·a), with an overall declining trend of 0.71 g C/(m2·a). The northern Kazakhstan had relatively high NPP of 349±39 g C/(m2·a), while the southern Xinjiang of China had relatively low NPP of 123±45 g C/(m2·a). During the last 35 years, the NPP of the southern Xinjiang subregion declined significantly with a trend of -2.05 g C/(m2·a). Comparing the NPP during 1985-2014 to the NPP during 1980-1984, we found the regional NPP decreased 118 Tg or 10%, with positive contribution of 35.4 Tg or +2% from temperature change, positive contribution of 99.7 Tg or +8% from CO2 change, negative contribution of 221 Tg or -18% from precipitation change. The temperature was the dominant factor on NPP in 9% of the study area, mainly in the Tianshan Mountains and northern Kazakhstan, where the temperature increased by 0.03 ℃/a during 1980-2014. Precipitation was the dominant factor on NPP in 69% of the study area, mainly in the desert subregion and the dryland of southern Xinjiang of China, where the vegetation was limited by water. CO2 was the dominant factor on NPP in 20% of the study area, mainly in the lower altitude regions of Tianshan Mountains, where the hydrothermal condition was suitable for vegetation growth. This study shows that the southern Xinjiang of China is the fragile eco-environmental subregion in Central Asia, whose ecosystem security is facing the challenges of climate change. However, increasing temperature is unlikely to stimulate autotrophic respiration and cause a significant impact on regional NPP in Central Asia. References | Related Articles | Metrics

Spatio-temporal Changes of Grassland Production Based on MODIS NPP in the Three-River Source Region from 2006 to 2015 LÜ Xin, WANG Juan-le, KANG Hai-jun, ZHAO Qiang, HAN Xue-hua, WANG Yu-jie 2017, 32 (11):  1857-1868.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20161033 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (11065KB) ( )   Save The grassland is not only the important ecological barrier in plateau region, but also the natural pasture to maintain the local people's living. The accurate estimation of grass production could provide scientific basis for informed decision-making on regional resource exploitation and socio-economic sustainable development. In this paper, the Three-River Source Region in Tibetan Plateau was selected as the research area. Estimation models of grassland production were established using statistical analysis method based on NDVI, EVI and NPP from NASA's MODIS remote sensing products and measured data. The general grassland production in the Three-River Source Region from 2006 to 2015 was retrieved with these models. The result shows that the linear model based on MOD17A2H NPP is the best model. In the Three-River Source Region, the grassland production (per unit yield) decreases from east to west and from southeast to northwest gradually. The grassland production (total yield) was increasing from 2006 to 2013 and then began to decrease. The annual grassland production (total yield) in 2013 was the highest and that in 2015 was the lowest. The annual grassland production (total yield) was 3 869.43×104 t in 2013, while the annual grassland production (total yield) was 2 069.07×104 t in 2015. References | Related Articles | Metrics

Resource Economics

Spatial Temporal Characteristics of China's Agricultural Growth Based on Esteban-Marquillas Model LIU Yu, PAN Yu-chun, TANG Lin-nan 2017, 32 (11):  1869-1882.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20160985 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (6583KB) ( )   Save Agriculture, as the foundation of the national economy, is of great significance in ensuring food security and maintaining social stability. Under the macro background of the national industrial structure adjustment and upgrading, it will be helpful to promote the healthy development of agriculture in our country by analyzing the spatial and temporal characteristics of regional agriculture and internal industry in the whole country. Esteban-Marquillas expansion model of shift-share method can not only analyze the regional industrial structure and competitive situation, but also analyze the distribution effect through the interaction of the structure components and the competition components, and it has a stronger explanatory power than traditional model. Thus, based on Esteban-Marquillas expansion model of shift-share method, this research systematically analyzed the evolving characteristics of scale and structure of agricultural production from 1985 to 2014 in China in terms of shares, structure, net competitiveness and resource allocation, attempting to reveal the trend of the total amount and structure of agricultural growth in China since 1985. The results are showed as follows: 1) From 1985 to 2014, the added value of Chinese agriculture increased in stages, mainly resulting from the crop farming and animal husbandry, whose added-value increment accounted for 60% and 24.3% of the total increment, respec-tively. Among the eight major grain producing areas, the middle-lower region of the Yangtze River, Northeast China region and Huang-Huai-Hai region are the main areas driving Chinese agricultural growth, that the total increment value is 155.049 billion yuan and 117.615 billion yuan, respectively, accounting for over 50% of the total increase during the same period. 2) The agricultural shares in the major eight grain production areas presented the trend of steady growth after severe fluctuation during 1985-2014. That is to say, the agricultural shares in eight grain producing areas increased in a fluctuant way during 1985-2007 with 3 growth peaks in 1990, 1993 and 2005, and then the share component of each area turned steady growth after 2007. The overall advantages of industrial structure became weakened and even decreased. When the driving force from crop farming and fishery increased, the driving force from forestry and animal husbandry was weakened. However, when the driving force from crop farming and forestry increased, the driving force from animal husbandry dropped. There was a dynamic balance among the competitive effects. 3) Various regions should work out relevant policies to strengthen the resources integration, agricultural product circulation and technical cooperation according to their industrial development advantages, so as to promote the stable development of regional agriculture. The results can provide the basis for the formulating development strategies to optimize and differentiate the agricultural structures in our country References | Related Articles | Metrics

Value-added Income Distribution of Homestead Exit Compensationin Major Grain Producing Areas in Northeast China from the Perspective of Land Development Right SONG Ge, XU Si-gui, GAO Jia 2017, 32 (11):  1883-1891.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20161039 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (532KB) ( )   Save Fair compensation and rational distribution of value-added income are keys to promote the smooth homestead exit. Based on the perspective of land development right, this paper constructs the theoretical model of homestead exit compensation and value-added income distribution from two aspects: the loss of opportunity cost from the reclaiming of rural residential land and the added value from the substitution of incremental construction land quota generated. The model is applied in a case study of the main grain production area in Northeast China. Results show that: 1) Under the background of linking the increase and decrease of urban and rural construction land, the loss of opportunity cost generated by the reclaiming of rural residential land should be compensated to peasant households and village collectives; the added value generated by the displacement of incremental construction land quota come from the capital input of the government and developers, and the government and developers have the right to share the land value-added income. 2) The farmers, the village collectives, the government and the developers in the study area should share 41.5%, 6.5%, 27.1% and 24.9% of the homestead exit compensation and value-added income, respectively. 3) The compensation and value-added income distribution based on land development right not only takes into account the efficiency and fairness, but also conforms to the strategy of the exit of the rural residential land system through both government regulation and market regulation. References | Related Articles | Metrics

Resource Evaluation

Effect of Slope Gradient and Vegetation Cover on Sediment Yielding Characteristics of the Riparian Slope CAO Zi-hao, ZHAO Qing-he, DING Sheng-yan, ZHANG Yi-fan, LIU Pu, WU Chang-song, BIAN Zi-qi 2017, 32 (11):  1892-1904.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20160993 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (4823KB) ( )   Save Slope gradient and vegetation cover are important factors affecting slope soil erosion process, thus exploring the response of sediment yielding characteristics to slope gradient and vegetation cover is of great significance to predicate sediment yielding in soil erosion process. In this study, based on the field runoff scouring experiments on the riparian slope of the lower reaches of the Yellow River, the changing processes of runoff coefficient, sediment yielding, runoff sediment concentration, and sediment particle size composition under different slope gradients (5°, 10°, 15°, 20°) and vegetation covers (0, 15%, 30%) were analyzed, and the response of sediment yielding characteristics to the interaction effect of slope gradients and vegetation covers on riparian slope were revealed by using the double factor variance analysis and the relative contribution index. The results showed that runoff coefficient under different vegetation covers increased with duration of scouring time, therein, it increased quickly during the first five minutes and then slowed down and became leveling off. The runoff sediment concentration showed decreasing trend with the increase of scouring time and then began to leveling off. On the slope of less than 15°, the differences of runoff coefficient and runoff sediment concentration between different vegetation covers were obvious, while there were less difference on the slope of more than 15°. The sediment yielding increased with the scouring time and slope gradient. On the same slope gradient, the lower the vegetation cover was, the greater the sediment yielding. The sediment particles were mainly made up of silt, coarse powder grains and very fine sand, and very fine sand and fine sand, which accounted for 10%, 50%, and 90% of the total volume, respectively. The double factor variance analysis showed that slope gradient exhibited the extremely significant effect on the runoff coefficient, sediment yielding, and runoff sediment concentration on the riparian slope (P<0.001), and the vegetation coverage exhibited the extremely significant effect on the slope erosion sediment yield and flow runoff coefficient within the prescribed time (P<0.001). However, the interaction between slope gradient and vegetation cover showed the significant effect only on the runoff coefficient within the prescribed time (P<0.01). Meanwhile, the relative contribution index showed that in the interaction of slope gradient and vegetation cover, the effect of vegetation cover weakened gradually with increasing slope gradient, while the role of slope gradient enhanced gradually and became the dominant factor influencing soil and water loss. References | Related Articles | Metrics

Characteristics and Mechanism of Tourism-driven Urbanization Based on Grounded Theory: A Case Study of Hangzhou Meijiawu Village LU Lin, HAN Ya, HUANG Jian-feng, PENG Hong-song, CHU Xiao-le, ZHENG Yu-lian 2017, 32 (11):  1905-1918.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20160975 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (4628KB) ( )   Save In the background of China's new urbanization, the development of urbanization in rural areas has been paid more and more attention. How to achieve urban and rural integration, and to break the urban and rural dual system has become an urgent proposition. Tourism has been an important force for urban development and urban organic renewal. New urbanization process driven by tourism, to a certain extent, also fits the “pastoral city” concept. According to the existing literature, characteristics and mechanism of tourism urbanization process have not been studied systematically. This paper studies the characteristics of tourism urbanization and its occurrence mechanism “scene in the village”, selecting Meijiawu Village in Hangzhou as a case study. On-the-spot investigation and standardized interviews were made five times to collect research data and materials, and then the grounded theory was adopted to depict the characteristics and construct mechanism model of tourism urbanization in suburban areas. The research shows that: the characteristics and mechanism of Meijiawu Village' tourism urbanization can be abstracted into 11 categories and 31 concepts, including land use change, economic transformation, social structure change, cultural change, landscape evolution, spatial structure evolution, urban tourism carrier mechanism, urbanization driving mechanism, administrative power mechanism, individual and organizational factors and tourist destination selection factors. Tourism urbanization is an important path to the pastoral city. Driven by tourism development, multiple factors such as destination land, economy, society, culture, landscape and spatial structure realize integrated dynamic change. The characteristics of the urbanization process in Meijiawu are in line with the development of the pastoral city, and Meijiawu Village's tourism urbanization process has both urban and rural advantages. In the context of no changing the countryside's culture and keeping urban and rural harmony, the tourism urbanization in Meijiawu has promoted the process of new urbanization. Finally, this article puts forward the theory model of tourism urbanization's process characteristics and mechanism and analyzes the phenomena in Meijiawu as the positive example of tourism urbanization, which is conducive to the development of garden city in China. References | Related Articles | Metrics

Eco-geographic Distributions of Rare and Endangered Plants and Endemisc Species in Karakorum Mountains of China YANG Shu-ping, JIANG Jie, YAN Ping 2017, 32 (11):  1919-1929.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20160999 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (1943KB) ( )   Save Based on the field investigation and botany taxonomy method, the eco-geographic distribution of rare and endangered plants and endemisc plants in Karakorum Mountains of China were studied. The results indicate that: there are 34 species of rare and endangered plants in Karakorum Mountains belonging to 18 genera and 15 families, among which 16 species are national key protected plants, 18 species are key protected plants in Xinjiang. There are 32 endemic species in Karakorum Mountains belonging to 24 genera and 12 families, among which 30 species are endemic species in Xinjiang, two species are endemic species in Tibet. The distributions of three endemic species in Xinjiang have spread to Tibet, which are Lepidium kunlunshanicum G. L. Zhou et Z. X. An, Poa spiciformis D. F. Cui and Androsace flavescens Maxim. The distribution area of three endemic species in Xinjiang has decreased, which are Salix metaglauca C. Y. Yang, Sabina centrasiatica Kom and Arenaria aksayqingensis L. H. Zhou. The horizontal distribution of rare and endangered species and endemic species decreases from the northwest to the southeast, and the vertical distribution concentrates at the altitude of 3 000-4 500 m where perennial herb are the main species with a few shrubs and trees. References | Related Articles | Metrics

Spatial Autocorrelation of Soil Moisture and Agricultural Zoning in a Mollisol Tillage Area of Northeast China GAO Feng-jie, SHAN Pei-ming, MA Quan-lai, HAN Wen-wen, ZHOU Jun, JU Tie-nan, WU Xiao 2017, 32 (11):  1930-1941.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20161062 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (5275KB) ( )   Save The paper mainly analyzed the spatial distribution pattern and spatial autocorrelation of surface soil moisture (0-20 cm) in a mollisol tillage area of Northeast China with the Moran index model of global and local spatial autocorrelation indicators. The paper discovered the spatial structure and distribution pattern of surface soil moisture and provided a basis for agricultural zoning and facility allocation. The results show that there is great spatial difference of surface soil moisture with moderate variation in the study area. The spatial variation is mostly caused by random factors such as human activities, tillage practice and so on. The global spatial autocorrelation coefficient is 0.417 7, showing strong positive autocorrelation, and there exists anisotropy of spatial autocorrelation. The local spatial autocorrelation coefficient is 0.374 4, mainly displaying H-H (high-high correlation) and L-L (low-low correlation) clusters, which shows the coexistence pattern of high value agglomeration and low value agglomeration. The H-H agglomerations mainly distribute in the flat area in the northwest of the study area. The H-H area has very good tillage condition and has priority in developing agriculture. When farming in this area, people can take full advantage of the nature to achieve high yield with low cost. The L-L agglomerations mainly distribute in the transition zone of mountain and plain in the east part of the study area where the surface soil moisture content is low. When farming in this area, people should invest more on agricultural irrigation infrastructure. In a word, this research could serve in allocation of regional water resources and agricultural facilities. References | Related Articles | Metrics

Spatio-temporal Variation of pH in Cropland of Jiangxi Province in the Past 30 Years and Its Relationship with Acid Rain and Fertilizer Application LI Wei-feng, YE Ying-cong, ZHU An-fan, RAO Lei, SUN Kai, YUAN Jie, GUO Xi 2017, 32 (11):  1942-1953.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20161089 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (12682KB) ( )   Save Soil acidification has become the most common problem of the world's farmland. Cropland soil acidification causes serious damage to Chinese food security and agricultural sustainable development. This study, which was based on the two periods of pH data during the second soil survey in 1980S (1979-1986) and during the soil testing and formulated fertilization in 2010S (2005-2012), analyzed the spatio-temporal variation of pH in cropland soil of Jiangxi Province in the past 30 years and its relations with nitrogen fertilizer application and acid rain. The results showed that the pH value of cropland in Jiangxi Province presented a trend of acidification. The average pH value of cropland soil in Jiangxi Province was 5.24 in 2010S, decrease 0.53 compared with that in 1980S. Acidification is more serious in southwest of the province. The most prominent area of acidification is Ganzhou City, followed by Nanchang City and Yingtan City, where the average pH value fell more than 0.8 units. According to linear regression, the acidification of cropland soil is closely related to the nitrogen application rate and acid rain. The long-term excessive application of nitrogen fertilizer is the main reason of soil acidification in Jiangxi Province. Cropland soil acidification was positively correlated with nitrogen application rate. Soil pH of cropland declined 0.26 unit with nitrogen application rate increasing 50 kg/hm2 in the past 30 years. Cropland soil acidification has negative correlation with the pH value of acid rain. The lower the pH value of acid rain, the faster the acidification of cropland. References | Related Articles | Metrics

Resource Research Method

Initial Water Rights Allocation in Yunnan Based on Whale Optimization Algorithm-Projection Pursuit Model DIAO Jun-ke, CUI Dong-wen 2017, 32 (11):  1954-1967.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20160986 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (3156KB) ( )   Save Based on the principles of equity, efficiency and sustainability, the water resources allocation index system of Yunnan Province was established based on 17 water allocation indexes, such as the initial water right of each city in Yunnan Province, using the Projection Pursuit (PP) allocation of water. Since the optimal projection direction of PP is difficult to be determined, a new swarm intelligence algorithm—Whale Optimization Algorithm (WOA) was used to optimize the projection direction of PP model, and an initial water rights allocation model of WOA-PP coupling was constructed. Culture algorithm (CA), Differential Evolution (DE) algorithm, Shuffled Frog Leaping Algorithm (SFLA), Cuckoo Search (CS) algorithm, Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm and Artificial Bee colony (ABC) were used to simulate WOA by six typical test functions. The results show that WOA is able to explore different search spaces, whether it is a unimodal or a multimodal function, and it has good development and exploration ability. The searching accuracies of sphere and other six functions are all higher than those of CA, DE, SFLA, CS, PSO and ABC algorithm, showing better precision, convergence speed, global optimization ability and convergence stability. 2) By comparing the results of initial water rights allocation of WOA-PP model and current water allocation of comprehensive method, the allocation results of Zhaotong, Lijiang, Lincang, Honghe, Wenshan and Nujiang in 2015 had the least difference, the difference of allocation results of Yuxi, Pu'er, Dali, Dehong and Diqing were between 2.06×108-4.38×108 m3, and the allocation difference of other cities were between 1.12×108-1.61×108 m3. For the year of 2020, the allocation results of Baoshan, Zhaotong, Lijiang, Lincang, Honghe, Wenshan and Nujiang have the least difference, which are between 0.02×108-0.41×108 m3. The allocation results of Kunming, Yuxi and Dehong have the most difference, which are 5.89×108, 5.66×108 and 3.54×108 m3, respectively. The difference of distribution in other cities and counties is between 1.89×108 and 2.85×108 m3. The initial water rights allocation model and optimization method proposed in this paper are feasible and effective, which can provide new ideas and methods for regional initial water rights allocation. References | Related Articles | Metrics

Comprehensive Discussion

Multiple-scale Ecological Impacts of Artificial Structures in Urban Ecosystems HU Dan, ZHAO Dan, GUO Zhen 2017, 32 (11):  1968-1982.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20161419 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (667KB) ( )   Save Artificial structures (constructions) are important components of urban ecosystems and essential unit of human-nature coupling relations. The water, soil, air and organisms in natural ecosystems exert their functions through artificial structures on human survival, health and development. On the contrary, human activities also influence the water, soil, air and organism in natural ecosystems through artificial structures. This interaction facilitates the development of urban ecosystems. This paper summarizes recent research progresses in multiple-scale ecological impacts of artificial structures on water, soil, atmosphere and organisms in urban ecosystems, and presents the focus points in this research field and key issues to be resolved. The paper analyzes the methodological difficulties and challenges in ecology of artificial structures, and finally proposes some future tendencies in this field. The authors point out that the diversified ecological impacts of artificial structures cover the various aspects of water, soil, atmosphere and organism in urban and rural ecosystems. Current researches on this topic are dispersive and local concerned, the methods and techniques are limit, and the results of analysis have great uncertainty. Future research on key issues of this topic needs powerful multiple-scale or multiple-level approaches by means of integration of multiple-disciplinary methods, and the research will be better promoted through developing advanced techniques of ecological field observation and experiment and innovating the technology and intellectual computing for processing multiple-source or multiple-level data, and intellectual computing. References | Related Articles | Metrics

Hotspots and Trends in International Soil Quality Research LI Bin-bin, XU Ming-xiang, GONG Chen, LI Pan-pan 2017, 32 (11):  1983-1998.  doi: 10.11849/zrzyxb.20160968 Abstract ( )   HTML ( )   PDF (11101KB) ( )   Save In the last few years, considerable literature relating to soil quality has grown up. There has been a great change in the research field of soil quality as the global climate change and environment pollution problems are getting worse. Confronting a massive amount of research literature, the use of traditional methods for reviewing publications has a certain limitation. Therefore, it is necessary to take the advantage of scientific metrology and information technology to quantify and qualify the research literature in this field. Using Citespace V software for visualizing patterns and trends in scientific literature, we analyzed classical literature which focused on this field, documented the association of co-citation literature with keyword co-appearance network. According to clustering analysis and the burst detection, we found that the focuses of global soil quality research changed from the response of soil organic carbon and its fractions to management practices, the sensitivity of microbial indicators, and definition of soil quality to methods, indicators and framework of soil quality assessment. Compared to theoretical research, the application soil quality research in practice such as agricultural production and environmental monitoring was gradually strengthened. Currently, the soil quality monitoring and its response to global climate change and soil amendment have attracted a large number of attentions. The proportion of environment rather than agriculture application has been progressively increased. In the near future, soil quality research will show following trends: 1) Developing countries will play an important role in this field due to their increasing needs for food safety and environmental protection. 2) The response of soil quality to global climate change and soil restoration will be the research priority. 3) Sustainable development is still the topic in this research field. We suggested that soil quality assessment, monitoring and restoration should be implemented based on the features of the countries and regions. Laws and regulations should be made to guarantee the normalization and sustainability of soil management. Visualization of research literature enables us to observe and understand the state of the research field more intuitively and explore the hidden rules and patterns, which can be a useful supplementary to traditional literature reviews. References | Related Articles | Metrics