Abstract
There are several basins with high sediment yield in the Pisha-sandstone covering area of the east wing of the Ordos Plateau. Due to the lack of targeted research on the dynamical characteristics of geomorphic evolution that plays an important role in the sand production, this paper analyzed the tectonic activity intensity and erosion characteristics of the area. The results show that the intensity of tectonic activities in the area is generally moderateweak and shows an unconspicuous increase from north to south. Tectonic activity is manifested mainly in the form of uplift. The uplift rate in the lower reaches of each basin is greater than the erosion rate, which is prominent in the Kuyehe and the Tuweihe rivers. During the uplift of the regional topography, the most serious parts under erosion are generally concentrated in the upstream and midstream of basins. All longitudinal profiles of the basins have a shape close to an exponential function, which indicates that they are in the early stage of erosion evolution. The mechanisms of geomorphologic evolution of these basins have a great similarity. The conservative estimate of historical average erosion rate was less than 182–520 t/(km²·yr), much less than that of the modern times. The average stream power values are typically distributed between 4 and 102 W/m, with the larger being in the Kuyehe and the Tuweihe rivers and the smallest being in the Qinshuihe River. The maximum stream power value appears in the downstream reach, which should be the main reason for the particles being directly injected into the Yellow River. From the perspective of geomorphological evolution, the current soil and water conservation measures can hardly cure the erosion of these basins in the long run.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Cheng S, Deng Q, Zhou S, et al. (2002) Strath terraces of Jinshaan Canyon, Yellow River, and Quaternary tectonic movements of the Ordos Plateau, North China. Terra Nova 14(4): 215–224. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-3121.2002.00350.x
Deng Q, Cheng S, Min W, et al. (1999) Discussion on Cenozoic tectonics and dynamics of Ordos block. Journal of Geomechanics 5(3): 13–21. (In Chinese)
Gao L, Hou D, Li J, et al. (2016a) Movement characteristics and present seismic activity of Ordos Block. Geodesy and Geodynamics 7(6): 451–458. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geog.2016.07.008
Gao M, Zeilinger G, Xu X, et al. (2016b) Active tectonics evaluation from geomorphic indices for the central and the southern Longmenshan range on the Eastern Tibetan Plateau, China. Tectonics 35(8): 1812–1826. https://doi.org/10.1002/2015TC004080
Gao M, Zeilinger G, Xu X, et al. (2013) DEM and GIS analysis of geomorphic indices for evaluating recent uplift of the northeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, China. Geomorphology 190(439): 61–72. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2013.02.008
Gu Z, Shi C, Yang H (2018) Responses of riverbed particles to geomorphologic processes in aeolian-fluvial action area: A case of the Heilaigou basin in Inner Mongolia of China. Journal of Resources and Ecology 9(2): 191–201. https://doi.org/10.5814/j.issn.1674-764x.2018.02.009
Hack JT (1973) Stream profile analysis and stream gradient index. Journal of Research of the U.S. Geological Survey 1(4): 421–429. https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/70161653
Hamdouni RE, Irigaray C, Fernández T, et al. (2008) Assessment of relative active tectonics, southwest border of the Sierra Nevada (southern Spain). Geomorphology 96(1): 150–173. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2007.08.004
Hu Z, Pan B, Guo L, et al. (2016) Rapid fluvial incision and headward erosion by the Yellow River along the Jinshaan gorge during the past 1.2 Ma as a result of tectonic extension. Quaternary Science Reviews 133: 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2015.12.003
Ji Y, Gao H, Pan B, et al. (2011) Implication of active structure in the upper reaches of Weihe River basin from stream length-gradient index (SL index) and Hack profile. Journal of Lanzhou University (Natural Science) 47(4): 1–47. (In Chinese)
Li L, Lu H (2010) A preliminarily quantitative estimation of the sedimentation and erosion rates of loess deposits in Chinese Loess Plateau over the past 250 ka. Acta Geographica Sinica 65(1): 37–52. (In Chinese)
Liu H, Shi M, Cai H, et al. (2016) Experimental study of the physical characteristics of the Pisha sandstone on its erosion. Yellow River 38(6): 8–10. (In Chinese)
Liu L, Liu XH (2010) Sensitivity analysis of soil erosion in the northern Loess Plateau. Procedia Environmental Sciences 2(1): 134–148. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proenv.2010.10.017
Ma L (2007). China's Geological Atlas. Beijing, Geological Publishing House. (In Chinese)
Ma XZ, Lu ZC, Jin DS (1993) Evolution and dissipative structure in the drainage-geomorphic system. Acta Geographica Sinica 48(4): 367–375. (In Chinese)
Mahmood SA, Gloaguen R (2012) Appraisal of active tectonics in Hindu Kush: Insights from DEM derived geomorphic indices and drainage analysis. Geoscience Frontiers 3(4): 407–428. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gsf.2011.12.002
Owono FM, Ntamak-Nida MJ, Dauteuil O, et al. (2016) Morphology and long-term landscape evolution of the South African plateau in South Namibia. Catena 142: 47–65. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2016.02.012
Pan B, Hu Z, Wang J, et al. (2011) A magnetostratigraphic record of landscape development in the eastern Ordos Plateau, China: Transition from Late Miocene and Early Pliocene stacked sedimentation to Late Pliocene and Quaternary uplift and incision by the Yellow River. Geomorphology 125(1): 225–238. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2010.09.019
Pike RJ, Wilson SE (1971) Elevation-relief ratio, hypsometric integral, and geomorphic area-altitude analysis. Geological Society of America Bulletin 82(4): 1079–1083. https://doi.org/10.1130/0016-7606(1971)82[1079:ERHIAG]2.0.CO;2
Rãdoane M, Rãdoane N, Dan D (2003) Geomorphological evolution of longitudinal river profiles in the Carpathians. Geomorphology 50(4): 293–306. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0169-555X(02)00194-0
Ramírez-Herrera MT (2015) Geomorphic assessment of active tectonics in the Acambay graben, Mexican Volcanic Belt. Earth Surface Processes & Landforms 23(4): 317–332. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1096-9837(199804)23:4<317::AID-ESP845>3.0.CO;2-V
Ran D, Luo Q, Zhou Z, et al. (2008) Sediment retention by check dams in the Hekouzhen-Longmen Section of the Yellow River. International Journal of Sediment Research 23(2): 159–166. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1001-6279(08)60015-3
Shi W (2008) DEM drainage analysis of the Shanxi-Shaanxi gorge in the middle reaches of the Huanghe River and its neotectonic implications. Quaternary Research 28(2): 288–298. (In Chinese)
Pérez-Peña JV, Azañón JM, Azor A, et al. (2009) Spatial analysis of stream power using GIS: SLK anomaly maps. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 34: 16–25. https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.1684
Sun W, Shao Q, Liu J, et al. (2014) Assessing the effects of land use and topography on soil erosion on the Loess Plateau in China. Catena 121: 151–163. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2014.05.009
Yue LP, Li JX, Zheng GZ, et al. (2007) Evolution of the Ordos Plateau and environmental effects. Science in China (Series D: Earth Sciences) 50(2): 19–26. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11430-007-6013-2
Zhang K, Li S, Peng W, et al. (2004) Erodibility of agricultural soils on the Loess Plateau of China. Soil & Tillage Research 76(2): 157–165. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2003.09.007
Zhou YL (2012) Atlas of Soil and Water Conservation in the Yellow River Basin. Beijing, Seismological Press. (In Chinese)
Zuo D, Xu Z, Yao W, et al. (2016) Assessing the effects of changes in land use and climate on runoff and sediment yields from a watershed in the Loess Plateau of China. Science of the Total Environment 544: 238–250. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.11.060
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41671004). We are very grateful to the three anonymous reviewers and the editors for their detailed and valuable suggestions.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Gu, Zk., Shi, Cx. Dynamical characteristics of geomorphologic evolution of the basins covered by Pisha-sandstone in the eastern wing of the Ordos Plateau, China. J. Mt. Sci. 15, 1046–1056 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11629-018-4859-8
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11629-018-4859-8