Mechanisms of climate-induced lake dynamics in the Source Region of Three Rivers, Tibetan Plateau

Study region: The Source Region of the Three Rivers (SRTR), Tibetan Plateau, China. Study focus: Lake variation studies in the SRTR have primarily focused on a few large lakes, with limited understanding of the long-term trends, stages, and main driving mechanisms of change in lakes larger than 1 km...

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Main Authors: Xiankun Zheng, Sihai Liang, Dezhao Yan, Xingxing Kuang, Li Wan
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-06-01
Series:Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214581825001478
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author Xiankun Zheng
Sihai Liang
Dezhao Yan
Xingxing Kuang
Li Wan
author_facet Xiankun Zheng
Sihai Liang
Dezhao Yan
Xingxing Kuang
Li Wan
author_sort Xiankun Zheng
collection DOAJ
description Study region: The Source Region of the Three Rivers (SRTR), Tibetan Plateau, China. Study focus: Lake variation studies in the SRTR have primarily focused on a few large lakes, with limited understanding of the long-term trends, stages, and main driving mechanisms of change in lakes larger than 1 km², especially the role of groundwater. This study proposes an attributing framework based on trend tests and water balance to investigate the changes in SRTR lakes with areas over 1 km² from 1990 to 2019. Nearly all potential drivers of lake dynamics, including groundwater, precipitation, evapotranspiration, glaciers, permafrost, and geological structure, are incorporated into the analysis. New hydrological insights for the region: Results indicate an upward trend in the number of lakes (approximately 29 %), area (around 17 %), and volume (growing at an estimated 0.23 Gt/yr). Trend tests and water balance methods revealed that changes in groundwater significantly impacted 47 lakes (including 18 endorheic and 7 exorheic basins). Incorporating precipitation, evapotranspiration, and other factors, we further classified these changes into eight expansion patterns (involving 198 lakes) and four shrinkage patterns (involving 4 lakes), highlighting the diverse response mechanisms of lakes. Additionally, a three-phase evolutionary trend in the spatiotemporal dynamics of lakes was identified, providing a scientific basis for precise water resource regulation and lake ecosystem protection under different future scenarios in the SRTR.
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publishDate 2025-06-01
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spelling doaj-art-6a6fde54dff447e3af0890aa4306694f2025-08-20T03:13:07ZengElsevierJournal of Hydrology: Regional Studies2214-58182025-06-015910232310.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102323Mechanisms of climate-induced lake dynamics in the Source Region of Three Rivers, Tibetan PlateauXiankun Zheng0Sihai Liang1Dezhao Yan2Xingxing Kuang3Li Wan4MOE Key Laboratory of Groundwater Circulation and Environmental Evolution, China University of Geosciences (Beijing), Beijing 100083, China; School of Water Resources and Environment, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, ChinaMOE Key Laboratory of Groundwater Circulation and Environmental Evolution, China University of Geosciences (Beijing), Beijing 100083, China; School of Water Resources and Environment, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China; Corresponding author at: MOE Key Laboratory of Groundwater Circulation and Environmental Evolution, China University of Geosciences (Beijing), Beijing 100083, China.University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; National Tibetan Plateau Data Center, State Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources, Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaSchool of Environmental Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, ChinaMOE Key Laboratory of Groundwater Circulation and Environmental Evolution, China University of Geosciences (Beijing), Beijing 100083, China; School of Water Resources and Environment, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, ChinaStudy region: The Source Region of the Three Rivers (SRTR), Tibetan Plateau, China. Study focus: Lake variation studies in the SRTR have primarily focused on a few large lakes, with limited understanding of the long-term trends, stages, and main driving mechanisms of change in lakes larger than 1 km², especially the role of groundwater. This study proposes an attributing framework based on trend tests and water balance to investigate the changes in SRTR lakes with areas over 1 km² from 1990 to 2019. Nearly all potential drivers of lake dynamics, including groundwater, precipitation, evapotranspiration, glaciers, permafrost, and geological structure, are incorporated into the analysis. New hydrological insights for the region: Results indicate an upward trend in the number of lakes (approximately 29 %), area (around 17 %), and volume (growing at an estimated 0.23 Gt/yr). Trend tests and water balance methods revealed that changes in groundwater significantly impacted 47 lakes (including 18 endorheic and 7 exorheic basins). Incorporating precipitation, evapotranspiration, and other factors, we further classified these changes into eight expansion patterns (involving 198 lakes) and four shrinkage patterns (involving 4 lakes), highlighting the diverse response mechanisms of lakes. Additionally, a three-phase evolutionary trend in the spatiotemporal dynamics of lakes was identified, providing a scientific basis for precise water resource regulation and lake ecosystem protection under different future scenarios in the SRTR.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214581825001478Lake changeSource Region of Three RiversLakesGroundwaterWater balanceTrend test
spellingShingle Xiankun Zheng
Sihai Liang
Dezhao Yan
Xingxing Kuang
Li Wan
Mechanisms of climate-induced lake dynamics in the Source Region of Three Rivers, Tibetan Plateau
Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies
Lake change
Source Region of Three Rivers
Lakes
Groundwater
Water balance
Trend test
title Mechanisms of climate-induced lake dynamics in the Source Region of Three Rivers, Tibetan Plateau
title_full Mechanisms of climate-induced lake dynamics in the Source Region of Three Rivers, Tibetan Plateau
title_fullStr Mechanisms of climate-induced lake dynamics in the Source Region of Three Rivers, Tibetan Plateau
title_full_unstemmed Mechanisms of climate-induced lake dynamics in the Source Region of Three Rivers, Tibetan Plateau
title_short Mechanisms of climate-induced lake dynamics in the Source Region of Three Rivers, Tibetan Plateau
title_sort mechanisms of climate induced lake dynamics in the source region of three rivers tibetan plateau
topic Lake change
Source Region of Three Rivers
Lakes
Groundwater
Water balance
Trend test
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214581825001478
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