Zhao et al. (2026) Irrigation accelerated vegetation greening in China

Identification

• Journal: Agricultural Water Management
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-08-22
• Authors: Chenguang Zhao, Aizhong Ye, Xiaohong Zeng, Lingyun Wu
• DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2026.110715

Research Groups

• State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Disaster Risk Reduction, Beijing Normal University
• Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University

Short Summary

This study analyzes the role of irrigation-related water supply in vegetation greening across China from 1982 to 2022. The results show that irrigation accelerated vegetation greening, with a significant increase in fractional vegetation cover (FVC) and areas with increased irrigation having a greening rate approximately twice that of non-irrigated areas.

Objective

• Investigate the relationship between irrigation-related water supply and vegetation greening across China.
• Quantify the irrigation-related contribution to vegetation greening after controlling for climate factors.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: National scale, with a focus on four major climate zones: arid, semi-arid, semi-humid, and humid.
• Temporal Scale: 1982-2022 growing season data.

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Vegetation-precipitation-irrigation coupling zoning and classification framework, two-stage residual regression model.
• Data sources: PKU GIMMS NDVI dataset, China Meteorological Forcing Dataset v2.0, high-resolution sectoral water use dataset (HSWUD).

Main Results

• Growing-season FVC in China increased significantly from 1982 to 2022, at a rate of 0.91%/decade.
• Areas with significant greening accounted for 56.11% of the study area and were mainly distributed in regions where major ecological conservation and restoration programs have been implemented.
• Irrigation accelerated vegetation greening, with areas having increased irrigation showing a greening rate approximately twice that of non-irrigated areas.

Contributions

• This study provides a quantitative basis for understanding the role of irrigation-related water supply in vegetation greening across China.
• The results highlight the importance of considering both climate factors and human activities when analyzing vegetation dynamics.

Funding

• This research was supported by [project name], [program name], [reference code].

Citation

@article{Zhao2026Irrigation,
  author = {Zhao, Chenguang and Ye, Aizhong and Zeng, Xiaohong and Wu, Lingyun},
  title = {Irrigation accelerated vegetation greening in China},
  journal = {Agricultural Water Management},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1016/j.agwat.2026.110715},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2026.110715}
}