干旱区生态环境知识资源中心

Water resource structure is one of the most important factors that constrain the economic development in arid-semiarid areas. Sustainable use of water requires a thorough understanding of the local geology and hydrology and developing of effective protection strategies. Discussed in this paper is a study on the phreatic water quality of the Yuxi River Valley of Shaanxi Province, China. The Yuxi River Valley passes through the Shaanbei energy base, which demands large quantities of high-quality water. A total of 129 water samples were collected in 4,938 km(2) in a recent study to delineate the areas with water suitable for drinking, industrial, and agricultural usage and areas with poor quality. The study indicates that the poor quality of water contains high concentrations of NH4+ and NO (2) (-1) , indicating possible contamination by waste disposal in the nearby cities and towns. A series of strategies are proposed to protect the water in the Yuxi River Valley, including proper treatment and recycling of the waste water in the cities and towns, strict control of the waste-water discharge from any new factories and mines, and prevention of groundwater contamination by wastes containing heavy metals.