Study on ecological water demand in water source area of West Route of South-to-North Water Diversion Project

Proper diverted water volume has always been the focus of the West Route of South-to-North Water Diversion Project in China.Ecological water demand of water source area is an important basis and technical support for determining the proper water volume of the West Route project.We analyzed the ecological environment characteristics and the main environmental protection objects in the water source area of the West Route of South-to-North Water Diversion Project.Aiming at the research progress and problems in water demand in water source area of the West Route, we proposed that the ecological water demand should take into account key species such as Hucho bleekeri,dominant communities such as riparian vegetation, and typical ecosystems such as arid river valleys.It was necessary to thoroughly study the response law of key protection objects to hydrological processes in the alpine fragile area, and coordinate ecological protection needs from the perspective of multi-scale of node-river-river corridor and multi-objective of species-habitat-ecosystem.Moreover, we proposed an research idea of ecological water demand in this area as ‘identifying special requirements-establishing response relationship-overall accounting of water requirement' and put forward suggestions for regional ecological environment protection from aspects of water conservation, scientific research and key technologies.