Location
SPECTRA: Soil Processes and Ecological Services in the Karst Critical Zone of Southwest China
SPECTRA brings together an exceptional international team of scientists ideally placed to achieve our goal of advancing quantitative understanding of the response, resilience and recoveryof the Karst Critical Zone (CZ) of China to environmental perturbation.
Chenqi catchment is located within Puding County, Guizhou Province, and covers an area of 1.29 km2. It contains a closed karst depression surrounded by four hills. The catchment elevation ranges between 1310 and 1470 m above sea level. The dominant lithology in this catchment is the pure and thick limestone of the Guanling Formation of the Middle Triassic. The studied area has a sub-tropical monsoonal climate with an annual precipitation of 1300 mm. Rainfall mainly occurs between May and October. The temperature of this area ranges from −1 °C to 28 °C, with an annual average of 14 °C. The vegetation in the catchment is mainly broad-leaved deciduous shrubs and evergreens. The agriculture fields are mainly located from mountain slope side to bottom. Crops commonly grown are corn, soybeans, and rape oil seed.
