关键词: 绿洲化, 概念, 过程研究, 干旱区

Abstract: Oasification is the transition process from desert to oasis in arid region caused by human and natural factors. The oasification area in arid region of China had expanded from 25 000 km2 of late 1950s to 104 000 km2 now. Oasification can improve the local or wider environment to enhance productivity, mainly by changing water cycle. It can be said that oasification is the development process from natural ecosystems to artificial ecosystems promoted by human activities. However, low level or disorder development of the oasis can decrease the stability of the oasis and cause oasis degradation with the reduction or loss of land productivity, as often can trigger a series of ecological problems, such as rivers break, lakes shrinking, vegetation degradation and soil erosion, etc. Therefore, it is needed to systematically study hydrological, soil, air and biological processes of oasification and their interactions under a comprehensive understand of the role of human activities and climate change, to reveal the characteristics, spatial-temporal patterns, processes and drive mechanism of oasification, and to provide a scientific basis for establishment of regulatory and management model of oasification.

Key words: oasification, conception, research on the processes, arid region