Effect of land use on the seasonal variation of streamwater quality in the Wei River basin, China

The temporal effect of land use on streamwater quality needs to be addressed for a better understanding of the complex relationship between land use and streamwater quality. In this study, GIS and Pearson correlation analysis were used to determine whether there were correlations of land-use types with streamwater quality at the sub-basin scale in the Wei River basin, China, during dry and rainy seasons in 2012. Temporal variation of these relations was observed, indicating that relationships between water quality variables and proportions of different land uses were weaker in the rainy season than that in the dry season. Comparing with other land uses, agriculture and urban lands had a stronger relationship with water quality variables in both the rainy and dry seasons. These results suggest that the aspect of temporal effects should be taken into account for better land-use management.