Wetland Biodiversity Disturbance Evaluation Induced by a Water Conservancy Project in the Flooded Plain of the Huolin River Lower Reaches
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Human intervention into natural landscapes, if even for amelioration of the previous negative effects may strengthen the anthropogenic pressure on the environment. Such a pressure should be found, described, and measured. The reviewed manuscript provides a good case study of this kind. It is based on interesting and broad research, and it is generally well communicated. Some changes and additions are necessary to make this paper as good as it deserves to be.
- Abstract: please, tell more about your findings and reduce the introductory phrases.
- Line 98: please, indicate any source or URL to the Gaofen-2 images.
- Subsection 2.2.2: who are these experts? How they were selected?
- Table 2: please, add full Latin names of the plants.
- Discussion: too abridged! You need to put your findings into the broader context. For instance, you need to generalize them, to conceptualize them, and to compare with the outcomes of some similar studies in the other places of China and the world.
- The list of references is inadequately short. Please, consider and cite more sources, including articles from top international journals published after 2017.
- A geographical map showing the location of the study area in China is necessary.
- Why not to include photos of the discussed landscapes?
- This paper needs language polishing – a help of any English native-speaking colleague is desirable.
Author Response
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Author Response File: 
Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 2 Report
The manuscript sent to the journal "Sustainability" entitled "Wetland biodiversity disturbance evaluation induced by a water conservancy project in the flooded plain of the Huolin River lower reaches" is a very important and valuable supplement to knowledge about wetlands, the more so as it raises new aspects of biodiversity.
INTRODUCTION The manuscript is well written but requires a few wetlands additions.
In MATERIALS AND METHODS, the authors should necessarily correct Fig. 1. In this size, it is hardly legible. Same with the other figures.
RESULTS. Correctly written but require corrections. Overall, there are a lot of tables in the manuscript (21!). Think about reducing this amount or possibly combining several into one whole. Maybe some of the results should be presented interchangeably in the form of graphical charts?
DISCUSSION. By far the weakest part of the submitted manuscript. There is no ... discussion in the DISCUSSION! Comparisons of research results with other authors. This chapter is very short (same volume as CONCLUSIONS) and should either be expanded or combined with the results in RESULTS and DISCUSSION.
It is worth reading and quoting the works from the list below in the introduction to the manuscript, and especially in the poor DISCUSSION:
- On the formation and construction of new wetlands: Berninger K., Koskiaho J., Tattari S. 2012. Constructed wetlands in Finnish agricultural environments: bal-ancing between effective water protection, multi-functionality and socio-economy. Journal of Water and Land Development. Well. 17 pp. 19–29
- A critical look at ecosystem services provided by wetlands: Sutton-Grier, A.E., Sandifer, P.A. Conservation of Wetlands and Other Coastal Ecosystems: a Commentary on their Value to Protect Biodiversity, Reduce Disaster Impacts, and Promote Human Health and Well-Being. Wetlands 39, 1295–1302 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-018-1039-0
- Changes in Arctic wetlands - Nikitina, Oxana I; Dubinina, Valentina G .; Bolgov, Mikhail V .; Parilov, Mikhail P .; Parilova, Tatyana A. 2020. "Environmental Flow Releases for Wetland Biodiversity Conservation in the Amur River Basin" Water 12, no. 10: 2812. https://doi.org/10.3390/w12102812
- Assessment of water treatment using macrophytes: Guardia-Puebla Y., Pérez-Quintero F., Rodríguez-Pérez S., Sánchez-Girón V., Llanes-Cedeño E., Rocha-Hoyos J., Peralta-Zurita D. 2019. Effect of hydraulic loading rate and vegetation on phytoremediation with artificial wetlands associated to natural swimming pools. Journal of Water and Land Development. Well. 40 (I – III) pp. 39–51. DOI: 10.2478 / jwld-2019-0004.
- On the importance of biodiversity in wetlands: Denny, P. Biodiversity and wetlands. Wetlands Ecol Manage 3, 55–611 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00177296
Of course, it is also worth citing a few other works from the above-mentioned journals to enrich your manuscript (especially in DISCUSSION)
It is worth for the authors to correct the submitted manuscript because it is interesting and after thorough corrections it will be worth publishing it in the SUSTAINABILITY journal.
Author Response
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Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 3 Report
This manuscript, by Zhai et al., surveys wetland biodiversity induced by a water conservancy projects in the flooded plain of the Huolin River. They used different biodiversity indicators to evaluate the disturbance.
Overall, the topic is of interest to sustainability (MDPI) readers, and the methods are sound. The manuscript is well written, and the experiments are properly executed. There was very good flow in reading different sections. I would like to suggest accepting the paper in present form.
Author Response
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Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
Round 2
Reviewer 2 Report
2nd review
The manuscript resubmitted to SUSTAINABILITY has been revised and completed with some important points. Unfortunately, it still needs to be corrected and completed.
The thesis discussion is still underdeveloped and insufficiently discusses the described problems in comparison with other researchers. It is very short and needs to be expanded.
It is worth getting acquainted with works that are not cited in the revised manuscript:
Guardia-Puebla Y., Pérez-Quintero F., Rodríguez-Pérez S., Sánchez-Girón V., Llanes-Cedeño E., Rocha-Hoyos J., Peralta-Zurita D. 2019. Effect of hydraulic loading rate and vegetation on phytoremediation with artificial wetlands associated to natural swimming pools. Journal of Water and Land Development. Well. 40 (I - III) pp. 39–51. DOI: 10.2478 / jwld-2019-0004.
Nikitina, Oxana I; Dubinina, Valentina G .; Bolgov, Mikhail V .; Parilov, Mikhail P .; Parilova, Tatyana A. 2020. "Environmental Flow Releases for Wetland Biodiversity Conservation in the Amur River Basin" Water 12, no. 10: 2812. https://doi.org/10.3390/w12102812
Hopefully the authors will introduce these additions, which will add value to the work!
Author Response
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Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
