Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
6.0
3.0
Journals
Water
Special Issues
China Water Forum, 4th Edition
water-logo
Submit to Special Issue Submit Abstract to Special Issue Review for Water Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

► Journal Menu

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser
share announcement

China Water Forum, 4th Edition

A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Hydrology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 March 2026 | Viewed by 6021

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Qiting Zuo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Water Conservancy and Transportation, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
Interests: human–water harmony; climate change adaptation; integrated water resource management; interconnected river system network; high-quality development for Yellow River; water environment protection
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Fuqiang Wang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Water Resources, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou, China
Interests: ecological hydrology; wetland protection and restoration; water resources planning and management; eco-hydrological process of wetland
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Jiaqi Zhai

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research (IWHR), Beijing, China
Interests: water cycle model; mechanism of water resources attenuation; efficient utilization of water resources; eco-hydrological process in arid area
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Xiuyu Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Water Resources, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou, China
Interests: water resources dynamic carrying capacity; water security under climate change; high efficient utilization of water resources; utilization of rainwater and flood resources in river basin; construction and application of water cycle model
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Dunxian She

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Water Resources and Hydropower Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
Interests: climate change and extreme hydrological events; urban hydrology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Lei Zou

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
Interests: satellite remote sensing; hydrological modeling; climate and land use change
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Rong Gan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Water Conservancy Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
Interests: distributed hydrological model; effects of climate change on hydrological processes; uncertainties of Hydrological Models; baseflow separation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Zengliang Luo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Geography and Information Engineering, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
Interests: hydrological modelling; water budget assessment; precipitation merging technologies and products based on multiple remote sensing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues, 

Affected by global climate change and rapid socio-economic development, China suffers from severe water security pressure, especially in terms of water shortages, flood disasters, and water-related ecological and environmental problems. The solution to these problems requires comprehensive research across different disciplines. 

Focusing on discussing China’s water issues, we carried out a series of academic exchanges over a long period. The well-known “China Water Forum”, launched in 2003 and held annually, focuses on discussing solutions to China’s water issues. By 2024, the forum had been successfully held for 21 sessions. “Water Science Development Forum”, launched in 2007 and held annually, focuses on promoting the multidisciplinary integration of other disciplines with water science research. By 2024, the forum had been successfully held for 17 sessions. “Water Science Lectures”, launched in 2021, is an open, shared, and non-profit public welfare lecture. A report will be arranged for each lecture, which will be given and presided over by invited famous researchers. 

The Editorial Department of Water Journal cooperates with “China Water Forum”, “Water Science Development Forum”, and “Water Science Lectures” to set up a series of columns. At least one column is planned each year currently. The column established in 2025 is “China Water Forum, 4th Edition”. We welcome scholars and graduate students participating in the above-mentioned conferences, as well as scholars who study water issues in China, to submit full texts of their unpublished manuscripts. The received papers will be professionally peer-reviewed and recommended for publication by the Editorial Board. 

We invite submissions on, but not limited to, the following topics:

（1）Climate change and hydrology (Director: Dunxian She, Rong Gan);

（2）Water problems and human–water relationship control (Director: Zengliang Luo, Qiting Zuo);

（3）Water environment and ecology (Director: Fuqiang Wang, Jiaqi Zhai);

（4）Water information technology and modeling (Director: Lei Zou, Xiuyu Zhang).

Prof. Dr. Qiting Zuo
Prof. Dr. Fuqiang Wang
Prof. Dr. Jiaqi Zhai
Prof. Dr. Xiuyu Zhang
Prof. Dr. Dunxian She
Dr. Lei Zou
Dr. Rong Gan
Prof. Dr. Zengliang Luo
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Water is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • climate change and hydrological evolution
  • water resources evaluation, planning, and management
  • flood, drought and water security
  • human–water relationship and comprehensive control
  • ecohydrology and water environment protection
  • groundwater resources and environment
  • water information technology and digital twin basins
  • national water network and major water conservancy projects
  • water policy and water control strategy
  • “carbon peak and neutrality” target and water resources

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Related Special Issues

Published Papers (4 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

12 pages, 2295 KB  
Article
Hydrochemical Characteristics and Geothermal Origin Mechanism Analysis of Geothermal Water in the Xinding Basin, China
by Lin Bai, Hengshuai Gao, Wenbao Li, Sheng Zhang, Yan Wang and Jinlei Bai
Water 2026, 18(3), 346; https://doi.org/10.3390/w18030346 - 30 Jan 2026
Viewed by 154
Abstract
The Xinding Basin is located in the high-heat-flow geothermal anomaly zone in the north-central part of China. Revealing the geothermal origin mechanism of the basin is of great significance for filling the measurement gap in heat flow values in China and providing a [...] Read more.
The Xinding Basin is located in the high-heat-flow geothermal anomaly zone in the north-central part of China. Revealing the geothermal origin mechanism of the basin is of great significance for filling the measurement gap in heat flow values in China and providing a scientific basis for the evaluation and utilization of regional geothermal resources. Based on the hydrogeochemical characteristics of thermal reservoirs and borehole data in the Xinding Basin, this paper analyzes water–rock interaction process between geothermal water and heat reservoirs and discusses the types of geothermal systems in the basin. The results indicate that the fault structures in the basin are well-developed. The hydrochemical type of typical geothermal fields is dominated by the Cl·SO4-Na type. Geothermal water is mainly immature water and receives recharge from shallow cold water with relatively rapid circulation. The discovered magma intrusion residues in the basin indicate that sections of the upper mantle with a shallow burial depth serve as the dynamic heat sources for regional thermal reservoirs. Intense extensional stretching in the Cenozoic Era resulted in high terrestrial heat flow values and an upward arching phenomenon of the Curie isothermal surface in the basin. Neotectonic movement is active in the basin. The regional geothermal reservoirs in the Xinding Basin occur in the glutenite beds of the Cenozoic Erathem and the rock formations of the New Archaean Erathem. The thick-layered Cenozoic loose sediments serve as the thermal cap rocks in this area. An efficient heat-convergent geothermal system integrating a heat source, heat channel, thermal reservoir, and cap rock (the “four-in-one” system) has promoted the formation of geothermal resources in the Xinding Basin. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue China Water Forum, 4th Edition)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

20 pages, 4840 KB  
Article
Hybrid Variational Modal Decomposition-Extreme Learning Machine-Adaptive Boosting Model for Monthly Runoff Prediction
by Li Wu, Junfeng Tian, Zhongfeng Jiang and Yong Wang
Water 2025, 17(21), 3129; https://doi.org/10.3390/w17213129 - 31 Oct 2025
Viewed by 789
Abstract
Monthly runoff prediction plays a crucial role in water resource management, flood prevention, and disaster reduction. This study proposed a novel hybrid model for predicting monthly runoff by combining variational modal decomposition (VMD) with an extreme learning machine (ELM) and adaptive boosting (AdaBoost) [...] Read more.
Monthly runoff prediction plays a crucial role in water resource management, flood prevention, and disaster reduction. This study proposed a novel hybrid model for predicting monthly runoff by combining variational modal decomposition (VMD) with an extreme learning machine (ELM) and adaptive boosting (AdaBoost) algorithm. First, VMD is used to decompose the monthly runoff data, simplifying it and addressing its non-stationarity by extracting subsequences at different frequency scales. Next, the ELM model is applied to each subsequence within the AdaBoost algorithm to enhance prediction accuracy and stability. To contextualise its performance, the proposed model was systematically compared with four representative comparable models (VMD-ELM, ELM-AdaBoost, LSTM, and VMD-TPE-LSTM) using the same training/validation datasets (80% for training and 20% for validation) and evaluation metrics (root mean square error, RMSE; mean absolute percentage error, MAPE). The results indicate that the VMD-ELM-AdaBoost model outperforms all comparative models: at Yanshan Station, it achieves an RMSE of 2.521 mm and MAPE of 8.56% (34.8–45.1% lower RMSE than VMD-ELM, ELM-AdaBoost, and LSTM); at Baiguishan Station, it yields an RMSE of 2.906 mm and MAPE of 9.02% (22.3–42.6% lower RMSE than VMD-TPE-LSTM and other alternatives). This study demonstrates that the VMD-ELM-AdaBoost model balances accuracy, efficiency, and data adaptability, providing a practical tool for monthly runoff prediction in data-limited basins. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue China Water Forum, 4th Edition)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

22 pages, 4464 KB  
Article
Variations in Temperature and Salinity at Different Survey Periods in the Central and Eastern Beibu Gulf and Their Relationship with Circulation Patterns
by Zhijie Chen, Ziqing Wang, Zhi Zeng and Jinwen Liu
Water 2025, 17(18), 2719; https://doi.org/10.3390/w17182719 - 14 Sep 2025
Viewed by 855
Abstract
Utilizing data from the four survey voyages in the Beibu Gulf from 2021 to 2022, this study investigates the variations in water temperature and salinity at different survey periods across its central and eastern regions, analyzing their horizontal and vertical distribution patterns. The [...] Read more.
Utilizing data from the four survey voyages in the Beibu Gulf from 2021 to 2022, this study investigates the variations in water temperature and salinity at different survey periods across its central and eastern regions, analyzing their horizontal and vertical distribution patterns. The research further explores the relationship between these distributions and the gulf’s circulation dynamics, elucidating their underlying formation mechanisms. The results indicate that the variations of water temperature and salinity are obviously different in different periods. Horizontally, spring and summer survey voyages exhibit a transition from high-temperature (max 31.90 °C), low-salinity (min 29.54 PSU) waters in the north to low-temperature (min 21.10 °C), high-salinity (max 34.19 PSU) waters in the south, while autumn and winter survey voyages show low-temperature (min 18.57 °C), low-salinity (min 29.54 PSU) waters in the north shifting to medium-to-low-temperature (21.52–28.20 °C), high-salinity (max 34.19 PSU) waters in the south. Vertically, the spring survey period displays distinct stratification with multiple thermoclines and haloclines in different regions. The summer survey period exhibits the strongest thermohaline gradients, with intensified thermoclines and haloclines accompanied by regional up- and downwelling. In the autumn survey period, vertical mixing homogenizes temperature and salinity, while the winter survey period shows near-complete mixing, effectively eliminating stratification. These patterns are driven by a combination of oceanic dynamics and regional climatic factors, including monsoon forcing, solar radiation, coastal runoff, horizontal circulation, and up-/downwelling processes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue China Water Forum, 4th Edition)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

21 pages, 760 KB  
Review
China’s South-to-North Water Diversion Project: A Review and Reach Beyond China’s Borders
by Yi Jia, Linus Zhang, Jianzhi Niu and Ronny Berndtsson
Water 2025, 17(22), 3275; https://doi.org/10.3390/w17223275 - 16 Nov 2025
Viewed by 3802
Abstract
The South-to-North Water Diversion Project (SNWDP), the world’s largest water transfer initiative, is designed to address northern China’s acute water scarcity by diverting approximately 45 km3 of water annually from the south through three major routes, with completion targeted for 2050. This [...] Read more.
The South-to-North Water Diversion Project (SNWDP), the world’s largest water transfer initiative, is designed to address northern China’s acute water scarcity by diverting approximately 45 km3 of water annually from the south through three major routes, with completion targeted for 2050. This review demonstrates that the SNWDP has already improved water security for over 150 million people, stabilized groundwater, and supported agricultural and urban development, but also presents significant challenges, including escalating costs, large-scale resettlement, and substantial environmental concerns such as ecosystem alteration, salinity intrusion, pollutant transfer, and risks to biodiversity and water quality. While mitigation and adaptive management efforts are ongoing, their long-term effectiveness remains uncertain. Notably, the SNWDP’s influence extends beyond China: by enhancing food production self-sufficiency, it can help stabilize global food markets during concurrent droughts and serves as a model—albeit a debated one—for large-scale water management and governance. The project’s hydropolitical and geopolitical dimensions, especially regarding the planned western route and potential transboundary impacts, underscore the need for international dialog and monitoring. Overall, the SNWDP exemplifies both the opportunities and dilemmas of 21st-century megaprojects, with its legacy dependent on balancing economic, environmental, and social trade-offs and on transparent, participatory governance to ensure sustainable outcomes for China and the global community. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue China Water Forum, 4th Edition)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-4
Back to TopTop