STUDYING GROUNDWATER MOVEMENT IS IMPORTANT TO PRESERVE THE GOBI ECOSYSTEM

B. Ariunaa

As of 2020, the desertification assessment for Mongolia revealed that 76.9% of the country's total land area, equivalent to 120.3 million hectares, has experienced degradation. Of that, 4.7% is very severely degraded, and 18.6% is severely degraded. Another study also found that between 50% and 70% of the land in Dornogobi, Dundgobi, Umnugobi, Gobi-Sumber, Gobi-Altai, Bayankhongor, Uvurkhangai, and Tuv aimags is affected by desertification and land degradation.

Research indicates that the Gobi region is significantly affected by desertification. Although the Gobi is generally recognized as arid with limited water and moisture availability, this region in Mongolia exhibits some notable features. In certain areas, soil water levels are relatively close to the surface, and springs can be found.

Additionally, vegetation includes prominent broom grass and meadow species. Some parts of the region also support desert plants such as saxaul, tamarisk, poplar, and oleaster.

Therefore, the Gobi should not be considered a desert in the traditional sense, as it is not an environment entirely devoid of life. Rather, it includes areas with moisture embedded within the desert ecosystem. According to scientist N. Manibazar, it is appropriate to refer to these moist areas with broom grass as tsaidam.

Scientists have identified an independent botanical system in these areas. It is widely acknowledged that maintaining the balance of the Gobi ecosystem depends on preserving these distinct landscape ecosystems. This is a crucial aspect of effective arid land management.

The Swiss Development Agency conducted a study on water and groundwater movement in the Gobi region, producing a detailed report in 2020. It notes that 362 rivers and springs dried up in Mongolia in 2022. The change is particularly pronounced in the Gobi region, especially in the southern areas, according to the agency's findings.

Additionally, due to limited knowledge and understanding of hydrology, accurately assessing the quantity, spatial distribution, and duration of the impact on groundwater caused by mining is very challenging.

In this context, $3.23 million from the Mining Infrastructure Investment Support Project, funded by the World Bank and the Australian Agency for International Development, was allocated to enhance awareness and knowledge about groundwater management.

Scientists have begun to express the opinion that studying water resources and groundwater movement-crucial to the Gobi region's ecosystem-will not only help prepare for climate change but also provide better-targeted measures for implementation in specific areas.

Climate change not only highlights the Gobi's water issues but also significantly impacts the degradation of vegetation cover, soil structure, and food supply ecosystems.

In the Gobi, rivers with constant flows are absent, and lakes rely on summer rains and water from deep cracks and fissures fed by these rains. However, annual rainfall has decreased by 9.4%, and the number of hot days has increased by 16 to 25, according to the National Agency for Meteorology, and Environmental Monitoring. The acceleration of climate change is depleting surface water resources, thinning vegetation cover, promoting weed growth, accelerating soil erosion, expanding desertification, and leading to the degradation of ecosystems.

In addition to reduced precipitation and more hot days, human activities also contribute to ecosystem degradation. The vegetation cover of sand, often referred to as the "doctor" of Gobi soil, has been significantly diminished. The movement of bare, loose sand signals imminent danger, as it transforms lakes, springs, and grasslands into deserts. The most effective strategy for preserving the Gobi's fragile ecosystem and halting sand migration is the proper management of pastures. Protecting the sand vegetation layer has become a top priority. Grasslands cover 54% of the Earth's surface, and research indicates that if half of the world's pastures are degraded, it would jeopardize one-sixth of the global food supply and one-third of the world's carbon sinks. This finding is also relevant to Mongolia.

In addition to the saxaul forests dependent on underground water, elm trees growing in dried riverbeds, and oases with poplar and tamarisk, effective pasture management is a key strategy for reducing desertification and ecosystem degradation in the Gobi region.

At the initiative of Mongolia, the United Nations (UN) has declared 2026 the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists, reflecting the important role healthy rangelands play in creating a sustainable environment, economic growth and resilient livelihoods for communities across the world (IYRP 2026).

The declaration urges UN member states to invest in sustainable rangeland management, rehabilitate degraded land, enhance market access for nomadic herders, improve livestock breeding services, and increase knowledge about rangelands and pastoralists.

The 2026 International Year will coincide With the 17th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, which will be held in Mongolia.

The primary focus of combating climate change in the Gobi region should be on protecting pastures. Researchers suggest that the most effective way to safeguard grasslands is to ensure that the entire area is covered with grassland vegetation and its associated ecosystem, rather than relying solely on a few forested areas dependent on groundwater. Bare land, devoid of vegetation, cannot support not only humans but even animals, making it highly vulnerable to desertification.

To assess the state of vegetation, professional organizations recommend conducting a comprehensive evaluation of vegetation density near mining operations and groundwater sources, assess changes in pastures and associated vegetation cover, and examination of the impacts of human activities on vegetation.