A large part of China can be classified as karst area, which covers around 3.44 million square kilometers, accounting for one third of China's landmass. Due to natural and human factors, in these areas, various problems exist in geological environment and hydrological ecology. These problems include rocky desertification and geological hazards such as subsidence and flood that pose great threats to the properties and human lives along the down- streams of rivers and to the safety of water conservancy works. All these problems have hindered the economic and social development. In the paper, the author describes the types, features and distribution of rocky desertification in the karst areas in the southwestern part of China. The problems occurred recently are also discussed, including the impact of irrational land use on water quality of underground rivers, damage of surface water in karst areas as a result of excessive human and livestock drinking water exploitation and the geological hazards caused by the exploitation of underground water. Suggestions are made for preventing rocky desertification and protecting the ecological environment in the karst areas.
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