WANG Hao, HU Peng

Abstract: As the basic unit of the water cycle, the basin has received increasing attention based on its role in ecological protection and restoration. With the increasing impact of human activities on the water cycle of the basin, the water cycle has gradually evolved into a "natural-artificial" dualistic model, which means that the structure and function of the ecosystem in the basin have also shown the characteristics of the natural-society complex. Based on the analysis of the relationship between the natural-artificial dualistic water cycle and the ecological protection of the basin, this paper puts forward the main principles and focuses on maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem of the Yellow River basin in terms of spatial pattern and time based on the understanding of the ecological background and characteristics of the Yellow River basin. In view of the key areas of ecological protection in the Three-River Headwater Region, the Qilian Mountains-Qinling Mountains Region, the Loess Plateau, and the Yellow River Delta, the main ecological protection problems existing in each area are analyzed. The protection and governance measures in the next stage are proposed. The measures suggest that at the cost of consuming a certain amount of water resources, three goals should be achieved, namely, lessening the extreme value of the water cycle, greatly reducing the water used for sand flushing, and restoring the natural ecology. It will promote ecological protection and high-quality development in the Yellow River basin.

Keywords: basin ecological conservation; dualistic water cycle; ecosystem; ecological integrity; the Yellow River basin