Small agricultural catchment (263 ha) in a Mediterranean environment with 20 years of data: impact of global change (climate and anthropogenic activities as agricultural practices) on water and erosion balance, fluxes and quality. Soils: Calcic Cambisols (63.5%), Regosols (25.5%), Eutric Regosols (9.6%) and Chromic Vertisols (1.4%). Main cultures: cereals and leguminous. Continuous automatic measurements at nested scales from plot to catchment outlet (surface runoff, shallow groundwaters, surface-atmosphere fluxes) and continuous monitoring of anthropogenic activities . More information available on http://www.obs-omere.org. Kamech experimental catchment belongs to the French SOERE-RBV Network.

The HOBE experimental catchment is located in the western part of Denmark. The topography of the catchment is relatively flat. The surface elevations in the eastern part of the catchment are about 125 m above sea level at the Jutland ridge and gently decreasing to sea level elevations towards the coast. Alluvial outwash deposits in the form of sand and gravel dominate the central part of the catchment. Towards east, glacial deposits of moraine till are present with a higher content of clay. Also the remnants from the Saale glaciation have higher clay content and the dominant sediment type at these locations is clayey sand. Overall the top sediments are highly permeable with little water retention capability and the stream flow is therefore dominated by groundwater inflow. Based on a classification of the topsoil four soil classes can be identified in the catchment. The by far most dominating soil type is fine/coarse sandy soil. The Quaternary deposits have a thickness less than 50 m in the eastern and central part of the area increasing up to 250 m towards west. The Quaternary deposits are underlain by Miocene sediments in the form of alternating layers of marine, lacustrine and fluvial deposits forming layers of clay, silt, sand and gravel. Further below thick layers of Paleogene clay are found with little permeability and thus acting as a lower impermeable boundary for the aquifer systems. The sand and gravel layers from the Quaternary and Miocene periods form interconnected aquifer systems. The land surface of the catchment is predominantly agriculture and due to the sandy soil characteristics extensive irrigation of the agricultural crops takes place. Based on satellite data the land-use distribution is estimated as follows: grain and corn (55%), grass (30%), forest (7%), heath (5%), urban (2%) and other (1%). The climate of the observatory is of maritime origin and influenced by weather systems coming from the Atlantic Ocean. The weather conditions are variable with frequent precipitation. The prevailing winds from west lead to relatively mild winters and cool summers. The mean annual precipitation is about 1050 mm/year. It varies over the season with highest amounts in the months of October-December and lowest in the months of April-May. The mean annual temperature is 8.20C. The highest mean monthly temperature is in August (16.50C) and the lowest in January (1.40C). Precipitation in the form of snow is highly variable from year to year; in some years, no snowfall occurs and in others, it may stay on the ground for months.

The site established in 1958. We can still find in the site the remains of terraces from the Nabatean agriculture runoff. The main research topics that being studied in the site are: biodiversity, climate change, runoff hydrology

The Yucheng Comprehensive Experiment Station (YCES) of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) is located at the irrigation district of the Yellow River Basin in the Huang-Huai-Hai Plain, also called North China Plain. Physiognomy is characterized as hinterland covered mainly by fluvo-aquic soil (Fluvisol or cambisal) and salinized fluvo-aquic soil in the Yellow River Alluvial Plain. This region is dominated by warm-temperate semi-humid monsoon climate with ample energy and water resources. Historically, natural disasters such as drought, waterlogging, salinization, and wind erosion frequently occurred, resulting in vulnerable ecological environment and low grain production. Integrated improvements and managements were deployed in last several decades, and this region has become suitable for planting winter wheat, corn, cotton, and soybean with high yields in the Huang-Huai-Hai Plain. Research objectives and contents Objectives:  regional sustainable agriculture  rational utilization of natural resources such as water, land, climate, biomass, etc. Contents:  conducting long-term observations and experiments  understanding the mechanism of energy transfer and mass cycle in farmlands  developing models from point to regional scales  improving and developing instruments and measurement methods  improving agro-ecosystem managements  demonstrating research results and technologies Research achievements: Outstanding research results and massive experiment data have been achieved at the YCES. The achievements cover research fields of farmland evapotranspiration, crop water use, water transfer mechanism, experimental remote sensing techniques, regional agriculture demonstration, and technology transfer. More than 1,000 papers, 15 monograph books, and 5 data sets have been published. A number of awards were granted by national, CAS, and international academic organizations, for example,  Agriculture Prize granted by the Third World Academy of Sciences  Science and Technology Progress Award by Chinese Academy of Sciences  National Top Award of Science and Technology Progress

The Cairngorms National Park is one of 15 National Parks in the UK (one of two in Scotland) and is Britain's largest National Park (4,528 km2). It is the location for some of the most spectacular landscapes in Britain and is home to an incredible diversity of wildlife and plants. http://cairngorms.co.uk/the-park/facts-figures/ The aims of the National Park are: • To conserve and enhance the natural and cultural heritage of the area; • To promote sustainable use of the natural resources of the area; • To promote understanding and enjoyment (including enjoyment in the form of recreation) of the special qualities of the area by the public; • To promote sustainable economic and social development of the area’s communities. Cairngorms National Park, seven broad habitats can be identified: • Enclosed farmlands • Woodlands • Open waters (rivers, lochs, wetlands and floodplains) • Mountains • Moorland • Semi-natural grasslands • Urban • Population of c17,500 • 25.8% of population over 60 (higher than Scottish average) • Average health index in top 25% of Scotland (based on deprivation indices) • Extensive core paths network • 55 Munros including 5 summits over 4000 feet • 3 ski centres • National Cycle Network Route 7 • 1 Long Distance Route (Speyside Way) • Relatively low atmospheric pollution • Annual precipitation over 2250mm on summits and under 900mm in straths • Average annual snow cover 200 days on summits and 50 days on low-ground • Prevailing winds from south-west