Coupling Changes in Runoff and Sediment and Their Relationships with Erosion Energy and Underlying Surface in the Wuding River Basin, China

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Dear Authors! I with interest read you manuscript entitled: “Coupling changes of runoff and sediment in the Wuding River Basin and its relationships with erosion energy and underlying surface”. The topic of article is relevant because it also include the analyses of effects of climate change and land-use change on runoff and sediment load in river basin. This topic is significant and complex.

For example, in case of climate change: alterations in precipitation patterns and temperatures can impact runoff; increased temperatures might lead to more evaporation and less water availability, reducing overall runoff; changes in precipitation patterns, including more intense rainfall events or prolonged droughts, can cause fluctuations in runoff, influencing sediment transport.

In case of land-use change: urbanization, deforestation, and agriculture affect the landscape’s ability to retain and filter water; urbanization reduces infiltration and increases surface runoff, potentially transporting more sediment; deforestation can lead to increased erosion and sedimentation, altering the sediment load in river basins.

Thus, understanding these interactions is crucial for effective watershed management and the development of strategies to mitigate the impacts of these changes on river basins. Modeling studies and long-term monitoring can help evaluate these impacts and guide planning for sustainable land use and climate adaptation strategies. The strong point of article, that authors analyzed a long period (from 1960 to 2020).

The presented for review article fits to Land journal scope, also it suitable for consideration in other MDPI journals like Water, Hydrology, Soil Systems, Sustainability, etc. At almost the article is “average” written, and I have some comments and suggestions:

1.     In the Title of article suggested to add name of country and part (NW, etc) or region, because Wuding River is known only for local researchers.

2.     L. 23. In Keywords better to avoid repeating of “words” which were already mentioned in the Title of article.

3.     L. 87. What is average and higher rainfall intensity? You know that only intensive rainfall lead to surface runoff and erosion. What about snowmelt erosion in your study region?

4.     Figure 1. Suggest to add an extra picture inside Figure where the study basin located within China.

5.     L. 156. Smirnov instead Simirnov.

6.     In Results or Discussion Section I suggest to add graphic of changing precipitation from 1960 to 2020 and discuss it. Also in Discussion section better to add studies and compare your result with other regions/countries: how the climate and land-use change affect on runoff and sediment load in river basins. You could considering the following articles: Runoff, sediment load and land use/cover change relationship: the case of Maybar sub-watershed, South Wollo, Ethiopia; Contemporary Long-Term Trends in Water Discharge, Suspended Sediment Load, and Erosion Intensity in River Basins of the North Caucasus Region, SW Russia; Impact of climate and land-use changes on hydrological processes and sediment yield - a case study of the Be River catchment, Vietnam; etc.

Author Response

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Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 2 Report

The article focuses on the coupling relationship between runoff and sediment in the Wuding River Basin, and is divided into three time periods accordingly. The effects of runoff erosion energy and vegetation cover on this coupling relationship are analyzed accordingly. Overall, the research methodology is reasonable and the conclusions obtained from the study are credible. But I'd like to make two more suggestions that I hope will help in revising the article.

Firstly, the introduction needs some modification. In the introduction section, the reader wants to know about the novelty and innovation of the study, but in that section the authors did not do very well. This is an article for international readers and needs to have some international background, but the authors only seem to describe some experiences from China. This is far from enough.

Secondly, the extension of the discussion section was insufficient. The discussion section is just a presentation of the findings and seems to fit in the previous section. In the discussion section, what readers want to see is whether the authors' findings are similar to other studies. Or if the conclusions are different and what could be the cause of this difference. In addition, the extent to which the conclusions obtained by the authors actually shed any light on past policy or future planning, as the authors have sorted out changes in the relationship over a longer period of time, and what caused this change also needs to be stated. At present, what the authors have done seems to be merely a presentation of data, but the depth of analysis is far from adequate.

Author Response

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Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Round 2

Reviewer 2 Report

The author has made sufficient changes in response to the suggestions and I find this version acceptable.