Soil and water conservation techniques are widely used to reduce water and soil loss through engineering, tillage and biological measures in TSA. The conservation objects of the techniques include sloping farmland, barren land and eroded gullies [30,31,32].
During the past few decades, various water and soil conservation techniques have been applied in TSA. For example, due to the implementation of the project of returning farmland to forestland or grassland and comprehensive control of soil erosion, water and soil loss area in South China have decreased by 30-40% since the 1980s.
In this paper, we critically review the existing literature regarding water and soil conservation techniques applied in TSA and systematically summarize these techniques and the related mechanisms, as well as compare the efficiency of techniques on soil and water loss control.
The effects of soil and water conservation forests on conserving soil and water are reflected mainly in alleviating surface runoff scour and maintaining or recovering soil fertility.