The rise in global average surface temperature has promoted the advancement of spring vegetation phenology. However, the response of spring vegetation phenology to different temperature parameters varies. The Mongolian Plateau, one of the largest grasslands in the world, has green-up dates (GUDs) with unclear sensitivity to different temperature parameters. To address this issue, we investigated the responses of GUDs to different temperature parameters in the Mongolian Plateau grasslands. The results show that GUDs responded significantly differently to changes in near-surface temperature (TMP), near-surface temperature maximum (TMX), near-surface temperature minimum (TMN), and diurnal temperature range (DTR). GUDs advanced as TMP, TMX, and TMN increased, with TMN having a more significant effect, whereas increases in DTR inhibited the advancement of GUDs. GUDs were more sensitive to TMX and TMN than to TMP. The sensitivity of GUDs to DTR showed an increasing trend from 1982 to 2015 and showed this parameter’s great importance to GUDs. Our results also show that the spatial and temporal distributions of temperature sensitivity are only related to temperature conditions in climatic zones instead of whether they are arid.

Water resources have become a major factor limiting the sustainable development of China’s economy and society, and at the same time China’s water resources are developed and utilized in a relatively sloppy manner, China is facing multiple pressures of population, resources and environment, and the problems of water shortage, water environment deterioration and flood disaster prevention are becoming increasingly prominent. The rapid development of economic and social demand for water resources is increasing, and the people’s desire to improve the ecology and environment is becoming more and more urgent. How to fully consider the sustainable use of water resources, effectively solve the contradiction between water demand and supply, development and protection, improve the level of planning and scientific decision-making, promote economic development and water carrying capacity to adapt to accelerate the transformation of economic growth and structural adjustment is of great importance.