Assessment of Conservation Effectiveness of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau Nature Reserves from a Human Footprint Perspective with Global Lessons

Mingjun Jiang, Xinfei Zhao, Run Wang, Le Yin and Baolei Zhang ()
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Mingjun Jiang: School of Geography and Environment, Shandong Normal University, Jinan 250014, China
Xinfei Zhao: School of Geography and Environment, Shandong Normal University, Jinan 250014, China
Run Wang: Shandong Provincial Territorial Spatial Ecological Restoration Center, Jinan 250014, China
Le Yin: School of Geography and Environment, Shandong Normal University, Jinan 250014, China
Baolei Zhang: School of Geography and Environment, Shandong Normal University, Jinan 250014, China

Land, 2023, vol. 12, issue 4, 1-17

Abstract: The intensity of human pressure (HP) has an important impact on the biodiversity and ecosystem services of nature reserves (NRs), and the conflict and the coordination between NRs and human activities are now key issues to solve in the construction of NR systems. This study improved and applied a human footprint (HF) model that considers population density, land use, night light, grazing intensity, and road construction as indicators of human activity to evaluate the effectiveness of NRs in the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau in mitigating HP from 2000 to 2020. The results indicated that during this period, the average HP in the national NRs of the plateau increased from 1.47646 to 1.76687, where values were generally high in the east and low in the west. The average value in wetland NRs was the largest and had the smallest growth rate, while that in desert NRs was the smallest and had the largest growth rate. From 2000 to 2020, the average HP in the core areas, buffer areas, and experimental areas of the NRs increased by 0.12969, 0.29909, and 0.44244, respectively. It is a challenge for the Chinese government to strengthen the ability of NRs to mitigate HP on the wetland reserves and experimental zones in the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau region.

Keywords: protection effectiveness; nature reserve; human pressure; Qinghai–Tibet Plateau (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jlands:v:12:y:2023:i:4:p:869-:d:1121373

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