Evaluation of Spatiotemporal Changes in Cropland Quantity and Quality with Multi-Source Remote Sensing

Han Liu, Yu Wang, Lingling Sang, Caisheng Zhao (), Tengyun Hu (), Hongtao Liu, Zheng Zhang, Shuyu Wang, Shuangxi Miao and Zhengshan Ju
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Han Liu: Key Laboratory of Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation, Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Center, Ministry of Natural Resources, Beijing 100035, China
Yu Wang: National Disaster Reduction Center of China, Ministry of Emergency Management, Beijing 100124, China
Lingling Sang: Key Laboratory of Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation, Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Center, Ministry of Natural Resources, Beijing 100035, China
Caisheng Zhao: Key Laboratory of Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation, Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Center, Ministry of Natural Resources, Beijing 100035, China
Tengyun Hu: Beijing Municipal Institute of City Planning and Design, Beijing 100045, China
Hongtao Liu: Key Laboratory of Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation, Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Center, Ministry of Natural Resources, Beijing 100035, China
Zheng Zhang: Key Laboratory of Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation, Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Center, Ministry of Natural Resources, Beijing 100035, China
Shuyu Wang: College of Land Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China
Shuangxi Miao: College of Land Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China
Zhengshan Ju: Key Laboratory of Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation, Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Center, Ministry of Natural Resources, Beijing 100035, China

Land, 2023, vol. 12, issue 9, 1-22

Abstract: Timely cropland information is crucial for ensuring food security and promoting sustainable development. Traditional field survey methods are time-consuming and costly, making it difficult to support rapid monitoring of large-scale cropland changes. Furthermore, most existing studies focus on cropland evaluation from a single aspect such as quantity or quality, and thus cannot comprehensively reveal spatiotemporal characteristics of cropland. In this study, a method for evaluating the quantity and quality of cropland using multi-source remote sensing-derived data was proposed and effectively applied in the black soil region in Northeast China. Evaluation results showed that the area of cropland increased significantly in the study area between 2010 and 2018, and the proportion of cropland increased by 1.17%. Simultaneously, cropland patches became larger and landscape connectivity improved. Most of the gained cropland was concentrated in the northeast and west, resulting in a shift in the gravity center of cropland to the northeast direction. Among land converted into cropland, unused land, grassland, and forest were the main sources, accounting for 36.38%, 31.47%, and 16.94% respectively. The quality of cropland in the study area generally improved. The proportion of low-quality cropland decreased by 7.17%, while the proportions of high-quality and medium-quality cropland increased by 5.65% and 5.17%, respectively. Specifically, the quality of cropland improved strongly in the east, improved slightly in the southwest, and declined in the north. Production capacity and soil fertility were key factors impacting cropland quality with obstacle degrees of 36.22% and 15.64%, respectively. Overall, the obtained results were helpful for a comprehensive understanding of spatiotemporal changes in cropland and driving factors and can provide guidance for cropland protection and management. The proposed method demonstrated promising reliability and application potential, which can provide a reference for other cropland evaluation studies.

Keywords: cropland evaluation; cropland quality; spatiotemporal changes; remote sensing; black soil region; Northeast China; cropland protection (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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