Assessment of Land Degradation at the Local Level in Response to SDG 15.3: A Case Study of the Inner Mongolia Region from 2000 to 2020

Zhanxing Li, Yanhui Wang (), Junwu Dong, Xiaoyue Luo, Hao Wu and Yuan Wan
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Zhanxing Li: College of Resources Environment and Tourism, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
Yanhui Wang: College of Resources Environment and Tourism, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
Junwu Dong: College of Resources Environment and Tourism, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
Xiaoyue Luo: College of Resources Environment and Tourism, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
Hao Wu: College of Resources Environment and Tourism, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
Yuan Wan: College of Resources Environment and Tourism, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 5, 1-21

Abstract: SDG15.3 aims to achieve “Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN)”, but its only indicator (SDG15.3.1) is designed for national-level assessment and monitoring, and is not suitable for local-level applications. Thus, taking Inner Mongolia as the study area, this paper provides a localized reform of SDG15.3.1 based on the local context, and assesses the progress of SDG15.3 in the study area (2000-2020) at multiple levels (indicator, specific, and overall). The Moran’I and Standard Deviation Ellipse (SDE) are also utilized to analyze the spatial–temporal change of land degradation. The results show that as of 2020, the proportion of land degradation and improvement areas to the total area was 7.51% and 9.42%, respectively. Inner Mongolia had generally met the goal of SDG15.3, but on the indicator level, water erosion still falls far below the standard of SDG15.3. Additionally, at the spatial level, 3 out of 12 municipalities and 71 out of 103 counties had not achieved LDN, with a pattern of low LDN levels in the southeast and high in the northwest at the county scale. This indicates that the progress of SDG15.3 is extremely uneven both at the indicator and spatial levels. Thus, it is essential to continue to promote land degradation management in Inner Mongolia to achieve LDN in the entire area and across all aspects.

Keywords: sustainable development goal 15.3; land degradation neutrality (LDN); local level; localized assessment; spatial–temporal distribution (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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