Identifying Conservation Priority Areas Through the Integration of Biodiversity, Ecosystem Services and Landscape Patterns in the Wujiang River Basin

Yanjun Chen, Junyi Yang, Wenting Zhang, Xiao Guan (), Libo Pan, Meng Liu and Nengwen Xiao ()
Additional contact information
Yanjun Chen: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100012, China
Junyi Yang: School of Ecology & Environment, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China
Wenting Zhang: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100012, China
Xiao Guan: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100012, China
Libo Pan: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100012, China
Meng Liu: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100012, China
Nengwen Xiao: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100012, China

Land, 2025, vol. 14, issue 12, 1-20

Abstract: Systematic biodiversity and ecosystem service (ES) conservation is vital for ecological sustainability and human well-being. This study combines MaxEnt, Zonation, InVEST, and MSPA models to identify Conservation Priority Areas (CPAs) in the Wujiang River Basin (WJRB), integrating biodiversity hotspots, ESs, and landscape connectivity. Results reveal CPAs span 1.13 × 10 4 km 2 (primarily downstream), but existing natural reserves (NRs) cover only 24.86% of these critical zones, leaving over 75% unprotected in this region. Current NRs occupy 0.62 × 10 4 km 2 , with 5.82% of the basin (mainly upstream) available for targeted expansion. Spatial analysis reveals mismatches, such as some NRs protecting low-value ecological areas, resulting in imbalanced coverage. Expanding NRs across the board is less effective than adjusting protection scope or management strategies in areas of spatial mismatch, based on identified CPAs. This can involve establishing new reserves and appropriately relaxing land-use restrictions to allow compatible activities within them. New conservation planning should prioritize large, interconnected CPA regions to enhance landscape coherence. Simultaneously, integrating ecological compensation mechanisms can align protection goals with local livelihood improvements, fostering community engagement. This approach addresses critical gaps and enhances conservation efficiency by strategically directing resources toward high-value, vulnerable ecosystems. The methodology offers a replicable framework for balancing ecological preservation and human needs in river basin management.

Keywords: conservation gap; systematic conservation planning; southern China; Zonation software; InVEST model (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/12/2335/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/12/2335/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jlands:v:14:y:2025:i:12:p:2335-:d:1804835

Access Statistics for this article

Land is currently edited by Ms. Carol Ma

More articles in Land from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().