Spatially Explicit Evaluation of the Suitability and Quality Improvement Potential of Forest and Grassland Habitat in the Yanhe River Basin

Zhihong Yao, Xiaoyang Sun, Peiqing Xiao (), Zhuangzhuang Liu, Menghao Yang and Peng Jiao
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Zhihong Yao: College of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Xiaoyang Sun: College of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Peiqing Xiao: Key Laboratory of Soil and Water Conservation on the Loess Plateau of Ministry of Water Resources, Yellow River Institute of Hydraulic Research, Zhengzhou 450003, China
Zhuangzhuang Liu: College of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Menghao Yang: College of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Peng Jiao: Key Laboratory of Soil and Water Conservation on the Loess Plateau of Ministry of Water Resources, Yellow River Institute of Hydraulic Research, Zhengzhou 450003, China

Land, 2025, vol. 14, issue 5, 1-17

Abstract: Habitat suitability assessment for forest and grassland ecosystems is a critical component of ecological restoration and land use planning in the Loess Plateau, aiming to advance soil and water conservation and foster sustainable ecological environment development. Despite progress in vegetation restoration, systematic evaluations of habitat suitability in complex geomorphic regions like the Loess Plateau remain scarce, particularly in balancing hydrological and ecological trade-offs. The Yanhe River Basin (7725 km 2 ), a sediment-prone tributary of the Yellow River, exemplifies the challenges of soil erosion and semi-arid climatic constraints, making it a critical case for evaluating restoration strategies. This study employed a comprehensive approach utilizing Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), Geographic Detector, mathematical statistics, and other methods. An evaluation indicator system and methodology were established to assess the suitability of forest and grassland habitats in the Yanhe River Basin, evaluating the suitability and quality improvement potential under the current land use conditions. The results indicate: (1) The dominant factors influencing the suitable distribution of forests include photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), soil total phosphorus content, annual precipitation, and elevation. For grasslands, the dominant factors include photosynthetically active radiation, annual average temperature, elevation, and annual precipitation. (2) In the watershed, forestland and grassland areas classified as moderately suitable or higher cover 1064.9 km 2 and 4196.9 km 2 , accounting for 91.9% and 94.7% of their total respective areas, indicating a generally rational spatial allocation of forest and grassland ecosystems. (3) The improvable area for forests measures 366 km 2 (34.4% of moderately or higher suitability zones), with most already meeting coverage thresholds. In contrast, grasslands have an improvable area of 2491.6 km 2 (59.4% of moderately or higher suitability zones), where over half of the area remains below coverage thresholds corresponding to their habitat conditions. (4) Forests can adopt natural restoration-focused low-intensity interventions through strengthened closure management, while grasslands require spatially tailored measures—such as precipitation interception and enhanced stewardship—targeting suitability-based potential grades, collectively achieving overall improvement in grassland vegetation coverage. This study represents the first systematic evaluation of forest–grassland habitat suitability in the Yanhe River Basin, elucidating its spatial distribution patterns and providing critical insights for watershed-scale ecological restoration.

Keywords: suitability assessment; the Loess Plateau region; geographic detector; spatial heterogeneity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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