An Evaluation Framework for Regional Ecological Security Pattern Quality: A Case Study of the Taihang–Qinling Intersection Zone, China

Yihao Chen, Jiwei Li (), Qingqing Ye, Shuai Zhang, Xiaojiao Meng, Weiqiang Chen, Guangxing Ji, Weikang He, Hejie Wei and Long Guo
Additional contact information
Yihao Chen: College of Resources and Environment, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Jiwei Li: College of Resources and Environment, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Qingqing Ye: School of Engineering Management and Real Estate, Henan University of Economics and Law, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Shuai Zhang: College of Resources and Environment, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Xiaojiao Meng: College of Resources and Environment, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Weiqiang Chen: College of Resources and Environment, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Guangxing Ji: College of Resources and Environment, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Weikang He: College of Resources and Environment, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Hejie Wei: College of Resources and Environment, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Long Guo: College of Resources and Environment, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China

Land, 2025, vol. 14, issue 9, 1-24

Abstract: Scientific evaluation of ecological security pattern (ESP) quality provides a crucial foundation for regional ecological protection and spatial planning. Addressing the problem that current research on ESP quality generally lacks a systematic evaluation framework and excessively relies on qualitative descriptions, this study aims to explore a scientific and quantitative evaluation method for ESP quality. By combining landscape pattern and ecological network analysis, this study develops an evaluation framework for regional ESP quality that encompasses 12 key factors and utilizes parallel coordinate plots for visualization. Applying this framework, this study quantified the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of ESP quality in the Taihang–Qinling intersection zone, China, from 2000 to 2020. The findings were as follows: (1) Both the number and total area of ecological sources increased markedly, accompanied by heightened spatial heterogeneity of the ecological resistance surface. The number of ecological corridors rose, although their total length decreased. Ecological strategic points increased substantially. (2) Despite the increase in the scale of ecological sources and the number of corridors, considering the comprehensive impact of multiple evaluation factors, the overall ESP quality declined across the region. In particular, the Taihang and Qinling Mountain regions experienced degradation, whereas the Songji Mountains region showed improvement. (3) This study discussed an ecological protection and restoration scheme comprising the Taihang ecological barrier region, the Songji ecological restoration region, and the Qinling ecological conservation region, and formulated region-specific optimization strategies. Overall, the proposed evaluation framework and local quality analysis methods of ESP in this study offer new perspectives for advancing ecological planning research.

Keywords: ecological security pattern quality; landscape pattern; ecological network; community detection; optimization strategy; Taihang–Qinling intersection zone (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/14/9/1706/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/9/1706/ (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:9:p:1706-:d:1731161

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 ().