Spatio-Temporal Heterogeneity of the Ecological Environment and Its Response to Land Use Change in the Chushandian Reservoir Basin

Yichen Fang, Lianhai Cao (), Xinyu Guo, Tong Liang, Jiyin Wang, Ning Wang and Yue Chao
Additional contact information
Yichen Fang: College of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Lianhai Cao: College of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Xinyu Guo: College of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Tong Liang: College of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Jiyin Wang: College of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Ning Wang: College of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Yue Chao: College of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 4, 1-21

Abstract: Conducting ecological monitoring assessments and revealing the effects of driving factors are crucial for enhancing ecological safety and promoting sustainable development. Taking the Chushandian Reservoir basin as the research object, this paper employed the Remote Sensing Ecological Index (RSEI), constructed based on remote sensing data, to monitor and assess the ecological environment of the study area from 1990 to 2021, and predicted its future development trend through the Hurst index. On this basis, we integrated land use data to elucidate the response of the ecological environment to human activities. The results show that: (1) The mutation test indicates that selecting 1990, 2004, 2008, 2013, and 2021 as the study time nodes can comprehensively reflect the spatio-temporal information regarding changes in ecological quality in the study area. Specifically, both 1990 and 2021 exhibit higher ecological quality ratings, while 2008 has the lowest ecological quality rating. The spatial distribution of ecological quality is strongly clustered, with high–high clustering and low–low clustering dominating. (2) The overall trend of ecological quality in the study area appears in a pattern of initial decline followed by subsequent improvement. From 1990 to 2004, the degraded area constituted the largest proportion, accounting for 87.82%. After 2008, the quality of the ecological environment began to rebound. Between 2008 and 2013, the proportion of regions with improved ecological conditions was 57.91%, and from 2013 to 2021, 46.74% of the regions showed improvement. (3) In the research area, 36.70% of the regions exhibit a trend of sustainable stability into the future, representing the highest proportion. Approximately 34.3% of the areas demonstrate a trend of sustainable improvement, while the regions exhibiting sustainable degradation account for only 5.72%. While the ecological environment is demonstrating a positive overall developmental trend, it is crucial to stay vigilant regarding areas of ongoing degradation and implement appropriate protective measures. (4) Land use change significantly impacts the ecological environment, with the expansion of land for urban build up causing some ecological deterioration, while the later expansion of forest improves ecological quality. The results provide theoretical approaches and a foundation for decision-making in the ecological management of the Chushandian Reservoir basin.

Keywords: remote sensing ecological index; ecological environment; Google Earth Engine; spatio-temporal heterogeneity; land use change; Chushandian Reservoir basin (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/4/1385/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/4/1385/ (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:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:4:p:1385-:d:1334672

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

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