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Land use and land cover change (LULCC) have profoundly altered land surface properties and ecosystem functions, including carbon and water production. While mapping these changes from local to global scales has become more achievable due to advancements in earth observations and remote sensing, linking land cover changes to ecosystem functions remains challenging, especially at regional scale. Our study attempts to fill this gap by employing a computationally efficient method and two types of widely used high-resolution satellite images. We first investigated the contribution of landscape composition to ecosystem function by examining how land cover and proportion affected gross primary production (GPP) and evapotranspiration (ET) at six macro-landscapes in Mongolia and Kazakhstan. We hypothesized that both ecosystem and landscape GPP and ET are disproportionate to their composition and, therefore, changes in land cover will have asymmetrical influences on landscape functions. We leveraged a computational-friendly linear downscaling approach to align the coarse spatial resolution of MODIS (500 m) with a fine-grain and localized land cover map developed from Landsat (30 m) for six provinces in countries where intensive LULCC occurred in recent decades. By establishing two metrics—function to composition ratio (F/C) and function to changes in composition change (ΔF/ΔC)—we tested our hypothesis and evaluated the impact of land cover change on ecosystem functions within and among the landscapes. Our results show three major themes. (1) The five land cover types have signature downscaled ET and GPP that appears to vary between the two countries as well as within each country. (2) F/C of ET and GPP of forests is statistically greater than 1 (i.e., over-contributing), whereas F/C of grasslands and croplands is close to or slightly less than 1 (i.e., under-contribution). F/C of barrens is clearly lower than 1 but greater than zero. Specifically, a unit of forest generates 1.085 unit of ET and 1.123 unit of GPP, a unit of grassland generates 0.993 unit of ET and GPP, and a unit of cropland produces 0.987 unit of ET and 0.983 unit of GPP. The divergent F/C values among the land cover classes support the hypothesis that landscape function is disproportionate to its composition. (3) ΔET/ΔC and ΔGPP/ΔC of forests and croplands showed negative values, while grasslands and barrens showed positive values, indicating that converting a unit of forest to other land cover leads to a decrease in ET and GPP, while converting units of grassland or barren to other land cover classes will result in increased ET and GPP. This linear downscaling approach for calculating F/C and ΔF/ΔC is labor-saving and cost-effective for rapid assessment on the impact of land use land cover change on ecosystem functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forest productivity is a crucial integrator of ecosystem functions and services. Although the effects of landscape structure on species richness and stand structure have been extensively studied, how landscape structures affect forest productivity and their interactions with stand‐level attributes, especially in the context of considerable land use change, remain unclear. In this study, we investigated the effects of landscape structures (fragmentation, complexity, and heterogeneity) and their interactions with stand‐level attributes on forest productivity in the conterminous United States across three spatial scales (1–3 km), using an extensive forest inventory dataset from the national forest inventories (NFI) plots. Our results revealed that all landscape indices around selected forest plots significantly increased from 2006 to 2016. Across three scales, forest productivity and stand‐level attributes (number of trees, tree species richness, and structural diversity) exhibited unimodal relationships with landscape fragmentation and complexity, while generally showed positive correlations with landscape heterogeneity. The interactions between landscape structures and stand attributes enhanced the explanatory power of forest productivity. Landscape complexity directly or indirectly reduced forest productivity by decreasing the number of trees and tree species richness, whereas landscape fragmentation and heterogeneity had the opposite effects. Furthermore, landscape heterogeneity and stand age had relatively stronger total effects (the sum of direct and indirect effects) on forest productivity, and their strength increased modestly with spatial scales. However, tree species richness consistently had the lowest total effects. Our study elucidates the complex driving mechanisms of landscape patterns on forest productivity across spatial scales, providing a deeper understanding of ecosystem complexity and responses to accelerating land use changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conducting an assessment of ecosystem service values and examining the influence of changes in land utilization on these values in Chengdu City help to deepen our comprehension of the ecological and environmental impacts of such changes. This, in turn, provides valuable insights into the construction of an ecological civilization and the sustainable utilization of land resources in Chengdu City. Based on land-use data from 2005 to 2020, this paper employs a dynamic model of land-use change, the land-use structure change index method, and an ecosystem service value measurement model to analyze the impact of land-use change on ecosystem service value in Chengdu City. The results showed that (1) the area of construction land in Chengdu City increased and those of cultivated land and unused land decreased; (2) from 2005 to 2014, the ecosystem service value in Chengdu City witnessed a rise of 1.559 billion yuan, while from 2014 to 2020, it experienced a decline of 947.77 million yuan; and (3) the sensitivity index of the ecosystem value shows that forest land contributes the most to the total value of ecosystem services. This paper comprehensively analyzes the impact of land-use change in Chengdu City from 2005 to 2020 on the ecosystem service value. It offers a reference foundation for advancing the efficient allocation of land resources in Chengdu City and nurturing the balanced and sustainable development of the economy and ecology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changes in hydrological processes in watersheds are triggered by various factors, including land use land cover changes (LULCC) emerging from human activities. Hence, it is crucial to elucidate the interaction among hydrological processes to improve sustainable water management plans. The current study explored the effects of LULCC on hydrological processes in the Gala Lake catchment over a 30‐year temporal period. In this context, to evaluate LULCC, land cover maps were obtained using the supervised classification method with Landsat images (5 TM, 7 ETM+, 8 OLI) of 1993, 2008, and 2023. Hydrological processes were assessed using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT), a commonly applied eco‐hydrological model. The model was utilized to evaluate the potential effect of LULCC on processes like surface runoff, infiltration, evapotranspiration, and erosion. Between 1993 and 2023, significant LULCC have been observed in the study area. There has been a decrease of 4.3%, 1%, 1.6%, and 5.3% in agricultural lands, forested lands, inland marshes, and pasture lands, respectively, while artificial surfaces, rice fields, and water bodies have seen an increase of 7%, 3.4%, and 1.9%, respectively. The potential effects of these changes were observed as a decrease in the runoff, a decrease in permeability, and an increase in processes such as evapotranspiration and erosion throughout the basin and sub‐basin. In general, LULCC significantly affect the hydrological status of the catchment. Therefore, establishing different conservation and utilization strategies that consider land use dynamics to maintain the resilience of ecosystems in the basins is vital in the sustainable management of water resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Objective] The aims of this study are to explore the topographic gradient effect of land use in the Hanjiang Ecological Economic Belt (HJEEB), and to provide scientific reference for the adjustment and optimization of regional land use patterns. [Methods] Based on land use and DEM data from 1990 to 2022, four terrain features, namely elevation, slope, relief amplitude and topographic index, were selected to analyze the terrain gradient effect of land use change in HJEEB by used methods such as land use distribution index(DI), information graph. [Results] The land use structure of the HJEEB was mainly composed of forestland and farmland, with an area proportion of over 54.59% and over 35.20%, respectively. In terms of space, there was a pattern of farmland dominated in the east and forest land in the west. From 1990 to 2022, the areas of forestland, construction land, and water areas increased while the areas of farmland and grassland decreased significantly. As the gradient level of each terrain increased, the distribution area and index of farmland, water area, and construction land gradually decreased. The area of forestland showed a trend of first increasing and then decreasing, while the DI continued to increase. The area and DI of grassland showed a trend of first increasing and then decreasing. The distribution advantages of farmland and forestland during the research period had expanded in the low to medium(IIII) and high to medium(III-V) levels of various terrain factors, respectively, with an increase in their DI ranging from 0.041 to 0.117 and 0.005 to 0.076. Except for a consistent decrease in the DI on the I-level gradient, the distribution advantages of grassland and water area on other gradients mainly expanded, with the most significant increase in the DI being relief amplitude level III (0.317) and topographic index level III (0.299), respectively. The distribution advantage of construction land showed an expanding trend on the I-level gradient, with DI increase of 0.056 ~0.689. During the research period, the land use information graph of the HJEEB was mainly stable. accounting for 81.39% of the study area. In addition, there were significant differences in the degree to which various types of land use information graphs were affected by terrain gradients. [Conclusion Affected by factors such as watershed terrain structure and land use policies (returning farmland to forests, etc.), the land use pattern has a significant topographic gradient effect in HJEEB, and the change of distribution advantage is relatively complex in the topographic gradient. Therefore, the territorial space development needs to adhere to the principle of adapting to local conditions in future in order to promote the sustainable development of land resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both catchment geology and land use surrounding a stream will affect the degree of fine sediment deposition from erosion and its consequent impacts on stream macroinvertebrate communities. While geology and land use have been shown to impact stream communities individually, their interaction has received less attention.We investigated the interaction between geology and land use on stream macroinvertebrate communities in the Tairāwhiti Region, New Zealand. The region has streams that drain harder sandstones and softer shales and mudstones, the latter having some of the highest erosion rates in the world. Macroinvertebrates were sampled each year between 2016 and 2018 at 80 sites in exotic forest, indigenous forest and pasture streams that drained hard or soft geology catchments.Conductivity in pasture and exotic forest streams was nearly twice as high as in indigenous forest streams and higher in soft than hard sediment streams. Deposited sediment cover was greater in soft than hard sediment streams, and greater in pasture and exotic forest streams than in indigenous forest streams. Periphyton cover did not differ between land uses but was higher in soft sediment streams.Ecological health was higher in the indigenous forest sites, intermediate in exotic forest sites and lowest in pasture streams. Biological indices were also higher within each land use in streams draining hard than soft sediment streams. Invertebrate communities appear to be determined primarily by the amount of deposited fine sediment and conductivity, both of which are higher in soft than in hard bottom streams, and in exotic forest and pasture streams.Synthesis and applications: Our results illustrate a complex and strong interaction between geology and land use and the consequent impact on stream macroinvertebrate communities. The combination of soft bottom streams with pasture or exotic forest land use is more detrimental than in similar hard bottom streams. Therefore, regulations for the management of any given land use need to be much stricter in catchments dominated by soft sediment geology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reasonable land use planning and management efficiently allocates land resources, promotes socio-economic development, protects the ecological environment, and fosters sustainable development. It is a crucial foundation for achieving harmonious coexistence between humans and nature. Optimizing land use is key to land use planning and management. Four scenarios are established: an economic development scenario (EDS), an ecological protection scenario (EPS), a natural development scenario (NDS), and a coordinated development scenario (CDS). This study simulates land use patterns under these scenarios through the coupling of the GMOP and PLUS models. It analyzes the land use efficiency transformation index, landscape ecological index, comprehensive land use benefits, and ecosystem service value (ESV) for each pattern. The optimal land use pattern is determined by balancing these factors. The results indicated that under the CDS, the areas of wasteland, grassland, forest land, water bodies, construction land, and unused land in Lvliang City were 6724.29 km2, 6664.74 km2, 6581.84 km2, 126.94 km2, 1017.33 km2, and 0.42 km2, respectively. This represented the optimal land use plan for Lvliang City. The plan minimized human interference with the landscape pattern, achieved the highest land use efficiency transformation index, and reached a reasonable balance between land use benefits and ESV. The research findings provide valuable insights and decision support for regional land use planning, territorial space planning, and related policy formulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multi-scenario simulation and prediction of land use can provide guidance for the optimization of land use patterns. Combining the GMOP model with the PLUS model can better evaluate the influence of different land use strategies on the comprehensive benefits of land use and improve the scientificity of the simulation results. This study takes Haikou City as the research area. As the political, economic, and cultural center of Hainan Province, it is the highest urbanization area in Hainan Province and also the vane of the urban development of Hainan Province. Its development experience and model play an important leading role in the surrounding cities. The land use data of 2010, 2015, and 2020 were selected, and the spatiotemporal pattern of land use under the 2035 Business As Usual scenario (BAU), Economic Development scenario (ED), and Economic and Ecological Balanced Development scenario (EEB) was simulated based on the GMOP-PLUS model. The results show that: (1) The prediction results generally show the trend of the decrease in cultivated land and forest land and the increase in construction land, among which the expansion capacity of construction land is the strongest, and the forest land is more occupied, but the increase and decrease in land use types are different under different scenarios. (2) The three simulation scenarios all show the trend of economic benefit improvement and ecological benefit decline, which indicates that the primary objective of Haikou City's future development remains focused on economic construction, with the potential compromise of ecological functions to accommodate urban expansion. (3) The comprehensive benefits of the region in the EEB scenario are significantly higher than those in the BAU and ED scenarios. The optimized land use structure is more balanced, the scale of urban expansion is limited, and the loss of important ecological land is reduced to a minimum, which is more in line with the current concept of sustainable development. The study can serve as a reference for the coordinated development of urban planning, land use management, and ecological environment in Haikou. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the "dual carbon" issue has become a major focus of the international community. Changes in land use driven by anthropogenic activities have a profound impact on ecosystem structure and carbon cycling. This study quantitatively assesses the spatiotemporal changes in cropland occupation and supplementation in the Pearl River Delta from 2000 to 2020 using the InVEST model, analyzing the spatial clustering of carbon storage changes caused by variations in cropland area. The PLUS model was employed to simulate land-use patterns and the spatial distribution of carbon storage in four future development scenarios. The results indicate the following: (1) From 2000 to 2020, the net change rate of cropland area in the Pearl River Delta was −0.81%, with a decrease of 16.49 km2 in cropland area, primarily converted to built-up land and forest land. (2) Carbon storage in the Pearl River Delta exhibited a pattern of lower values in the center and higher values in the periphery. The terrestrial ecosystem carbon storage in the Pearl River Delta was 534.62 × 106 t in 2000, 518.60 × 106 t in 2010, and 512.57 × 106 t in 2020, showing an overall decreasing trend. The conversion of cropland and forest land was the main reason for the decline in total regional carbon storage. (3) The area of carbon sequestration lost due to cropland occupation was significantly greater than the area of carbon loss compensated by new cropland, indicating an imbalance in the quality of cropland occupation and supplementation as a crucial factor contributing to regional carbon loss. (4) Under the ecological priority scenario, the expansion of built-up land and the reduction in ecological land such as cropland and forest land were effectively controlled, resulting in the minimal loss of carbon storage. The soil organic carbon pool of cropland is the most active carbon pool in terrestrial ecosystems and has a significant impact on carbon storage. Clarifying the relationship between "cropland protection measures–land use changes–ecosystem carbon storage" will improve cropland protection policies, provide references for regional carbon sequestration enhancement, and support sustainable socio-economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Implementing watershed carbon compensation under the constraint of fiscal imbalance is a crucial approach for China to achieve its "dual carbon" goals. Focusing on 257 counties within the Pearl River Basin (PRB), this paper first measured and modified the land use carbon emissions, carbon absorption, and the land use carbon budget (LUCB) from 2005 to 2020. Subsequently, their spatiotemporal patterns and the changes before and after the modifications were analyzed. Finally, this paper determined the subject–object, value, and priority order of carbon compensation using the modified LUCB as the baseline value, and a carbon compensation mechanism that combines vertical and horizontal directions was constructed. The following findings were obtained: (1) At the time scale, the proportion of construction land and forestland in the land use structure increased, and carbon emissions, carbon absorption, and the LUCB showed an overall upward trend from 2005 to 2020. (2) At the spatial scale, the areas with high carbon emissions and carbon deficits were mainly located in the lower reaches of the basin, whereas the areas with high carbon absorption and carbon surpluses were widely distributed in the upper and middle reaches. The carbon deficit in urban municipal districts and resource-based counties was relatively serious. (3) In 2020, the total amount of carbon compensation in the PRB was CNY −8088.61 million. The number of counties that needed to be paid and compensated was 75 and 182, respectively. The carbon compensation mechanism constructed in this paper can provide a reference for other countries and regions with financial imbalances to achieve regional carbon neutrality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hydrological response (HR), generally defined as the relationship between rainfall and runoff, should be understood holistically within the processes of the conversion of rainfall to evapotranspiration, surface and subsurface runoff, groundwater flow, and streamflow. The objective of this study was to evaluate the HR of three predominant land use and land cover (LULC) types in the Colombian Andes at the micro-watershed scale. Experimental micro-watersheds were established to replicate LU (pasture, and a coffee agroforestry system) and LC (natural forest). The TETIS model was applied, calibrated, and verified, and the similarity between observed flows (using level sensors and volumetric gauges) and flows simulated by the model was evaluated, relating the HR to each type of LULC. The HR included an analysis of the Water Retention and Regulation Index—IRH and Base Flow Index—IFB. The best model fit and HR were found for the agroforestry system, with a moderate NSE (0.48), R2 (0.7), RMSE (0.2), and BE (20.8%). On the other hand, a forest cover was found to guarantee the permanence of subsurface inputs and base flows to the river, as evidenced by high IRH, IFB, and water balance values. Natural forest land uses present high volumetric moisture content in the soil, corresponding to a high IFB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study delves into the diversity and composition of agroforestry species in Rwanda's Eastern Plateau and Eastern Savannah agro-ecological zones. Examining these systems across diverse landscapes is crucial for selecting species adapted to local conditions. We surveyed four landscapes with varying tree cover levels, using stratified random sampling to allocate 240 plots for detailed field inventory. We analyzed dendrometric characteristics of woody vegetation, focusing on plants with ≥ 4 cm diameter at breast height (DBH). Exotic tree species comprised over 75% of trees across all landscapes. Diversity indices indicated significant differences in plant communities between the Eastern Savannah and Eastern Plateau, with higher diversity in the former. Sørensen's similarity coefficient for woody species between the two regions showed a moderate level of similarity (approximately 53%). However, there was a significant difference in the equitability of on-farm tree species between the zones, suggesting non-identical distribution patterns. The most common and dominant tree species were Grevillea robusta, Mangifera indica, and Persea americana, primarily used for timber and fruit production. Most encountered trees were small and scattered, with nearly 80% having a DBH below 20 cm, highlighting the prevalence of young trees. The dominance of exotic species emphasizes the need for further research on their impact on agricultural biodiversity, informing sustainable land management practices in Rwanda and similar contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Daliangshan region (DLS) is characterized by significant vertical differentiation in human activity and land use owing to the high elevation gradient, which may affect the soil erosion pattern in the vertical direction. However, the spatial variability of soil erosion rates along a hillslope at the catchment scale remains poorly understood. In this study, we used the cesium‐137 tracer technique to estimate soil erosion rates under different land uses and vertical zones from a small agricultural catchment, the Luowugou catchment in the DLS. Ten plots comprising four typical vertical zones (valley, low mountain, middle mountain and sub‐alpine) and five land‐use types (sloping farmland, grassland, abandoned farmland, forest land and horizontal terrace) were selected. In addition, two parallel downslope transects were built in each plot, and soil samples were collected at 3–7 m intervals along these transects. The results indicated that the soil erosion rates on sloping farmland (4.82 kg·m−2·y−1) and grassland (4.09 kg·m−2·y−1) were significantly higher than those on abandoned farmland (0.91 kg·m−2·y−1) and forest land (0.80 kg·m−2·y−1). In contrast, the horizontal terrace showed net deposition, with a deposition rate of 0.62 kg·m−2·y−1. The erosion rates varied across different zones, with the low mountain zone having the highest erosion rate (5.65 kg·m−2·y−1), followed by the middle mountain (2.96 kg·m−2·y−1) and subalpine (1.46 kg·m−2·y−1) zones, and the valley zone having the lowest erosion rate (1.28 kg·m−2·y−1). Furthermore, there were significant correlations (P < 0.05) between the soil erosion rates from different vertical zones and the proportion of sloping farmland, implying that sloping farmland plays a dominant role in shaping soil erosion along a vertical gradient. These comparisons suggest that the highest soil erosion rate occurred in the low mountain zone, indicating that the steeply sloping farmlands, resulting from migration from high‐altitude areas, have intensified soil erosion in the vertical zone. These findings highlight the role of agricultural activities originating from sloping farmlands in influencing soil erosion across different vertical zones, which has important implications for mitigating soil erosion and optimizing agricultural layout in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study used Theil–Sen median trend analysis and Mann–Kendall test, which are more suitable for long-term series research, to analyze high-precision NPP data and investigate the spatiotemporal characteristics of NPP (net primary productivity) in northwest Liaoning from 2001 to 2021. We further analyzed the impact of the natural environment and land use types on NPP in the region using correlation and a one-way linear regression analysis. The results show that (1) the interannual NPP values exhibited a generally increasing yet fluctuating trend, with the gradient of NPP decrease moving from northwest to southeast. (2) NPP in northwest Liaoning was predominantly influenced by climatic variations, with significant impacts from the combined precipitation–temperature effects seen in 74% of the region, 65% influenced by precipitation alone, and 26% by non-climatic factors. (3) The interaction of soil and vegetation also impacted NPP, which displayed variable rising trends across different soil types in northwest Liaoning. (4) Alterations in land use led to a hierarchical arrangement of the multi-year average NPP values, listed from highest to lowest as forest land, grassland, cultivated land, built-up areas, unused land, and watersheds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The characteristics of spatial and temporal distribution of carbon emissions from various land use types is one of the hot spots of researches. The carbon emission of Shanxi section of the Yellow River during 2000–2019 were analyzed based on the land use type data and fossil energy consumption data for the same period. Here, we explored the spatial and temporal characteristics of ecological stress using carbon emission, carbon footprint, carbon deficit, carbon ecological carrying capacity and carbon footprint pressure index models. The results indicated that the overall net carbon emissions had increased from 27959.67Gg CO2 equivalents in 2000–97355.36Gg CO2 equivalents in 2019 in the study area. During the study period, construction land was the main carbon sources, while forest land was the main carbon sinks. The carbon footprint of coal energy was the most dominant. The carbon footprint was greater than the ecological carrying capacity, which caused an ecological deficit during 2000–2019. The net carbon emissions and carbon footprint showed a continuous increasing trend, which became slower. The ecological pressure was spatially characterized as "less pressure in the northern and more pressure in the southern". The findings can provide scientific guidance for the land use sustainable development for coal cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Soil & Water Conservation (1009-2242) is the property of Institute of Soil & Water Conservation and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Journal of Soil & Water Conservation (1009-2242) is the property of Institute of Soil & Water Conservation and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The dynamic interplay between anthropogenic activities and biodiversity conservation necessitates a nuanced understanding of habitat change, especially in contexts marked by transitions from grasslands to forested areas. This investigation utilised three threatened butterfly species—the Marsh Fritillary, Apollo, and Large Blue—as models to explore how grassland associated species respond to altered environmental conditions. The methodology encompassed extensive field surveys and statistical analyses with ecological niche modelling to determine their current and future distributions on the Island of Gotland. The species were surveyed under distinct years from 2017 to 2020 in a total of 3333 hectares in a 6000 hectare area—the Marsh Fritillary in 2017 (1232 hectares), Apollo in 2019 (2346 hectares), and Large Blue in 2020 (2256 hectares). Results revealed that the estimated current extents of suitable habitats were 49,104 hectares for the Marsh Fritillary (15.6% of the island), 45,646 hectares for Apollo (14.5%), and 33,089 hectares for Large Blue (10.5%). In general, increased forest and shrub cover and decreased heterogeneity negatively affected butterfly occupancy, but each species exhibited unique habitat preferences. The predictive modelling demonstrated that continued succession would reduce the amount of habitats predicted to be suitable and generated alarming forecasts—a twofold increase in forest and shrub cover suggests habitat declines of 41%, 47%, and 65% for the Marsh Fritillary, Apollo, and Large Blue, respectively. Given these findings, proactive measures are imperative for strategically managing these habitats to preserve landscape heterogeneity and accommodate diverse ecological needs. This study is important to conservation management providing, crucial insights amid anthropogenic and ecological changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Bale Ecoregion (BER) is known for its global importance in biodiversity and as a water tower for East African drylands. Land use and land covers (LULC) have been changing for decades, affecting forest ecosystem service values (ESVs), but available information is limited. The present study addresses these gaps by using contrasting watersheds representing the highland, midland, and lowland agroecologies in the BER. LULC classifications were performed using GIS and remote sensing tools. Multisite imagery data (using Landsat image resolution 30 m × 30 m) were generated for four observation periods: 1992, 2002, 2012, and 2022. A recently updated global ESV coefficient and the value transfer valuation method were applied to estimate the changes in ESVs related to LULC changes. The result demonstrates that between 1992 and 2022, forest land has decreased by 3%, 63%, and 22% in the highland, midland, and lowland areas, respectively. Different degrees of loss of ESVs were observed across the study periods and LULC. Of the 21 specific ESVs investigated, the highest annual losses were recorded for water ecosystem services both in the midland and lowland landscape positions. Increased ESVs for cultivated land could not offset losses in food ESVs at the scale of agroecology. Significant impacts of LULC changes on specific ecosystem services, such as water, and changes in natural connectivity between the highland and lowland areas were observed. The result suggests that stakeholders need to co-plan and manage the BER. This evidence provides a scientific underpinning for understanding the connection between LULC change and ESVs and supports informed policy decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, which presents pollen, charcoal, and 'soot'-particle records from a lacustrine sediment core, the development of the cultural landscape around Lake Dalkarby träsk on the Åland Islands in Finland is scrutinised and discussed within a broad temporal setting in order to clarify the long-term interplay between the environment and human activities in this part of the archipelago. Special emphasis is given to the transition period from the Late Iron Age to medieval times due to the dominating humanistic discourse on the settlement dynamics in this region, as in the Åland archipelago in general, arguing for an approximately 150-years-long hiatus in habitation between these two periods, from AD 1050 to 1200. Our results do not support the hiatus theories but show a long and continuous history of the utilisation of land and forest resources starting from prehistoric times. The forests were first cleared with fire for slash-and-burn cultivation. Thereafter, structural diversity in the landscape started to increase. By 1240, the pollen data portrays a picture of a developed agrarian community with a subsistence economy based on arable farming and animal husbandry in which hemp seems to play a substantial part. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studying urban land use and its impact on carbon emissions is crucial for achieving China's dual carbon goals. This research utilized the Shared Socio-economic Pathways (SSPs) scenarios 126, 245, and 585 from the Sixth International Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6), along with a coupled System Dynamics (SD) and Patch-generating Land Use Simulation (PLUS) model and a carbon emission coefficient method to simulate and predict Xi'an's land use carbon emissions from 2020 to 2040. The results indicate the following: (1) Cultivated and forest lands are the predominant land use types in Xi'an, with cultivated and grassland areas projected to decline under all three SSP scenarios by 2040. The most significant expansion of construction land, primarily at the expense of farmland, is projected under the SSP585 scenario, with an increase of 515.92 km2 by 2040. (2) Land use carbon emissions increased from 414.15 × 104 t in 2000 to 2376.10 × 104 t in 2020, with construction land being the primary source of emissions and forest land serving as the main carbon sink. However, the carbon sink capacity remained low at only 21.38 × 104 t in 2020. (3) Carbon emissions are expected to continue increasing under all scenarios through 2030 and 2040, though at a decreasing rate. The SSP126 scenario predicts the lowest emissions, reaching 9186.00 × 104 t by 2040, while SSP585 predicts the highest at 14,935.00 × 104 t. The findings of this study provide theoretical support for future low-carbon and high-quality urban development strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human activities exert a profound influence on land use and land cover, and these changes directly influence habitat quality and ecosystem functioning. In the Gansu–Qinghai contiguous region of the upper Yellow River, habitat quality has undergone substantial transformations in recent years due to the synergistic impacts of natural processes and human intervention. Therefore, evaluating the effects of land use changes on habitat quality is crucial for advancing regional sustainable development and improving the worth of ecosystem services. In response to these challenges, we devised a two-pronged approach: a land use simulation (FLUS) model and an integrated valuation of ecosystem services and trade-offs (InVEST) model, leveraging remote sensing data. This integrated methodology establishes a research framework for the evaluation and simulation of spatial and temporal variations in habitat quality. The results of the study show that, firstly, from 1980 to 2020, the habitat quality index in the Gansu–Qinghai contiguous region of the upper Yellow River decreased from 0.8528 to 0.8434. Secondly, our predictions anticipate a decrease in habitat quality, although the decline is not pronounced across all scenarios. The highest habitat quality values were projected under the EP (Ecology Priority) scenario, followed by the CLP (Cultivated Land Priority) scenario, while the BAU (Business as Usual) scenario consistently yielded the lowest values in all three scenarios. Finally, the ecological land, including forest land and grassland, consistently occupied areas characterized by high habitat quality. In contrast, Construction land consistently appeared in regions associated with low habitat quality. The implementation of conservation measures emerges as a crucial strategy, effectively limiting the expansion of construction land and promoting the augmentation of forest land and grassland cover. This approach serves to enhance overall habitat quality. These outcomes furnish a scientific foundation for the judicious formulation of future land-use policies and ecological protection measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studying the spatiotemporal evolution and driving forces behind construction land amidst the intricate ecological and geological setting on the eastern edge of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau offers invaluable insights for local sustainable development in a landscape transition zone and ecologically fragile area. Using construction land data from four phases, spanning 1990 to 2020, in Mianning County, this study employs methodologies like the Landscape Expansion Index (LEI) and land use transfer matrix to delineate the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of construction land. A comprehensive set of 12 influencing factors across five categories—geomorphology, geological activity, climate, river and vegetation environment, and social economy—were examined. The Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) model was then employed to decipher the spatial distribution pattern of construction land in 1990 and 2020, shedding light on the driving mechanisms behind its changes over the three decades. The research reveals distinct patterns of construction land distribution and evolution in Mianning County, shaped by the ecological and geological landscape. Notably, the Anning River wide valley exhibits a concentrated and contiguous development mode, while the Yalong River deep valley showcases a decentralized development pattern, and the Dadu River basin manifests an aggregation development mode centered around high mountain lakes. Over the study period, all three river basins witnessed varying degrees of construction land expansion, transitioning from quantitative expansion to qualitative enhancement. Edge expansion predominantly characterizes the expansion mode, complemented by leapfrog and infilling modes, accompanied by conversions from cropland and forest land to construction land. An analysis of the spatial pattern and drivers of construction land change highlights human-induced factors dominating the Anning River Basin, contrasting with natural factors prevailing in the Yalong River Basin and the Dadu River Basin. Future efforts should prioritize climate change considerations and environmental capacity, aiming for an ecologically resilient spatial pattern of construction land. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The scientific quantification of the ecological effects of carbon emissions, the reduction of ecological risk (ER), and the evaluation of the interaction effect between carbon emissions and ER are the pivotal measures for ensuring the longevity and continuity of sustainability. However, a dearth of comprehensive and macro-level evaluations exist pertaining to the ER and carbon emissions within the entirety of the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB). We have constructed four distinct simulated scenarios within the YREB, which include natural development (ND), cultivated land protection (CLP), ecological conservation (EC), and low carbon (LC) scenarios. Based on the consideration of future uncertainty, we predicted LUCEs and ERI under different scenarios, and analyzed the spatial interaction effects of LUCEs and ERI from the dual perspectives of the spatial spillover effect and spatial coupling effect. The results showed that under the four outlined scenarios, encompassing diverse parameters, conversion possibilities, and areas subject to restrictions, the land utilization patterns of the YREB in 2030 have unveiled pronounced disparities. The LUCEs in the YREB showed significant spatial heterogeneity under the four scenarios; the maximum value was 6.65 under the CLP scenario and the minimum value was 4.65 under the LC scenario. The ER has the highest value under the ND scenario and the lowest value under LC scenario. Construction land is the largest contributor to increased LUCEs, and forest land is the form of terrestrial utilization that reduces the impact of LUCEs. In different scenarios, LUCEs have a significant negative spillover effect on ER, while the bidirectional spatial coupling effect between LUCEs and ERI presents significant differences. Under the LC scenario, land with a strong carbon sequestration capacity increased significantly, the fragmentation of water bodies was alleviated, and the CCD was the highest. This study offers scientific counsel for the sustainable development of various regions within the YREB, thereby fostering the achievement of a harmonious coexistence between the ecological milieu and economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protected areas in South Asia face significant challenges due to human disturbance and deforestation. The ongoing debate surrounds the recent surge in illegal encroachment of forest buffer zones in the Musali divisional secretariat division (DSD), which has led to a significant loss of forest cover over the past three decades. In this context, detecting changes in forest cover, assessing forest health, and evaluating environmental quality are crucial for sustainable forest management. As such, our efforts focused on assessing forest cover dynamics, forest health, and environmental conditions in the DSD from 1988 to 2022. We employed standardized image processing techniques, utilizing Landsat-5 (TM) and Landsat-8 (OLI) images. However, the forest area in the DSD has shown minimal changes, and environmental conditions and forest health have illustrated considerable spatial-temporal variations over the 34 years. The results indicated that 8.5 km2 (1.9%) of forest cover in the DSD has been converted to other land use classes. Overall, the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) has declined over time, while Land Surface Temperature (LST) exhibits an increasing trend. The regression results demonstrated a robust inverse relationship between LST and NDVI. The declining vegetation conditions and the increasing LST contribute to an increase in environmental criticality. The derived maps and indices will be beneficial for forest authorities in identifying highly sensitive locations. Additionally, they could enable land use planners to develop sustainable land management strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Arid Zone Research / Ganhanqu Yanjiu is the property of Arid Zone Research Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Arid Zone Research / Ganhanqu Yanjiu is the property of Arid Zone Research Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Land surface temperature (LST) is one of the most important variables in the physical processes of surface energy and water balance. The temporal behavior of LST was analyzed between the latitudes 32°00′ S and 34°24′ S (Valparaíso and Metropolitana regions of Chile) for three summer months (December, January, and February) in the 2000–2017 period, using the Terra MODIS image information and applying the Mann–Kendall test. The results show an increase in LST in the study area, particularly in the Andes mountain range in January (5240 km2), which mainly comprises areas devoid of vegetation and eternal snow and glaciers, and are zones that act as water reserves for the capital city of Santiago. Similarly, vegetated areas such as forests, grasslands, and shrublands also show increasing trends in LST but over smaller surfaces. Because this study is regional, it is recommended to improve the spatial and temporal resolutions of the images to obtain conclusions on more local scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and objectives: Land use and land cover change (LULCC) directly affects the human living environment and economic society by influencing ecosystem services. This study explores the complex relationship between LULCC and ecosystem services in the Dongting Lake region of China. Methods: The analysis incorporates the transfer matrix analysis of LULCC, ecosystem service value (ESV) accounting, Mann-Kendall mutation test, gray correlation, and path analysis. This study explored the spatial and temporal characteristics of LULCC and ecosystem services and revealed the comprehensive impacts of LULCC on ecosystem services from the perspective of factor interactions. Findings: The findings reveal that open water (OW) area and farmable land are the dominant land use types transferring in and out of the study area, with significant interconversion observed among open water area, wetland (WL), arable land (AL), and forest land (FL). Water conservation, waste disposal, climate regulation, and biodiversity conservation emerge as the most crucial ecosystem services in the study area. The study identifies consistent patterns of abrupt changes in LULCC and ESV across six analyzed time periods. Forest land exhibits the most substantial direct influence on climate regulation, gas exchange, soil formation and protection, conservation of biodiversity, rawmaterials, and recreation and leisure. Additionally, forest land, wetland, arable land, and openwater area contribute significantly to the total ESV, with forest land being the dominant factor influencing the spatial differentiation of ecosystem services in the Dongting Lake region. Conclusion: The research reveals the consistency of ecosystem services and LULCC trends in the Dongting Lake area. LULCC is a complex process influenced by multiple factors, in which the conversion between ecological and nonecological land use has a significant impact, and the complex coupling and coordination among LULCC drivers together influence ecosystem services. Furthermore, LULCC alters the structure and scale of ecosystems, resulting in alterations in the ESV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changes in vegetation and land use alter the biogeochemical cycles of soil C and N, as a result of agricultural practices that alter soil quality and function. Adopting sustainable agricultural practices improves soil health by increasing its capacity to store C in the long term. The objective of this study was to evaluate the content and stocks of C and N and the C:N ratio, under different land uses in an Andosol. Four composite soil samples were collected in a pine-oak forest, conventional avocado, organic avocado and organic macadamia soil uses at 0-20 and 20-40 cm soil depths (n=32). The total C content was determined by the Walkley and Black method (Woerner, 1989), the total N by the Kjeldahl method with the Velp Scientifica's UDK159 model equipment (Bremner and Mulvaney 1982). In order to detect significant differences, a two factor analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied C (%), N (%), SOC (Mg ha-1 ), Nt (Mg ha-1 ) and C:N ratio variables. When applied, a Tukey comparison of means (p≤0.05) was performed. The results indicate that conventional avocado land use presented the highest C and N content at both soil depths (C: 9.22 and 7.32%, N: 0.70 and 0.40%), while the C:N ratio was higher in the forest land use in the first depth (14.5) and higher in the organic avocado land use in the second soil depth (25.8). The stock of SOC varied from 65.27 to 267.30 (Mg ha-1 ) and the Nitrogen from 4.61 to 14.61 (Mg ha-1 ). The C:N ratio showed significant variations between land uses, specifically in the first depth it ranged from 10.33 (O. Macadamia) to 14.51 (Forest), while in the second depth it varied from 13.09 (Conventional) to 25.83 (O avocado). The pine-oak forest, organic avocado and organic macadamia systems, with the smallest reseivors, were statistically similar only in C content, while the conventional system, with the largest stocks, was differente in C and N content. The change in land use from forest to agricultural caused a significant effect on the carbon and nitrogen content and the stocks in the Andosol soil, which may be attributes to the different agricultural applied practices such as pruning, pesticides and fertilization used in the organic and conventional regimes, respectively. The C:N ratio indicates that mineralization rates decrease as depth increases because the quantity and quality of soil organic matter also decreases. Specifically, the conventional avocado practice compared to organic avocado and macadamia practices maximized crop yields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring the relationships between cropland expansion and their driving factors is crucial to implement cropland protection policies. Previous research primarily explored their linear relationships but seldom discussed the non-linear effects that better reflect the changes in the real world. Thus, a machine learning method, namely, the gradient boosting decision tree (GBDT) model, is introduced to identify the threshold effect and the non-linear correlations between cropland expansion and driving factors in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River urban agglomerations (MRYR), China. Results show the following: (1) During 2000–2020, a 13,141.76 km2 of cropland is expended by taking in other land use types, among which forest and construction land have the top proportions. (2) The relative importance (RI) identified by the GBDT model indicated that area of the county (AC) and cropland area (CA) were the most important variables that affected cropland expansion values of RI at 56.94% and 12.14%, respectively. (3) A non-linear correlation exists between cropland expansion and each explanatory variable, which can be represented by a curve with thresholds. In addition, three correlation types were identified: positive, negative, and piecewise non-linear correlations. This research emphasizes that the non-linear relationships and threshold effect of the socioeconomic development factors on cropland protection should be considered when formulating cropland protection policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land use/land cover (LULC) change information is crucial for monitoring purposes, formulating strategies, socioeconomic progress, and decision-making. The main objective of this study was to analyze and quantify the changes in land use as well as land cover patterns within the Maamora forest in Morocco, and to identify the key factors that influenced its trend from 1989 to 2022. In this study, multispectral remote sensing (RS) data were employed to detect land cover changes in the Maamora forest using Landsat images for the years 1989, 1999, 2009, 2019 and 2022. The maximum likelihood classification (MLC) method was applied to classify the Landsat images using ArcMap 10.4 software to analyze the current state of the study area. Seven LULC classes (cork oak, eucalyptus, pine, acacia, bare land, daya, and others) were successfully classified, achieving overall accuracies surpassing 86% and Kappa coefficients greater than 0.85 for all selected dates. The results of the land use/land cover change detection indicate a decrease in the cork oak area from 60.71% to 44.42%, along with an increase in the eucalyptus area from 18.11% to 39.31%. Moreover, the pine, acacia, bare land, daya, and other classes went from 17.22, 2.80, 0.95, 0.05, and 0.12% to 4.58, 0.02, 10.84, 0.34, and 0.48% respectively. Indeed, from 1989 to 2022, around 50.84% of the study area’s surface remained unchanged, whereas 49.16% underwent changes, transitioning to other land cover classes or endured degradation. This research underscored the anthropogenic transformation of the Maamora woodland, which has led to the degradation of its natural resources. Broadly, these findings can serve as foundational data for future research endeavors and offer valuable insights to concentrate on the key factors driving forest degradation in order to inform the development of interventions aimed at preserving the sustainability of natural species and the overall ecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Objective] The aims of this study are to explore the response of ecosystem service value to land use change and predicting future trends, and to provide scientific reference for land use pattern planning in the arsenic sandstone area. [Methods] Based on the remote sensing images of the four phases of sandstone area from 2000 to 2020, the change characteristics of LUCC and ESV in the past 20 years were analyzed based on GIS technology and ESV evaluation methods. The response of LUCC induced by ESV was revealed. The development trend of LUCC and ESV was predicted by using Markov model. [Results] (1) In 2000- 2020, the total area of LUCC remained unchanged, and the increase of construction land was the most obvious, with a total increase of 762.73 km² and a growth rate of 4.57%. The grassland decreased by 548.79 km² in total, with a reduction rate of 3.28%. (2) The overall level of ESV showed a downward trend, from 19 949.65 million yuan to 18 997.19 million yuan, a decrease of 4.78%, of which grassland ESV changed the most, decreasing by 746.29 million yuan, accounting for 78.35% of the overall decline rate. (3) ESV was positively correlated with the changes in grassland, woodland, cultivated land, water area and construction land, and negatively correlated with unused land. (4) It is predicted that the area of cultivated land, forest land, grassland and water area will decrease to 96.69%, 98.94%, 94.27% and 99.12% of those in 2020 in the next 10 years. Construction land and unused land will increase to 150.03% and 121.61%, and the overall ESV level in sandstone area will continue to decrease to 92.81%. [Conclusion] The areas of cultivated land, forest land, grassland, and water are decreasing, while the area of construction land and unused land will increase. ESV will continue to decrease, and there is a linear relationship between ESV changes and land use changes. In the future, the area of construction land will increase, and ESV will continue to decrease. Reasonably adjusting the area of construction land is beneficial for ecological construction and vegetation restoration and reconstruction in the sandstone area of the Yellow River Basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates empirically if land characteristics (especially forests and mountains) are of importance for the local ability to withstand the shock of the Covid-19 on domestic tourism demand during the summer of 2020. A second step of the analysis focuses on the recovery stage in the subsequent summer. Three tourism indicators are considered: arrivals, overnight stays and length of stay. Official data on land use characteristics of 2029 villages in the Federal state of Bavaria (South Germany) are employed for the analysis. Estimations using the Spatial Durbin model combined with the Heckman selection model reveal that there is a significant relationship between the proportion of forest within as well as surrounding the village and the demand for domestic tourism compared with the 2019 baseline. There is also a significant relationship with the altitude of the surrounding areas. The importance of mountains and forests is present in both the initial year of the pandemic and in the recovery year of 2021, although the magnitude is lower in the summer of 2021. Direct and spatial effects can also be found for lakes and rivers on overnight stays and length of stay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The introduction of the carbon peak and carbon‐neutral targets by many countries' central governments has put low‐carbon‐oriented spatial planning at the forefront of discussions. However, few studies have focused on the balance of carbon emission reduction and economic goals in spatial planning, and the governance influence on land use change simulation. This study addresses this gap by conducting an empirical analysis in the rapidly urbanizing area of Hangzhou, China, taking into consideration low‐carbon constraints and economic development demands. Using the stochastic impacts by regression on population, affluence, and technology (STRIPAT) model and linear programming–Markov, we simulate the governance decision‐making process to calculate the optimal land‐use structures under both low‐carbon and baseline scenario, then simulated land use patterns by using artificial‐neural‐network‐based cellular automata (ANN‐CA). The results showed 12.35% and 2.5% growth in urban and forest land, and 9.69% and 6.4% decline in farm and rural land under the low‐carbon scenario. 92.31% of urban land change occur in the downtown districts and suburbs; while 59.77% of farm land change and 95.53% of forest land change occur in the exurban districts. The low‐carbon performance of land use was reflected in carbon storage release, carbon emission capability change, and low‐carbon capability. The most common conversion of land use categories under the low‐carbon scenario was between farm and forest land, and between rural and urban land, which resulted in less carbon storage release and carbon emissions compared with the baseline scenario. Furthermore, under the low‐carbon scenario, the compactness of construction land increased by 2 × 10−5, while its fragmentation decreased by 0.0027. This study sheds light on the impact of low‐carbon‐oriented land use planning on urban land expansion, providing empirical evidence for city governments in rapid urbanization areas to improve land use efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Land Use Change Alert (LUCA) dataset was developed for effective and timely monitoring of global forest changes that are mostly associated with human activities. Near- real-time changes of forest land use are mapped at 0.05 ha minimum mapping unit for all forest types across the Earth's ecoregions, every two weeks. LUCA is based on Sentinel-1 cloud penetrating synthetic aperture radar (SAR) observations to circumvent limitations of optical imagery from pervasive cloud cover over forested areas globally, and especially in the tropics. The methodology is based on a combination of time-series change detection and machine learning analytics to achieve high accuracy of alerts across all ecoregions and landscapes globally with an average area-adjusted users and producers accuracy of 83% and 63%, respectively. The bi-weekly global alert maps capture forest clearing associated with deforestation and industrial timber harvesting, along with forest degradation associated with selective logging, fragmentation, fire, and roads. The product was developed and released publicly through Google Earth Engine to allow for the rapid assessment of land use change activities, quantifying patterns and processes driving forest change and dynamics across forest ecoregions. LUCA is designed to help monitor a variety of emission reduction programs at the local to regional scales and play a key role in implementing regulations on deforestation-free products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Mangrove ecosystems exhibit significant carbon storage and sequestration. Its capacity to store and sequester significant amounts of carbon makes this ecosystem very important for climate change mitigation. Indonesia, owing to the largest mangrove cover in the world, has approximately 3.14 PgC stored in the mangroves, or about 33% of all carbon stored in coastal ecosystems globally. Unfortunately, our comprehensive understanding of carbon flux is hampered by the incomplete repertoire of field measurement data, especially from mangrove ecosystem-rich regions such as Indonesia and Asia Pacific. This study fills the gap in greenhouse gases (GHGs) flux studies in mangrove ecosystems in Indonesia by quantifying the soil CO2 and CH4 fluxes for different land use types in mangrove ecosystems, i.e., secondary mangrove (SM), restored mangrove (RM), pond embankment (PE) and active aquaculture pond (AP). Environmental parameters such as soil pore salinity, soil pore water pH, soil temperature, air temperature, air humidity and rainfall are also measured. Results: GHG fluxes characteristics varied between land use types and ecological conditions. Secondary mangrove and exposed pond embankment are potential GHG flux sources (68.9 ± 7.0 and 58.5 ± 6.2 MgCO2e ha− 1 yr− 1, respectively). Aquaculture pond exhibits the lowest GHG fluxes among other land use types due to constant inundation that serve as a barrier for the release of GHG fluxes to the atmosphere. We found weak relationships between soil CO2 and CH4 fluxes and environmental parameters. Conclusions: The data and information on GHG fluxes from different land use types in the mangrove ecosystem will be of importance to accurately assess the potential of the mangrove ecosystem to sequester and emit GHGs. This will support the GHG emission reduction target and strategy that had been set up by the Indonesian Government in its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) and Indonesia's 2030 Forest and Other Land Use (FOLU) Net Sink. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The conversion of forestlands to alternative land uses is a growing worldwide concern, given the wide range of provisioning and regulating ecosystem services (ES) provided by forests. We applied a scenario-based land-use/land-cover (LULC) projection technique integrating societal preferences, conservation policies, and socio-economic factors to the Upper Flint River Watershed in the Atlanta, Georgia (USA) metropolitan area. We employed the InVEST modeling toolset to assess the impact of anticipated LULC changes on ES under each development scenario. Our simulations projected a consistent conversion from Deciduous/Mixed Forests to either Urban or Evergreen forests across all scenarios, leading to a significant decline in ES. We quantified the economic impacts of this ES loss, conservatively estimated as representing millions of dollars per year under a Business as Usual scenario in just carbon and water services alone. Integrating social and policy drivers into our projection approach yielded policy-relevant results and identified the need for conservation policy instruments to protect forested ecosystems with higher conservation values. Existing conservation policies are unlikely to stem the loss of important ES, and there may be a need to consider more aggressive policies to prevent further degradation of watersheds, such as the one analyzed here. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regional ecosystem service value (ESV) is significantly influenced by factors such as land use/cover change (LUCC). In this study, from the perspective of spatio-temporal heterogeneity, we constructed a dynamic and zonal equivalence table of ecosystem service values using the equivalence factor method and analyzed the spatio-temporal changes in ecosystem service values of different agricultural plantation regions of the karst mountainous areas of southwestern China (Yunnan Province, YP) in the years from 1990 to 2020. Also, the ESV of YP in 2030 was simulated using the Patch-generating Land Use Simulation (PLUS) model. The results showed the following: (1) land use/land cover (LULC) in YP from 1990 to 2020 was dominated by needle-leaved forestland, broadleaved forestland, grassland, and rainfed cropland. (2) The total ESV in YP fluctuated between CNY 876.74 and 1323.68 B from 1990 to 2020, expanding at a rate of 50.98%. The largest portion of the total ESV comes from climate regulation. The ESV increased from east to west, and the positive spatial correlation of the ESV gradually weakened. (3) The ESV in YP was projected to reach CNY 1320.70 B by 2030, representing a decrease of ~CNY 2.98 B since 2020. The results showed a decline in the ecological environment's quality in YP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 1990, global forest area has been reducing; tropical forests have suffered from different anthropogenic and natural factors that account for forest loss. Tropical deforestation is the second driver of anthropogenic emissions; increasing demand and investments in tropical forests drive these emissions. These forests attract significant foreign direct investments, but the effects of these investments on carbon emissions from land use, land-use change, and forestry are not well enshrined in the literature for the countries under study. This paper seeks to analyse the impact of foreign direct investments on carbon emissions from land use, land-use change, and forestry amongst 30 tropical forest countries from 1996 to 2019. The sampled countries were disaggregated by tropical blocs: Amazon, Congo basin, Australasia, and Southeast Asia, and by income levels; low-income, lower-middle, upper-middle, and high-income. The findings reveal a U-shape structure of the impact of FDI on carbon emissions from LULUCF within Congo basin and Amazon countries; at higher levels of FDI, emissions from LULUCF will increase while Australasia and Southeast Asian countries show an inverted U-shape impact, thus at higher levels of FDI, there will be a negative and significant impact on carbon emissions from LULUCF. The income levels reveal an inverted U-shape for low-income and high-income countries and a U-shape for upper-middle-income countries; the impact for lower-middle-income countries is not significant. Overall, for the whole sample, the impact depicts a U-shape. This paper proposes high-level development of environmental conditions for FDI for different sectors that align with country and regional green growth plans. Enhancing national and regional governance systems to enforce decisions and fight corruption effectively can significantly promote green FDI for green growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human activities and natural resource changes have exerted considerable impact on the ecosystem service value (ESV) of Zhengzhou City. In this study, the standard equivalent factor, which was revised according to the basic land-use data of 1990, 2000, 2010 and 2020, was adopted combined with the patch-generation land-use change simulation (PLUS) model to simulate the land-use data of Zhengzhou in three scenarios (nature development, cultivated land protection and ecological protection) in the year 2030. In this way, the spatio-temporal evolution of ecosystem service value was analyzed and forecast. Results of the modeling simuation showed that main land-use pattern of Zhengzhou was cultivated land and construction land in 1990-2020, and the dynamic degree of construction land-use area reached the apex (9.85%) from 2000 to 2010; During the period between 1990 and 2020, the area of low ESV in Zhengzhou was distributed in a "lamellar " form, accounting for 65.19% in 2020, and during the time the increased area being up to 1 339.58 km², the areas of median and slightly high ESV were distributed in the form of "secondary nuclear and tertiary", and the area of high ESV accounted for 3.59%; ESV of Zhengzhou decrease by 1.391 9 billion yuan during this period, the gain of ESV mainly came from the conversion of cultivated land to water bodies, while the loss od ESV was caused by the conversion of forest land to construction land, forest land to farmland and waterbodies to construction land. With respect to the above three scenarios, in the ecological protection scenario the variation amplitude of land use area was the smallest; ESV decreased in the natural development and cultivated land protection scenarios; and ESV increased by 123 million yuan in ecological protection scenario, with the "cold point" concentration being more obvious. It is expected that the results of this study would provide positive guidance for the territorial planning and ecological protection of Zhengzhou. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land use changes promote variations in ecosystem carbon storage, thereby influencing global climate. Investigating the impact of land use changes on carbon storage is crucial for regional ecosystem management and achieving economic sustainability. Taking Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province as a case study, this research utilizes land use data from 2000, 2010, and 2020, coupled with the PLUS and InVEST models, to analyze the relationship between land use changes and carbon storage. Furthermore, it evaluates carbon storage under different future scenarios. The results showed that the land use types were mainly cropland and grassland, accounting for about 71% of the total area. Over the past 20 years, there has been a declining trend in the area of cropland and grassland, while the area of forest land and cropland has showed an increasing trend, and the main direction of conversion was cultivated land to construction land. In 2030, under the natural development scenario, there will be a decrease in the areas of cropland, forestland, and water bodies, while grassland, construction land, and unused land will experience growth. In the ecological protection scenario, compared to natural development, there will be an increase in forestland and grassland, with other land categories experiencing varying degrees of reduction. Under the cropland protection scenario, the area of cropland is projected to increase by approximately 1.11 km² compared to the natural development scenario. Over the past 20 years, the carbon storage in this region increased first and then decreased, but the overall carbon storage showed a downward trend, with an average annual decrease of 0.19x106 t. Under the natural development scenario in 2030, carbon storage is 766.43x106 t; under the cropland protection scenario, the carbon storage is 767.28x106 t, under the ecological protection scenario, the carbon storage is 768.5x106 t. Cropland protection falls between natural development and ecological protection in terms of carbon storage, suggesting that the City should prioritize cropland development while implementing certain ecological protection measures to mitigate the rate of decline in carbon storage in future development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land use transition and its impact on ecosystem service value (ESV) are the foundation for optimizing the layout of territorial space and ecological civilization construction. With the acceleration of industrialization and urbanization, the area of construction land expands in China. To accurately estimate the ESV in industrial counties, the impact of construction land on the ecological environment should be fully considered. This paper took Gangcheng District, Jinan City, a steel base in the Shandong Province of China as an example, then the value coefficients of "three wastes" factors (waste gas, wastewater, and waste) were introduced, and an improved calculation method of ESV was put forward for industrial counties in combination with remote sensing and land use data. Finally, the land use transition and its ESV effect in typical industrial counties were analyzed using geo-informatic Tupu and grid method. The results showed that the most important land use transitions were from grassland and forestland to cultivated land, from cultivated land and forestland to construction land in 1990–2010, and from cultivated land transformed to forestland in 2010–2021. The types of land use transition were mainly repetitive and continuous. The ESV first decreased and then increased, with a slight overall decline for more than 30 years, showing a spatial distribution characteristic of "low in the south-central and high around." Land use transition had the impact on ESV with the negative contribution rate of 68.28% in 1990–2000 and 73.16% in 2000–2010, mainly caused by the transition from forestland and grassland to cultivated land and construction land, and the positive contribution rate of 81.72% in 2010–2021, mainly caused by the transition from cultivated land to forestland. Compared with the ESV calculation method without introducing the "three wastes" factor and Xie Gaodi's method, the improved method in this paper considered the inevitable impact of construction land on ESV in industrial counties and made the ESV calculated more accurate according to the regional nature. This paper cannot only enrich the theories and technical methods of land use transition and its effects, and provide a case reference for similar industrial counties, but also provide data and decision-making support for the spatial layout and ecological protection in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land use and land cover change (LUCC) prediction of cities in Western China requires higher accuracy in quantitative demand and spatial layout because of complex challenges in balancing relationships between urban constructions and ecological developments. Considering city-level areas and various types of land use and land cover, existing LUCC models without constraint or with only loose demand constraints were impractical in providing evidence of high accuracy and high-resolution predictions in areas facing fierce land competition. In this study, we proposed a two-layer SD-ANN-CA model to simulate and explore the LUCC trend and layout predictions for 2018, 2028, and 2038 in Ya'an City, Western China. The two-layer structure with an upper layer of the SD model and a lower layer of the ANN-CA model, as well as the advantages of all three methods of system dynamics (SD), artificial neural network (ANN), and cellular automata (CA), have allowed us to consider the macro-level demand constraints, meso-level driving factors constraints, and the micro-level spatial constraints into a unified model framework. The simulation results of the year 2018 have shown significant improvement in the accuracy of the ANN-CA model constructed in our earlier work, especially in types of forest land (error-accuracy: 0.08%), grassland (error-accuracy: 0.23%), and construction land (error-accuracy: 0.18%). The layout predictions of all six types of land use in 2028 and 2038 are then carried out to provide visual evidence support, which may improve the efficiency of planning and policy-making processes. Our work may also provide insights into new ways to combine quantitative methods into spatial methods in constructing city-level or even regional-level LUCC models with high resolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ecological quality in China has experienced significant improvements due to the interplay of climate change and human activities. Nevertheless, previous studies exploring the trend of ecological parameters have always overlooked the effects of land use types. Therefore, in this study, we explored the spatiotemporal variation in ecological parameters in various land use types and discussed the relationship between ecological parameters and climatic factors in China during the first 20 years of the 21st century. The results show that: (1) The area of grassland and unutilized land decreased, and the area of other land use types increased. (2) Distinct variations in the average, slope, and interval distribution of ecological parameters across various land use types were evident. Particularly significant increases in ecological parameters were observed in cultivated land and forest. (3) The influence of land use and land cover change on ecological parameters was evident. The conversion of cultivated land, forest, and grassland into water bodies, constructive land, and unutilized land resulted in a significant decrease in ecological parameters. (4) The distinct climatic conditions resulted in heightened monthly variations in the ecological parameters. Significant monthly fluctuations in ecological parameters were observed for cultivated land, forest, grassland, and constructed land, while water bodies and unutilized land did not exhibit such variations. (5) The correlation between ecological parameters and climatic factors varied considerably in various land use types in different regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The establishment of an eco-industrial demonstration park is based on the principles of sustainable development and aims to achieve social progress and economic growth before ultimately evolving into a fully developed industrial ecosystem. This study explores the relationship between the ecological environment and socioeconomic development in Zhengzhou Economic Development Zone (area of 158.7 km2), China. By analyzing the landscape patterns and changes in ecosystem service values over the periods of 2010, 2015, and 2019, results revealed a remarkable shift in land use in this area from 2010 to 2019. Particularly noteworthy was the remarkable growth in forest lands, which expanded from 0.98 km2 in 2010 to 23.42 km2 in 2019, whereas cultivated and bare lands decreased by 47.55% and 73.81%, respectively. The value of ecosystem services experienced a continuous increase and reached 13.3009 billion yuan in 2019. This study also examined the coordination degree of socioeconomic development and ecological environment coupling and found considerable progress from 2010 to 2019. The coupling degree values of 0.129, 0.809, and 0.960 for the aforementioned years indicated a remarkable improvement in synergistic and integrated development between the socioeconomic system and the ecosystem in this area. The landscape patterns in this area underwent noteworthy transformations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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With the rapid economic development and urban expansion, there has been a growing trend of ecological land being converted into non-ecological land. In order to mitigate this issue and improve the environment, the concept of national key ecological functional areas (NKEFA) has been implemented, and it is of great importance to assess the effectiveness of NKEFA in terms of land use and ecosystem services. Taking Chongqing City in China as a case study, this research utilizes remote sensing technology to analyze land use change and measure the ecosystem service value (ESV), and the NKEFA in Chongqing is regarded as a quasi-natural experiment to evaluate the protection effect on ecosystem services. Firstly, the results show that dynamic degree of that building land is the highest, with a value of 12.55% between 2010 and 2020, which is mainly due to the conversion of cultivated land into building land, and other land types transferred into building land are mainly concentrated in the southwest region of Chongqing; the dynamic degree of forest land and waters in NKEFAs is greater compared to Non-NKEFAs. Secondly, the ESV in NKEFAs is greater than that of Non-NKEFAs, and there is a significant concentration of low–low (L–L) agglomeration areas and high–high (H–H) gather areas of ESV. The former primarily lies within Chongqing's one-hour economic circle, while the latter is mainly distributed in Eastern Chongqing. Thirdly, the policy effect of NKEFA for ecosystem protection is 1.8445 higher than that of the control group. The mechanism analysis indicates that NKEFA plays a crucial role in restricting population density that improves ESV to a certain extent. It is evident that NKEFA functions through institutional constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The land use changes driven by human activities press a incredible menace to zonal ecological security. As the most active urban cluster, the uncontrolled expansion of cities in the bay area exerts enormous pressure on the ecosystem. Therefore, from the perspective of ecological conservation, exploring future land use optimization patterns and spatial structure is extremely essential for the long-term thriving of the bay area. On this basis, this research integrated the System Dynamics model (SD) as the quantity forecast model and the PLUS model as the spatial emulation model and established the Land Use/Cover Change (LUCC) Simulation Framework by setting the constraints of Ecological Security Multi-Scenario Patterns (ESMP). By setting four scenarios in future, that is, Business As Usual (BAU), Priority of Ecological Protection (PEP), Balanced Development Scenario (BD), and Priority of Urban development (PUD), this research predicts LUCC in the Zhejiang Greater Bay Area (ZGBA) in 2035 and explored land use optimization patterns. The results indicate that by 2035, under the scenarios of BAU, BD, and PUD, the construction land will observably grow by 38.86%, 19.63%, and 83.90%, respectively, distributed mainly around the Hangzhou Bay Area, Taizhou Bay Area, and Wenzhou Bay Area, primarily achieved by sacrificing ecologically sensitive lands such as forests to achieve regional high economic growth. Under PEP, the growth of construction land retards, and forest experiences net growth (11.27%), with better landscape connectivity and more cohesive patches compared to other scenarios. Combining regional planning and analysis at the city scale, Hangzhou Bay area (Hangzhou, Huzhou, Jiaxing, Shaoxing, Ningbo) can adopt the BD development scenario, while Zhoushan, Taizhou, Wenzhou and Fuyang County of Hangzhou can adopt the PEP development scenario. This research furnishes a novel mechanism for optimizing land use pattern in ecological security perspective and offers scientific guidance for land resource management and spatial planning in ZGBA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, global climate change and human alterations to land use have led to a decrease in ecosystem services, making ecosystems more vulnerable. However, unlike the well-established risk assessment frameworks used in natural disaster research, the concept of ecological risks arising from changes in land use is still in its early stages, with its nuances and assessment methodologies yet to be clearly defined. This study proposes a new framework for assessing ecological risks resulting from changes in land use in the Tarim River Basin. The framework employs a coupled PLUS and Invest model to evaluate the ecological risks of land use change under three development scenarios projected for the Tarim River Basin in Xinjiang by 2035. The findings indicate that: (1) Between 2000 and 2020, the predominant land use types in the Tarim River Basin in Xinjiang were primarily unused land, followed by grassland and cropland. Conversely, grassland, water, and construction land were relatively less prevalent. During this period, the area of unused land and cultivated land increased, while grassland, forest land, and water exhibited a declining trend. Moving forward, under the three scenarios from 2020 to 2035, land use changes in the study area are characterized by the expansion of cropland and unused land, coupled with a significant decrease in grassland area, while other land categories demonstrate minor fluctuations. (2) From 2020 to 2035, across various scenarios, the total ecosystem service within the study area demonstrates an overall increasing trend in both the northern and southern marginal zones. Specifically, under the baseline scenario, the total amount of ecosystem services in the study area decreased by 15.247% compared to 2020. Similarly, under the economic development scenario, this decrease amounted to 13.358% compared to 2020. Conversely, under the ecological protection scenario, the decrease reached 19.852% compared to 2020. (3) The structure of ecological risk levels from 2020 to 2035, across multiple scenarios, demonstrates a consistent pattern, characterized by a predominant proportion of moderate risk. Conversely, other risk levels occupy relatively smaller proportions of the area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]