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The overuse of fertilizers has caused significant environmental pollution. In this paper, we aim to improve fertilizer utilization and promote sustainable agricultural development. Based on panel data at the flag (county) level in Inner Mongolia from 2001 to 2020, we analyzed the spatial heterogeneity and correlation of fertilizer application intensity using a two-stage nested Theil index and Moran's I, and employed a Durbin model to elucidate its spatial spillover effects. The results show that overall disparities in fertilizer application intensity showed a decreasing trend, with league (city) disparities being the main reason for the overall disparities. In terms of spatial patterns, there is a positive spatial correlation between flags (counties), with the western region exhibiting a "high-high" type that gradually shifts towards the eastern region, particularly the cities of Tongliao and Chifeng. The central and eastern regions exhibit a "low-low" type. Future endeavors to decrease fertilizer application intensity are mainly focused on establishing "high-high" clusters. Policymakers should leverage these spatial interactions to diminish fertilizer usage and mitigate environmental pollution. Farmers, affluence, agricultural economic development, and grain yield positively influence fertilizer application intensity while agricultural modernization and land size have negative effects. All these factors demonstrate significant spatial spillover effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Bulletin of Soil & Water Conservation is the property of Bulletin of Soil & Water Conservation 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 Bulletin of Soil & Water Conservation is the property of Bulletin of Soil & Water Conservation 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 Bulletin of Soil & Water Conservation is the property of Bulletin of Soil & Water Conservation 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.)

IntroductionImproving the quantity and quality of veterinary talent cultivation is an urgent issue to address in current veterinary education and is key to enhancing veterinary talent competitiveness. Starting from an industrial perspective, the introduction of scientific analytical methods for studying veterinary talent competitiveness offers a new view on veterinary education and helps to improve the quality of veterinary education and talent cultivation.MethodsThis study develops a veterinary talent competitiveness evaluation index based on the characteristics of veterinary talent. It proposes a visual method to analyze the level and spatiotemporal evolution of veterinary talent competitiveness using the Entropy method and ArcGIS tools, with Western China as a case study. Data is collected from 12 regions in Western China, spanning 2015 to 2021.ResultsThe results show that the method not only evaluates the current state of veterinary talent competitiveness but also considers temporal and spatial evolution, achieving good evaluation effectiveness and high accuracy, thereby guiding the improvement of veterinary education and talent cultivation.DiscussionBased on the research findings, the study suggests improving the quality of veterinary education and talent cultivation through measures such as strengthening talent resource development, addressing regional imbalances, and promoting spatial integration to achieve a virtuous cycle between veterinary education and industrial development.

The turbulent international political and economic situation has presented significant challenges to food and water security. Agricultural water conservancy infrastructure has garnered considerable attention due to its crucial role in the allocation and efficient utilization of water resources. Traditional research on the investment efficiency of agricultural water conservancy infrastructure often treats the intermediate impact pathways as a “black box”, neglecting the distinctions among various links. This article employs a two-stage DEA model to partition the impact of agricultural water conservancy infrastructure investment on agricultural output into two stages: water supply and water use. Utilizing data of 31 provinces in China from 2008 to 2022, we measured the efficiency of the two stages, as well as the spatiotemporal distribution and evolution characteristics. The findings reveal a spatial misalignment between water supply and water use efficiency: regions exhibiting higher water supply efficiency in the first stage are primarily those with abundant water resource endowments, whereas water use efficiency in the second stage is closely linked to regional economic development levels. Additionally, the spatial distribution and evolution characteristics of efficiency values indicate that the polarization of water use efficiency is more pronounced, with a significant spatial correlation observed between geographically adjacent areas and those within the same watershed. Conversely, water supply efficiency shows a significant correlation only within the context of watershed relationships. Based on the analysis of the sources of efficiency loss, recommendations include increasing investment in water-saving irrigation technologies, developing agricultural water conservancy infrastructure suitable for large-scale mechanized production, and designing investment compensation mechanisms. Future research is suggested to use econometric models to further examine and identify factors affecting efficiency, particularly the impacts of inter-basin water transfer projects.

The marine economy’s new quality productive forces is an important driving force to promote the high-quality development of the marine economy. Exploring the level of marine economy’s new quality productive forces and its spatiotemporal evolution law will help to provide solid theoretical support and empirical basis for formulating scientific strategies to promote the accelerated development of marine economy. Based on panel data from 11 coastal provinces and cities from 2010 to 2022, this study applies the entropy value method to measure the level of marine economy’s new quality productive forces, and then uses the Dagum Gini coefficient and its decomposition, kernel density estimation method and spatial Markov chain model to reveal its regional differences and spatiotemporal evolution characteristics. The results of the study showed that: (1) The level of marine economy’s new quality productive forces in China and the three major marine economic circles (northern, eastern and southern) have grown annually, but regional imbalances are increasing. Among the constituent elements, scientific and technological productive forces exhibited the strongest growth momentum, while the development of green productive forces relatively lagged behind. (2) The level of marine economy’s new quality productive forces in individual provinces deviates significantly from the national average, resulting in supervariable density becoming the main source of spatial differentiation of marine economy’s new quality productive forces level. (3) Except for the eastern marine economic circle, other regions generally show obvious polarization, which not only limits the effective allocation of resources, but also affects the rational flow and transfer of new quality productive forces levels between different regions. In this regard, relevant policy recommendations are put forward: (1) The implementation of differentiated strategies promotes the regional adaptive development of marine economy’s new quality productive forces. (2) Strengthening internal and external linkage mechanisms to release the spillover effect of the marine economy’s new quality productive forces. (3) Science and technology drive green development and enhance the green content of marine economy’s new quality productive forces.

IntroductionAgricultural green development (AGD) prioritizes sustainable growth by integrating economic, ecological, and social dimensions, aiming to harmonize agricultural economic development with environmental protection and social progress.MethodsThis study integrates the three-stage super-efficiency DEA-SBM model with the BP algorithm, creating an advanced DEA-SBM-BP model to overcome the shortcomings of traditional DEA in evaluation and management processes. The study further applies the Dagum Gini coefficient, kernel density estimation (KDE), and Moran’s index to assess and forecast the efficiency and spatiotemporal evolution patterns of green agricultural development in key cities within the Yangtze River Delta.ResultsThe analysis shows that AGD in the central city of the Yangtze River Delta is overall balanced; however, substantial variations exist among cities within individual provinces. Factors like macroeconomic conditions, workforce quality, and policy support play a crucial role in promoting the efficiency of AGD. Among these, macroeconomic development level has a negative impact, while labor quality and policy support exhibit bidirectional effects. Infrastructure construction, digitalization of agricultural economy, and rural security have become key factors in the green development of modern agriculture. The green advancement of agriculture in the central Yangtze River Delta region typically exhibits a marked clustering effect; however, the local clustering reveals a trend toward dispersed development.DiscussionDespite the emergence of new characteristics in agricultural production in China within the context of high-quality development, differences in resource endowments and economic structures among cities continue to be significant factors contributing to regional imbalances and changes in the agglomeration patterns of agricultural development.

As one of the most typical karst landscapes globally, the karst regions in southwestern China are characterized by prominent rocky desertification and fragile ecological conditions. Consequently, exploring the spatiotemporal evolution and driving influences on ecosystem health (EH) in this region is of great significance for the improvement of ecosystems and green development. This study focuses on assessing EH in these regions from 2000 to 2020 using the “vitality-organization-recovery-service” (VORS) framework. Spatiotemporal changes in EH are analyzed through hotspot analysis, and the functional relationship between driving factors and EH is quantified using XGBoost and SHAP models. Key findings include: (1) Over the past two decades, the proportion of cities experiencing enhanced EH has generally improved in 73% of cities compared to 27% experiencing deterioration. (2) Spatial analysis reveals EH clustering in three regions. One cold spot cluster in the central north and two hot spot clusters in the southwest and southeast. (3) Urbanization level exhibits an inverse logarithmic relationship with EH. Precipitation affects EH in a cubic polynomial pattern—initial decrease, subsequent increase, and final decrease. Temperature impacts EH through a quartic polynomial function with fluctuating increases and decreases. PM2.5 shows a monotonically decreasing relationship with EH, while the normalized difference vegetation index demonstrates a monotonically increasing association. This research contributes to understanding EH dynamics in southwestern China’s karst landscapes, crucial for advancing ecosystem management and sustainable development efforts.

The Yellow River Basin of China is a key region that contains myriad interactions between human activities and natural environment. Industrialization and urbanization promote social-economic development, but they also have generated a series of environmental and ecological issues in this basin. Previous researches have evaluated urban resilience at the national, regional, urban agglomeration, city, and prefecture levels, but not at the watershed level. To address this research gap and elevate the Yellow River Basin’s urban resilience level, we constructed an urban resilience evaluation index system from five dimensions: industrial resilience, social resilience, environmental resilience, technological resilience, and organizational resilience. The entropy weight method was used to comprehensively evaluate urban resilience in the Yellow River Basin. The exploratory spatial data analysis method was employed to study the spatiotemporal differences in urban resilience in the Yellow River Basin in 2010, 2015, and 2020. Furthermore, the grey correlation analysis method was utilized to explore the influencing factors of these differences. The results of this study are as follows: (1) the overall level of urban resilience in the Yellow River Basin was relatively low but showed an increasing trend during 2010–2015, and significant spatial distribution differences were observed, with a higher resilience level in the eastern region and a low-medium resilience level in the western region; (2) the differences in urban resilience were noticeable, with industrial resilience and social resilience being relatively highly developed, whereas organizational resilience and environmental resilience were relatively weak; and (3) the correlation ranking of resilience influencing factors was as follows: science and technology level>administrative power>openness>market forces. This research can provide a basis for improving the resilience level of cities in the Yellow River Basin and contribute to the high-quality development of the region.

It is a novel approach to linking landscape ecological risk (LER) and ecosystem services (ESs) for environmental management and sustainable development, since it enables real-time decision-making. This study used 12 natural factors relevant to LER and 11 ESs factors to analyze spatiotemporal changes and establish a relationship between them in Tatarstan, Russia, for the years 2010, 2015, and 2020. The statistical tests (Global Moran's I, Getis-Ord Gi*), analysis of habitat vulnerability, and ecological loss in the ArcGIS platform reveal a consistent variance in factor clustering and pattern as well as the impact of governmental policies in the studied area. According to analysis findings, 2015 had the best ecological conditions of the three years because 44.79 % of the research area had decreased landscape ecological risk, which increased ecosystem services. Additionally, the results show that both maps have significant spatial disparities and that LER and ESs are negatively impacted by high human-socioeconomic activity. The integration of LER and ESs through the overlap of both maps provides a significant amount of spatial information for mapping, monitoring, management, and the protection of the fragile environment for sustainable landscape development and management.

Abstract Human activities have increased with urbanisation in the Erhai Lake Basin, considerably impacting its eco-environmental quality (EEQ). This study aims to reveal the evolution and driving forces of the EEQ using water benefit–based ecological index (WBEI) in response to human activities and policy variations in the Erhai Lake Basin from 1990 to 2020. Results show that (1) the EEQ exhibited a pattern of initial degradation, subsequent improvement, further degradation and a rebound from 1990 to 2020, and the areas with poor and fair EEQ levels mainly concentrated around the Erhai Lake Basin with a high level of urbanisation and relatively flat terrain; (2) the EEQ levels were not optimistic in 1990, 1995 and 2015, and areas with poor and fair EEQ levels accounted for 43.41%, 47.01% and 40.05% of the total area, respectively; and (3) an overall improvement in the EEQ was observed in 1995–2000, 2000–2005, 2005–2009 and 2015–2020, and the improvement was most significant in 1995–2000, covering an area of 823.95 km2 and accounting for 31.79% of the total area. Results also confirmed that the EEQ changes in the Erhai Lake Basin were primarily influenced by human activities and policy variations. Moreover, these results can provide a scientific basis for the formulation and planning of sustainable development policy in the Erhai Lake Basin.

Clarifying the distribution law of mining induced stress in the working face floor, achieving precise grasp of the degree of damage to the floor rock mass and roadway under the influence of mining, can effectively prevent deformation and instability of the floor roadway. To this end, according to the limit equilibrium theory, the mechanical model of advanced mining stress of coal and rock mass is constructed, and the mechanical distribution law of floor rock mass in the supporting pressure disturbance stage and the goaf unloading stage is obtained. Based on the compression shear failure criterion and rock unloading damage mechanism, the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of floor rock and tunnel surrounding rock failure were obtained, and further reliability verification was conducted using numerical simulation. The results show that as the mining height increases, the range of plastic zone in front of the working face increases, the concentration coefficient of advanced support pressure decreases; The larger the supporting pressure of the advanced mining, the smaller the principal stress difference in the bottom slate rock body, and the smaller the Mohr stress circle radius, and the strength of the impact on the bottom plate weakens, specifically manifested as a decrease in the depth of rock compression shear failure in the bottom plate; After unloading, the stress state of the bottom rock mass is the same. With the increase of the unloading starting point of the rock mass, the unloading amount increases, and the unloading tension failure intensifies. The plastic zone of the bottom rock mass presents a “saddle shaped” shape; During the advancement process, the plastic zone of the surrounding rock of the tunnel undergoes a spatiotemporal evolution from “elliptical” to “butterfly” to “vertical elliptical”. The greater the mining support stress, the more severe the tunnel damage, and the damage is mainly concentrated in the roof and shoulder corners. The initial mining height is designed to be 3.5 m. Through the deployment of an optical fiber testing system, the spatiotemporal evolution of deformation and failure of the floor rock mass and roadway during the mining process as the working face advances was obtained. The maximum depth of damage to the floor rock mass was measured to be 16.7 m, and the maximum depth of damage to the roadway rock mass was 5.2 m. The surrounding rock mass of the tunnel remains stable throughout the entire monitoring period, without any destructive effects, meeting production safety requirements.

In the urbanization development trend, constructing inter-provincial metropolitan areas has gradually become an important pathway for China to implement its new urbanization strategy. Economic development in metropolitan areas inevitably leads to ecological degradation and fragmentation, threatening biodiversity. A reasonable assessment and optimization of the ecological network structure of inter-provincial metropolitan areas can effectively improve the stability of regional ecosystems and contribute to the sustainable development of urban and rural environments. In this study, we optimized the identification of ecological sources at the metropolitan area scale by constructing the ‘MIE’ model combined with the threshold analysis method, identified the core ecological sources in the Xuzhou Metropolitan Area, a typical cross-provincial metropolitan area in China, and then extracted the ecological corridors by using the Linkage Mapper tool based on this method. The spatiotemporal patterns and components of the ecological network of the Xuzhou metropolitan area from 1990 to 2020 were assessed, and an optimization analysis was performed based on the current ecological network. The results show that urban expansion has caused a decentralized layout of the ecological space in the study area across the provincial metropolitan area, with an uneven distribution of ecological sources and the development of ecological corridors in an east-dense and west-sparse pattern in 30 years. Increased interference by human activities has decreased the landscape dominance of the regional ecological resources and overall fragmentation of the habitats. The number of ecological corridors decreased, the average length of ecological corridors increased, the difficulty of biological flow increased, the connectivity of the ecological network structure decreased, and accessibility between source areas decreased. The α, β, and γ indices of the regional ecological network increased by 0.16, 0.46, and 0.1, respectively, after restoring important ecological sources and corridors. This study provides a framework for ecological network assessment and optimization in cross-provincial metropolitan areas, which is of great significance for studying metropolitan areas at similar stages of development.

Analyzing the spatial and temporal changes in the carbon budget and its influencing factors is the basis for formulating effective measures to reduce emissions and increase sinks. This study establishes a carbon budget assessment model for forest enterprises, calculating forest carbon stocks and enterprise emissions using volume-derived biomass and emission factor methods. The spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of carbon budgets for forest enterprises in the key state-owned forest area (2017–2021) were analyzed using various methods, including the Mann-Kendall (MK) test and hotspot analysis. Influencing factors are identified through correlation analysis and the optimal parameter geographical detector (OPGD), while their spatial-temporal variations and causal relationships are analyzed using the geographical and temporal weighted regression model (GTWR) and structural equation modeling (SEM). The carbon budget in the Greater Khingan Range state-owned forest area averaged 10.16 × 106 t CO2-eq from 2017 to 2021, showing a gradual upward trend. The average annual carbon budget of forest enterprises was 1.02 × 106 t CO2-eq, which was highest in the central regions and lowest in the periphery. Soil pH, forest area, and elevation are the primary factors. The interaction between paired factors enhances the explanatory power of their impact, and the effects of different influencing factors exhibit both positive and negative variations across forest enterprises. In addition, the middle-aged forest tending area and average annual precipitation positively influenced forest area and soil pH, indirectly enhancing the carbon budget through multifactor interactions. This research can enhance the understanding of the carbon budget in forest enterprises, providing scientific support for the ecological protection of state-owned forests and contributing to the development of sustainable forestry practices that indirectly benefit societal well-being and economic resilience.

Amid persistent global food security challenges, the efficient utilization of cultivated land resources has become increasingly critical, as optimizing Cultivated Land Utilization Efficiency (CLUE) is paramount to ensuring food supply. This study introduced a cultivated land utilization index (CLUI) based on Fractional Vegetation Cover (FVC) to assess the spatiotemporal variations in Henan Province’s CLUE. The Theil–Sen slope and the Mann–Kendall test were used to analyze the spatiotemporal variations of CLUE in Henan Province from 2000 to 2020. Additionally, we used a genetic algorithm optimized Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and a particle swarm optimization-based Random Forest (RF) model to assess the comprehensive in-fluence between topography, climate, and human activities on CLUE, in which incorporating Shapley Additive Explanations (SHAP) values. The results reveal the following: (1) From 2000 to 2020, the CLUE in Henan province showed an overall upward trend, with strong spatial heterogeneity across various regions: the central and eastern areas generally showed decline, the northern region remained stable with slight increases, the western region saw significant growth, while the southern area exhibited complex fluctuations. (2) Natural and economic factors had notable impacts on CLUE in Henan province. Among these factors, population and economic factors played a dominant role, whereas average temperature exerted an inhibitory effect on CLUE in most parts of the province. (3) The influenced factors on CLUE varied spatially, with human activity impacts being more concentrated, while topographical and climatic influences were relatively dispersed. These findings provide a scientific basis for land management and agricultural policy formulation in major grain-producing areas, offering valuable insights into enhancing regional CLUE and promoting sustainable agricultural development.

China actively explores the green development road by promoting the intensive use of urban construction land and low carbon emissions. This research evaluates urban construction land intensity and carbon emission efficiency by using a multifactor comprehensive evaluation method and SBM model and measures the spatial characteristics of between urban construction land intensity and carbon emission efficiency by Moran’s I and LISA scattering. The result shows that (1) the average value of urban construction land intensity was constantly improving from 0.11 in 2000 to 0.29 in 2021, (2) the value of carbon emission efficiency generally showed a fluctuating downward from 0.89 in 2000 to 0.66 in 2009 and then a fluctuating upward to 0.84 in 2021, with many provinces located in the Level III and IV carbon emission efficiency intervals, (3) the land development, road density, technology development, and fixed asset investment have a negative impact on carbon emission efficiency, while the greening level and tax have a positive promotion effect, and (4) the correlation and spatial features between urban construction land intensity and carbon emission efficiency in 30 provinces have consistency, as well as heterogeneity in the temporal and spatial development trends. Policy implications are accordingly proposed.

This study examines the evolution of eco-environmental quality and its driving forces in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, with a particular focus on the Qinghai Lake region (QLR). By employing principal component analysis (PCA) on nearly 20 years of remote sensing data, we reveal the dynamic characteristics of ecological quality in this sensitive area. The results indicate that the ecological quality of the QLR has exhibited significant fluctuations over the past two decades, influenced by multiple factors such as climate change, human activities, and policy adjustments. Specifically, the fluctuations in ecological quality are closely associated with key ecological indicators, including the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Land Surface Temperature (LST), Wetness Index (WET), and Normalized Differential Bare Soil Index (NDBSI). Vegetation cover and moderate humidity have substantial positive effects on ecological quality, while high temperatures and dry soil conditions exert negative impacts.

As a new vegetation monitoring index, the KNDVI has certain advantages in characterizing the evolutionary process of regional desertification. However, there are few reports on desertification monitoring based on KNDVI and feature space models. In this study, seven feature parameters, including the kernel normalized difference vegetation index (KNDVI) and Albedo, were introduced to construct different models for desertification remote-sensing monitoring. The optimal desertification remote-sensing monitoring index model was determined with the measured data; then, the spatiotemporal evolution pattern of desertification in Gulang County from 2013 to 2023 was analyzed and revealed. The main conclusions were as follows: (1) Compared with the NDVI and MSAVI, the KNDVI showed more advantages in the characterization of the desertification evolution process. (2) The point–line pattern KNDVI-Albedo remote-sensing index model had the highest monitoring accuracy, reaching 94.93%, while the point–line pattern NDVI-TGSI remote-sensing monitoring index had the lowest accuracy of 54.38%. (3) From 2013 to 2023, the overall desertification situation in Gulang County showed a trend of improvement with a pattern of "firstly aggravation and then alleviation." Additionally, the gravity center of desertification in Gulang County first shifted to the southeast and then to the northeast, indicating that the northeast's aggravating rate of desertification was higher than in the southwest during the period. (4) From 2013 to 2023, the area of stable desertification in Gulang County was the largest, followed by the slightly weakened zone, and the most significant transition area was that of extreme desertification to severe desertification. The research results provide important decision support for the precise monitoring and governance of regional desertification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In modern China, industrialization has formed a critical foundation for the transition to modernization. However, the spatiotemporal evolution patterns and driving mechanisms of urban industrial development in Nanjing from 1840 to 1949 remain unclear. Based on textual historical sources, this study examined the spatiotemporal patterns of urban industrial development in Nanjing from 1840 to 1949 by using spatial analysis methods, GeoDetector, regression models and industrial structure indices. The results reveal the following: (1) The overall spatial distribution pattern of the industry in modern Nanjing exhibited a "one main, one secondary" dual-center "ladle-shaped" arrangement. Over time, industry has expanded from the urban center toward the east and north. (2) The modernization level of different industries was uneven, exhibiting a "center-periphery" spatial pattern. (3) At the micro level, transportation and population density were the primary influencing factors for industrial location, whereas at the macro level, government intervention mainly affected the industrialization pattern. (4) The industrial development pattern in modern Nanjing, in alignment with the "pole-axis" spatial system, serves as a microcosm of China's urban modernization transition. This study represents the application of GIS methods in the humanities and provides valuable insights for urban planning and development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Objective] The present paper aimed to explore the spatiotemporal evolution of the ecological environment quality in Xuzhou urban area during the transition period, and to provide a basis for ecological protection and related policy formulation. [Method] Using five-period Landsat data from 2000 to 2020, the Remote Sensing Ecological Index (RSEI) was constructed, and the spatiotemporal characteristics of the ecological environment quality in Xuzhou urban area were analyzed based on Pearson correlation coefficient, spatial autocorrelation and other methods. The geodetector was used to detect the main factors affecting the ecological environment quality. [Result] (i) The RSEI value of the study area fluctuated between 0.5 and 0.6 from 2000 to 2020, indicating that the ecological environment quality was unstable; the low-grade ecological environment quality was mainly distributed in Yunlong district, Quanshan district and Gulou district, while the high-grade ecological environment quality was mainly distributed in Tongshan district and Jiawang district; (ii) The area proportion of the improved ecological environment quality from 2000 to 2020 was 35.70%, while the area proportion of the deteriorated ecological environment quality was 23.23%. There was a significant negative correlation between the ecological environment quality and its change, and the higher the RSEI grade, the easier it was to deteriorate, and the lower the RSEI grade, the easier it was to improve; (iii) The ecological environment quality had obvious spatial clustering characteristics, and the high-high clustering area was distributed in Tongshan district, while the low-low clustering area was mainly distributed in Yunlong district, Quanshan district, Gulou district and Jiawang district. In the past 20 years, the standard deviation ellipse of the high-high clustering area showed obvious directionality, and always presented a 'northwest-southeast' distribution pattern, while the standard deviation ellipse of the low-low clustering area presented a 'southwest-northeast' distribution pattern; (iv) The geodetector results showed that all the influencing factors were significant, and the dominant factor was greenness, and the interaction effect of the two factors was obvious. [Conclusion] The ecological environment quality of Xuzhou urban area improves after the transition, and the ecological governance achieves some results. [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.)

Previous research on national park conservation has predominantly concentrated on their internal regions, with scant attention given to the parks and their adjacent areas as integrated entities. Therefore, the investigation of land cover and landscape ecological risks in national parks and surrounding areas is essential for overall ecosystem protection and regional sustainable development. This study examines the spatiotemporal evolution of land cover and its landscape ecological risk in Wuyishan National Park, China, and its surrounding areas (WNPSA) from 1990 to 2020. The results show that (1) the land cover of WNPSA from 1990 to 2020 predominantly exhibited a consistent decline in forested areas, paralleled by an augmentation in farmland and impervious surface areas. The center of standard deviation ellipse of impervious surfaces has been progressively moving further south in tandem with the expansion of these surfaces, primarily located within the county town of Fujian Province. (2) The Wuyishan National Park (WNP) areas were dominated by low values of landscape index, and the high value areas in the park were mainly located at the provincial boundary area, with a gradual narrowing during 1990–2020, suggesting a decrease in landscape heterogeneity within the park. High value areas in the surrounding areas mainly occurred in areas with clustered impervious surfaces (e.g., the county town), where part of them located in Wuyishan City have spread to the edge area southeast of WNP. (3) From 1990 to 2020, the lowest-risk areas continue to expand. However, as the medium-risk zone of the adjacent region extends into the edge of the national park, the low risk zone within the national park exhibits a trend from continuous to separate with the neighboring low risk zone. This led to an escalating stress effect on the ecological security of both the adjacent regions and the national park's boundary areas due to land cover changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intensive economic and human activities present challenges to the carbon storage capacity of terrestrial ecosystems, particularly in arid regions that are sensitive to climate change and ecologically fragile. Therefore, accurately estimating and simulating future changes in carbon stocks on the northern slope economic belt of Tianshan Mountains (NSEBTM) holds great significance for maintaining ecosystem stability, achieving high-quality development of the economic belt, and realizing the goal of "carbon neutrality" by 2050. This study examines the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of the NSEBTM carbon stocks in arid regions from 1990 to 2050, utilizing a combination of multi-source data and integrating the Patch-generating Land use Simulation (PLUS) and Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs (InVEST) models. Additionally, an attribution analysis of carbon stock changes is conducted by leveraging land use data. The findings demonstrate that (1) the NSEBTM predominantly consists of underutilized land, accounting for more than 60% of the total land area in the NSEBTM. Unused land, grassland, and water bodies exhibit a declining trend over time, while other forms of land use demonstrate an increasing trend. (2) Grassland serves as the primary reservoir for carbon storage in the NSEBTM, with grassland degradation being the leading cause of carbon loss amounting to 102.35 t over the past three decades. (3) Under the ecological conservation scenario for 2050 compared to the natural development scenario, there was a net increase in carbon storage by 12.34 t; however, under the economic development scenario compared to the natural development scenario, there was a decrease in carbon storage by 25.88 t. By quantitatively evaluating the land use change in the NSEBTM and its impact on carbon storage in the past and projected for the next 30 years, this paper provides scientific references and precise data support for the territorial and spatial decision making of the NSEBTM, thereby facilitating the achievement of "carbon neutrality" goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a typical ecologically fragile area, the ecological security of the Loess Plateau has been seriously threatened. Ecological security patterns (ESP) have gradually become an effective method for protecting ecological security and supporting the management and sustainable development of ecosystems. Therefore, this study constructed a novel ESP based on ecological "function–structure", utilizing minimum cumulative resistance (MCR) to identify ecological source areas and corridors. Additionally, time scales were introduced into the ESP, allowing for a comprehensive analysis of the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of ecological security in the Loess Plateau. The study revealed that the number of ecological sources decreased from southeast to northwest, with 27, 41, and 77 sources covering total areas of 4263.810 km2, 18,566.034 km2, and 113,209.595 km2 from 2000 to 2020, respectively. Similarly, the number and complexity of ecological corridors increased over the same time period, with 64, 85, and 105 corridors totaling lengths of 4579.326 km, 6526.996 km, and 7015.174 km, respectively. The expansion of ecological security zones was mainly observed in the southeast part of the Loess Plateau. Overall, the ESP of the Loess Plateau saw an improvement, with the southeastern part showing better ecological security than the northwestern part. These findings hold great significance for regional ecological security evaluations and are crucial for promoting ecological management and healthy development in the Loess Plateau. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urbanization interacts with land use through resource consumption and space encroachment. Clarifying the spatial correlations of the interactive relationship between urbanization and land use, along with their spatiotemporal dynamics, is of vital importance for addressing the complex interplay between urban development and land resources and identifying regional differences. However, previous studies have not sufficiently explored these issues. Herein, we introduce a coupling coordination degree (CCD) model and present the results of exploratory spatiotemporal analyses involving in-depth investigation of the CCD between urbanization quality and land-use intensity in 290 Chinese cities. The results demonstrate that the CCD for most cities was at the transition-period or basic-coordination stage. The dynamics of the spatial correlation of the CCD was found to increase from the east to the central and western regions, but this was found to decline overall. The movement direction and spatial dependence of the local spatial structure of the CCD exerted a dominant synergistic effect. The transition of the spatial correlation was mainly Type I (stable local and neighboring morphology), showing strong transfer inertia, path dependence, and locking features. Dynamic transitions occurred more in central and eastern cities. The results suggest that more cross-city cooperation could contribute to moderate land-resource exploitation for high-quality urbanization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The phenomenon of flash droughts, marked by their fast onset, limited predictability, and formidable capacity for devastation, has elicited escalating concern. Despite this growing interest, a comprehensive investigation of the spatiotemporal dynamics of flash drought events within zones of ecological sensitivity, alongside their consequential ecological ramifications, remains elusive. The Songnen Plain, distinguished as both an important granary for commodity crops and an ecological keystone within China, emerges as an indispensable locus for the inquiry into the dynamics of flash droughts and their repercussions on terrestrial biomes. Through the application of daily soil moisture raster datasets encompassing the years 2002 to 2022, this investigation delves into the spatiotemporal progression of two distinct categories of flash droughts—those instigated by heatwaves and those precipitated by water deficits—within the Songnen Plain. Moreover, the ecosystem's response, with a particular focus on gross primary productivity (GPP), to these climatic variables was investigated. Flash drought phenomena have been observed to manifest with a relative frequency of approximately one event every three years within the Songnen Plain, predominantly lasting for periods of 28–30 days. The incidence of both heatwave-induced and water deficit-induced flash droughts was found to be comparable, with a pronounced prevalence during the summer and autumn. Nevertheless, droughts caused by water scarcity demonstrated a more extensive distribution and a heightened frequency of occurrence, whereas those rooted in heatwaves were less frequent but exhibited a propensity for localization in specific sectors. The sensitivity of GPP to these meteorological anomalies was pronounced, with an average response rate surpassing 70%. This spatial distribution of the response rate revealed elevated values in the northwestern segment of the Songnen Plain and diminished values towards the southeastern sector. Intriguingly, GPP's reaction pace to the onset of heatwave-driven flash droughts was observed to be more rapid in comparison to that during periods of water scarcity. Additionally, the spatial distribution of water use efficiency during both the development and recovery periods of flash droughts largely deviated from that of base water use efficiency. The insights from this study hold profound implications for the advancement of regional drought surveillance and adaptive management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mangroves is one of the three major blue carbon systems, possessing significant ecological functions of carbon sequestration and carbon storage, and is also an important symbol of China's marine ecological construction. This paper employs computer analysis of various remote sensing monitoring data and field discrimination, utilizing a long-time series satellite remote sensing monitoring dataset of mangrove forests from 1978 to 2018. Through an intelligent computing platform, it conducts carbon storage accounting, dynamic degree analysis, kernel density analysis, and visualization analysis. Taking Guangdong Province, which possesses superior mangrove resources in China, as a case study, the paper delineates the spatiotemporal distribution and evolution characteristics of the mangrove forests along the Guangdong coastal zone over a 40-year period. Furthermore, it uses a carbon storage estimation model to uncover the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of the mangrove carbon storage along the Guangdong coastal zone. The results showed that: during the study period, (1) the distribution area of mangroves along the Guangdong coastal zone showed a trend of falling first and then rising in general, which can be divided into two stages. The spatial distribution was not uniform, and the medium or above value areas of kernel density were mainly distributed in the bay areas, and the overall pattern was "more in the west than in the east". The distribution morphology evolved from strip to scattered patches, and after partial restoration, the patches area increased, but the consistency and agglomeration were not as good as before. (2) The carbon storage in mangroves along the Guangdong coastal zone has generally decreased. The Cartesian heat map value of mangrove carbon storage is centered around Zhanjiang City, showing a spatial pattern of "higher in the west and lower in the central and east". Before 2000, the mangrove carbon storage of most cities was reduced, after which there was an overall increase in mangrove carbon storage. The changes of mangrove carbon storage in various cities along the Guangdong coastal zone can be divided into five types, with differing reasons for the changes in their carbon storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article develops a five-dimensional evaluation system for assessing high-quality economic development at the county level, employing the entropy method to analyze economic progress in 57 counties across Guangdong Province from 2010 to 2020.Utilizing machine learning techniques, the study uncovers the spatiotemporal dynamics and regional disparities in economic development at this level within Guangdong. Findings indicate a consistent annual improvement in the quality of economic development across the counties, with growing absolute disparities that display characteristics of "club convergence." Notably, the Pearl River Delta and the eastern and western parts of Guangdong exhibit a multipolar growth pattern, with regional variances primarily driving the overall disparities in high-quality economic development at the county level in Guangdong Province. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

30 provinces in China from 2006 to 2019 were studied, the Super-efficiency DEAML model and global spatial autocorrelation analysis method were combined to re-measure the actual logistics carbon emission efficiency and its overall characteristics in China, which based on the new assessment criteria for carbon emissions. The exploratory space-time data analysis method and related measurement models were further introduced to explore the space-time dynamic evolution characteristics of logistics carbon emission efficiency and its impact on convergence. The results suggest that: ①The efficiency of logistics carbon emissions is at a medium level in China and exists spatial agglomeration. The average is high in the east and low in the west. Increasing returns to scale exists in most provinces. Interannual variation shows a dynamic growth trend, and is greatly influenced by technological progress. ②The local spatial structure of logistics carbon emission efficiency differs from the direction of spatial dependence, The logistics carbon emission efficiency presents strong spatial integration among neighboring provinces, and has transfer inertia and path locking during dynamic evolution. ③ Logistics carbon emission efficiency has no σ convergence and has β convergence and club convergence. Regional differences, logistics agglomeration level and degree of informatization are the main influencing factors of conditional β convergence, there is significant club convergence in areas with more tortuous temporal and spatial evolution of logistics carbon emission efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As one of the world's major emerging economies, Thailand's influence in OFDI has been expanding, and its geographical distribution has become increasingly diversified, which is representative. Based on this, analyzing Thai OFDI's temporal and spatial evolution characteristics from 2009 to 2019, the stepwise regression method is used to test the impact of the four-dimensional distance of geography, economy, system and culture on the location selection of Thai OFDI, in order to provide theoretical and practical reference for optimizing the location selection of developing countries. The results show that: (1) the OFDI flow in Thailand shows a fluctuating upward trend. But the investment flow decreased significantly from 2014 to 2015 and 2019 due to domestic political turmoil, large-scale divestment of individual enterprises and other factors. (2) While maintaining a large amount of investment in traditional advantageous industries, Thailand has actively expanded its investment industry, but the overall investment structure is at a lower level. (3) With the expansion of the scale of Thailand's OFDI, its location choices around the world are more diverse, showing a trend of radiation diffusion to central and Western Asia, Africa and South America. The spatial imbalance has weakened, but the overall is still prominent. (4) Geographical distance significantly inhibits the location choice of Thai OFDI, while economic distance plays a positive role in the choice of OFDI. Different from the research results based on developed countries, Thai investors tend to host countries (regions) with large institutional distance, and cultural distance has little impact on them. In view of this, developing countries in similar situations with Thailand should fully consider the influence of distance, weaken the blocking effect of geographical distance on OFDI, and actively improve their own economic development level and political stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Objective] The aims of this study are to objectively identify the spatial and temporal evolutionary characteristics of ecological security in the middle reaches of Yangtze River urban agglomeration, to evaluate its ecological security level and diagnose its influencing factors, and to provide a reference for the construction of the regional ecological security pattern. [Methods] The 31 municipal administrative units in the middle reaches of Yangtze River urban agglomeration were used as research samples, and an ecological security evaluation index system was constructed based on the DPSIRM model. The spatial and temporal evolution characteristics of ecological safety in the study area were evaluated using exploratory spatial data analysis, and the factors impeding ecological safety were analyzed in conjunction with the barrier degree model. Finally, based on the evaluation and diagnosis results, the optimization path was proposed. [Results] (1) The ecological safety level of cities in the study area had generally been improving from 2006 to 2020, and the ecological safety level varied spatially, but the overall difference was not large. (2) The results of the ranking of the ecological safety barrier degree of the study area were management factors＞influence factors＞pressure factors＞response factors＞driving factors＞state factors. The improvement of its ecological safety level was mainly governed by six specific indicators, namely, the proportion of investment in fixed assets, the amount of water resources per capita, education expenditure within the general budget of local finance, the area of green areas and squares, the area of soil erosion control, and GDP per capita. (3) There was a certain positive spatial autocorrelation in the ecological safety level of the study area, with the formation of a high-value agglomeration area in central Jiangxi Province and a low-value agglomeration area in central Hubei Province. (4) It suggested that the most cities in the urban agglomeration in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River were at the critical safety level (Ⅲ), and there was still a large gap from reaching the overall safety level (Ⅴ) . [Conclusion] The ecological security level of the city cluster in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River showed an overall positive trend, and more attention should be paid to the response of economic countermeasures, the utilization of ecological resources as well as the construction and management of ecological systems, so as to help build an ecological security barrier for the city cluster in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Coal Science & Technology (0253-2336) is the property of Coal Science & Technology 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.)

Using basic data from China's 30 provincial regions from 2005 to 2015, the slacks-based measure of super-efficiency in data envelopment analysis (super-efficiency SBM-DEA) is used to measure industrial green economic efficiency (IGEE). Moreover, the temporal change and spatial equilibrium of IGEE are analyzed, and the panel quantile regression model (PQRM) is used to empirically analyze the impacts of the degree of agglomeration of pollution-intensive industries (PIIs) and other influencing factors on IGEE. The results reveal the following. (1) The kernel density distribution curve of China's IGEE exhibits a double-peaked distribution, and the overall peak value of the curve changes relatively greatly, exhibiting obvious spatial inequality. (2) Based on their trajectories, the centers of gravity of IGEE are all distributed in the central region. The moving speed of the centers of gravity exhibits a trend of "accelerating–decreasing–quickly accelerating." Judging from the changes of the standard deviation ellipse (SDE), the spatial distribution pattern of China's IGEE generally presents a northeast–southwest pattern, and it has exhibited the trend of shifting to a north–south pattern in recent years. (3) The agglomeration level of PIIs has a significant positive effect on the development of China's IGEE at each quantile level, and the most significant impact on China's IGEE is at the 75th quantile level. This paper empirically analyzes the impact of the agglomeration level of PIIs on IGEE to aid in the greening of industrial economic efficiency and the sustainable development of the ecological environment in China and other developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The West Liaohe River Basin (WRLB) is a typical agro-pastoral interlaced zone in Northeast China where excessive economic development activities brought great pressure on the ecosystem and caused a series of ecological problems, having a negative effect on regional ecological carrying capacity (ECC). The rational construction of ecological security pattern (ESP) is an effective way to improve regional ECC and alleviate the contradiction between ecological protection and economic development. In this study, taking the WLRB as an example, spatiotemporal changes of ECC in the WLRB from 2000 to 2020 were explored by using spatial principal component analysis (SPCA). Furthermore, ecological sources were determined by coupling ECC evaluation results with important ecological patches such as natural protected areas, and the minimum cumulative resistance (MCR) model combined with the circuit theory method were employed to identify ecological security zoning, ecological corridors and key ecological nodes. Then a comprehensive ESP of the basin was constructed. The results show as follows: 1) The ECC of the overall WLRB was at medium carrying level, yet was spatially differentiated, which decreased from the periphery to the center of the basin in general. ECC showed a fluctuating upward trend from 2000 to 2020. 2) The ecological source area of the WLRB was 21926.91 km2, accounting for 17.33% of the total study area. The ecological sources were seriously fragmentated and mainly distributed in the mountain area. The area of ecological conservation zone, optimized buffer zone, ecological transition zone, ecological prevention and control zone were 55672.69 km2, 32662.24 km2, 23862.84 km2 and 12021.04 km2, accounting for 44.82%, 26.29%, 19.21% and 9.68%, respectively. We also extracted 95 ecological corridors (with a total length of 3130.97 km), 49 ecological pinch points (with a total area of 200.33 km2) and 30 ecological barrier points (with a total area of 318.30 km2), constituting a "pointslines-planes" comprehensive ecological security pattern. This research can provide scientific reference for the protection and restoration of ecological environment and regional sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water conservation is highly important for a successful desert grassland ecosystem, but there was no comprehensive view on how to assess influencing factors in managing and addressing water yield and water conservation in desert steppe. The Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs (InVEST) model, which is specifically used for the assessment of ecosystem services, was combined with geographic detectors to identify the priority areas for water conservation function and analyze the driving factors of water conservation in the Tabu River Basin, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China, using different meteorological data sources. (i) The InVEST model has the advantage of modeling water yield and water conservation at spatial scales by fusion downscaling data. High water yield mainly occurs in the southern hilly mountainous areas, low water yield in the northern desert and grassland areas, and between the two in the central agro-pastoral areas; the multi-year average water conservation and water yield based on the InVEST model are 3.3 and 16 mm, respectively. (ii) Water yield and water conservation roughly show a transitional phenomenon of "high in the south and low in the north." The water yield and water conservation per unit area of the Tabu River Basin are relatively large for construction land, unused land, and cropland, relatively small for grassland and forestland, and basically zero for water bodies. Forest land has the strongest water conservation capacity, followed by grassland and farmland, while the order of water yield capacity is the opposite. (iii) Precipitation shows the strongest explanatory power for water yield (q = 0.427), followed by land use types (q = 0.411). The precipitation ∩ actual evapotranspiration has the strongest explanatory power for water yield (q = 0.87). The explanatory power of water yield on water conservation is the strongest (q = 0.752), followed by precipitation (q = 0.4), and the water yield ∩ soil has the greatest explanatory power on water conservation (q = 0.91). These findings are crucial for promoting regional hydrologic services and can provide a water resources management strategy for decision-makers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the spatiotemporal evolution of economic development in 23 cities across Guangdong Province, Hong Kong, and Macau from 1990 to 2022. The results indicated a general growth trend in overall economic development, with substantial fluctuations in absolute differences and a significant reduction in relative differences. The economic development appeared to be balanced both within and between cities. Spatially, the study revealed an increasing agglomeration effect, evident polarization in economic levels, and a distinct core–periphery structure, with central cities in the Greater Bay Area exerting a growing influence on their peripheries. Nevertheless, the peripheral cities, despite their economic strides, necessitate augmented policy interventions and capital influx to bridge regional chasms. The study's outcomes serve as a foundational reference for sharpening policy decisions, fostering regional amalgamation, and invigorating urban blueprinting and city-to-city synergies. This research provides an in-depth analysis of economic development trends across 23 cities in Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macau over 32 years. For policymakers, urban planners, and business leaders, the findings present a clearer picture of the region's economic landscape. Notably, while central cities within the Greater Bay Area have become influential economic hubs, surrounding cities still face challenges. These insights suggest a need for more targeted policies and investments, especially in peripheral cities, to promote more uniform growth across the region. By understanding these dynamics, governments and businesses can make more informed decisions that foster city-to-city collaborations and develop better urban and regional strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the "tianyancha" network big data, we analysis the spatiotemporal evolution and influencing factors of domestic service industry development in China by using the Theil index, spatial autocorrelation and geographic detector techniques. The results show that: (1)The domestic service industry development in China can be divided into four stages: incubation stage, growth stage, rising stage and prosperity stage. From 2000 to 2020, the regional difference of domestic service industry development has been shrinking and greater than the interregional differences, with the largest difference in the eastern region. (2)The development level of domestic service industry in China shows obvious spatial differentiation, the low, medium and high-level areas change greatly, but the trend of "east-middle-west" stepwise decline has not changed. Guangdong, Jiangsu and Shandong are always high-level areas. Tibet, Qinghai, Ningxia and Hainan are always low-level areas. At the same time, the spatial distribution of domestic service industry development is gathering day by day. (3)In 2000, economic and spatial factors were the main factors, and population factors were the auxiliary factors. While in 2020, economic, population and information factors were the main factors, and spatial factors and enterprises' own factors were the auxiliary factors. At the same time, the leading factors for the spa‐ tial differences in domestic service industry development in different regions are different. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is crucial for optimizing the layout of intra-urban ecological land and enhancing the ecological well-being of urban residents to understand the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of intra-urban ecological land scientifically. Taking the area within the Third Ring Road of Wuhan City as the research area, the major land cover types were identified by high resolution remote sensing images in 2000, 2010 and 2020. The evolution of intra-urban ecological land was analyzed in terms of quantitative, spatial landscape pattern by using methods such as land use dynamics and landscape pattern index. The results showed that: (1) The total area of ecological land showed a downward trend from 2000 to 2020, primarily due to reduced cultivated land, while the area of woodland and grassland increased significantly. (2) The decrease of ecological land areas was located in the newly built areas near the Third Ring Road, while the increase of ecological land areas was located in the internally developed areas. (3) The fragmentation of ecological land showed an increasing trend, and there was significantly spatial difference. The increasing fragmentation areas were mainly located in the newly built areas, while the fragmentation within the city’s built-up areas decreased in recent 10 years. Economic development, population growth and government policies were the three main aspects resulting in the change of ecological land use patterns. These findings could provide a scientific basis for the optimization and management of ecological land use within urban areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is crucial to explore the characteristics of rock mass failure and provide specific early warning parameter values to ensure mine safety in the study of early warning for rock mass damage in mines* This article takes a metal mine as example and establishes a ground pressure monitoring system using microseismic monitoring technology. The principal component analysis method is used to determine the optimal statistical time window and analyze the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of microseisms before and after the roof caving event combined with a large scale roof caving event in the mine. The analysis shows that the center position of the microseismic event density cloud map is consistent with the location of the failure, and there is a precursor information that the number of microseisms continues to increase before the rock mass failure, and rapidly decreases after reaching its peak. The microseismic differentiation degree was expressed by the microseismic quantity variance to represent the damage degree of rock mass. The microseismic differentiation rate index was obtained by using the finite difference method. The research shows that the microseismic differentiation rate of rock mass failure process was divided into three stages: stable differentiation stage, accelerated differentiation stage and rock mass failure stage. The Gaussian Amp function was used to fit it, and the upper limit of the confidence interval of 0. 306 with a confidence level of 0. 99 was determined as the early warning value for differentiation rate ultimately. This study provides a theoretical basis for the establishment of a mine disaster warning system using microseismic monitorings and has reference significance for mine safety production management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessing the sustainable development level of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau (QTP) is of great significance for China's sustainable development. With rich natural resources, a fragile ecological environment, and a relatively low level of economic development, the QTP is typical of regions in China where conflict between socio-economic development and environmental protection is prominent. However, there is a lack of assessment of spatiotemporal progress in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on the QTP. To address this gap in knowledge, cluster analysis was used to quantitatively assess spatiotemporal changes in SDG indicators and sustainable development levels in different counties of the QTP from 2000 to 2020. The results show that the sustainable development level of the QTP is increasing; the growth rate of the sustainable development in 2010–2020 was three times that of 2000–2010. The level of sustainable development in the eastern region is significantly higher than that in the western region. However, while the level of sustainable environmental development is high, the levels of sustainable social and economic development remain low. Certain factors, including precipitation, slope, population density, and cultivated area, are strongly positively correlated with the sustainable development of the QTP. The findings of our study can serve as a valuable reference for other jurisdictions seeking to evaluate their evolution towards the SDGs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To explore the response relationship of vegetation dynamic change characteristics, clearness vegetation and precipitation changes in the Hexi Corridor, China. This paper analyzed the NDVI between 2000-2019 using linear regression slope method based on long time series MODIS data. The annual NDVI values of the Hexi Corridor range from 0.15 to 0.22. The vegetation overall showed an upward trend in the last 20 years, with an average slope from 0.0125/10a. But there was significant variability in the trend of inter annual changes, as compared from 2000 to 2009, the rate of exponential increases in vegetation in the Hexi Corridor slowed in 2010-2019, and the average slope of changes in vegetation cover decreased from 0.0139/10a to -0.006 8/10a. The variation trend of NDVI is basically consistent with precipitation. The positive and negative correlation between NDVI and precipitation account for 61.58% and 38.42% respectively. The positive correlation region is mainly located in the central and southwest regions with relatively rich vegetation. The regions with negative correlation are mainly in the northern and northeastern desert areas, where there is no vegetation cover. It shows that the relationship between vegetation index and precipitation in Hexi Corridor is relatively close in areas with abundant vegetation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Arid Land Geography is the property of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology & Geography 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.)

Understanding the spatiotemporal dynamics of carbon storage in regional ecosystem and its underlying mechanisms is essential for environmental science. This study presents an integrated geographical analysis framework to identify and analyze the primary factors influencing carbon storage across various spatial scales. Initially, a global-scale Geographic Detector identified key factors affecting carbon storage, refined later using an Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) model to mitigate multicollinearity and redundancy. Subsequently, a multi-scale geographic weighted regression model (MGWR) explored spatial heterogeneity and nuanced impacts of these factors across various spatial scales. Our findings reveal a consistent downward trend in carbon storage in Fujian Province, China, from 1995 to 2020, accompanied by significant spatial autocorrelation. Elevation, slope, annual precipitation, and distance to the expressway emerged as primary determinants, synergistically enhancing global-scale spatial variance in carbon storage. Slope and distance to the expressway have a broad influence, while the added value of the primary industry and annual precipitation show localized effects. Collectively, these factors positively impact carbon storage, although with considerable variability in spatial orientation and magnitude of influence. This framework highlights the scale-specific and heterogeneous nature of carbon storage drivers, offering fresh insights into the mechanisms governing its spatiotemporal patterns in regional ecosystems.

Background: The sustainable development of aquaculture is a crucial determinant of food security, the well-being of aquaculture practitioners, and economic growth within coastal regions. Considering the existing gap in research regarding spatial and temporal development of aquaculture, this study investigates the progression of aquaculture practices over time and across various locations in Fuding City, China. Methods: We retrospectively collected temporal and spatial data on aquaculture, as well as demographic, social, and economic data for Fuding City from 2010 to 2020. By employing 3D kernel density analysis, we illustrated the temporal and spatial changes in aquaculture. Furthermore, we utilized Ordinary Least Squares regression to investigate the driving factors behind the spatial changes in the aquaculture industry. Results: Over the past decades, we observed that in Fuding City, both the number of fishing rafts and aquaculture households initially decreased and then increased. The spatial distribution of aquaculture experienced a shift from the west (inner bay area) to the east (coastal area). Additionally, the type of fishing rafts also varied by region, with traditional rafts dominating the western inner bay and plastic rafts prevalent in the eastern offshore areas. Analysis of driving factors revealed that at least six factors have a significant positive correlation with the eastward shift of the aquaculture industry's center, including the proportion of migrant population, proportion of aquaculture to total fishery output, average temperature, investment in aquaculture technology, total fish sales, and GDP of Fuding City. Conclusion: This study examines the spatial and temporal dynamics of aquaculture in Fuding City from 2010 to 2020, proposing an innovative approach to spatial optimization that integrates both horizontal and vertical strategies. These insights aim to guide the development of coastal aquaculture policies and support sustainable regional development, fostering a balanced coexistence between human activities and marine environments.

To explore the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of heat vulnerability in the Pearl River Delta urban agglomeration during heatwave disasters, this research employs the Entropy Weight Method (EWM) to calculate the heat vulnerability assessment results for nine cities in the region spanning from 2001 to 2022. Through the application of kernel density estimation, Moran's I, and the Geographically and Temporally Weighted Regression (GTWR) model, which is proven to be superior to traditional model such as OLS, this study analyzes the dynamic distribution patterns of heat vulnerability in the study area and dissect the trends of influencing factors. The results reveal that from 2001 to 2022, the overall heat vulnerability index in the study area demonstrates a fluctuating downward trend. Key contributors to heat vulnerability include high-frequency and long-duration heatwaves, population sensitivity, and changes in residents' consumption levels. Throughout this period of development, the disparity in heat vulnerability among cities has gradually widened, indicating an overall pattern of uneven development in the region. Future attention should be focused on formulating heat adaptation strategies in areas with high vulnerability to enhance the overall sustainability of the study area.

These studies can’t explain the reality of China well, which researched on the spatiotemporal changes and influencing factors of ecological innovation efficiency in a single urban agglomeration. This study describes the spatiotemporal evolutionary characteristics of eco-innovation efficiency in eight major urban agglomerations in China based on the SE-U-SBM (Super-Efficiency Slacks-Based Measure) method of sequential DEA, Dagum Gini coefficient, kernel density estimation, and coefficient of variation method. The SDID and DID models were constructed to identify the policy causes of their spatiotemporal evolutionary characteristics. The results reveal that (1) The temporal and spatial evolution of eco-innovation efficiency in urban agglomerations is in “U” and inverted “U” shapes with the inflection point occurring in 2012. (2) Among the eight major urban agglomerations, the rest of them have a “U”-shaped trend except for the inverted “N”-shaped temporal trend of eco-innovation efficiency in the Harbin-Changchun (HC) and Guanzhong (GZ). The spatial convergence trend is the strongest in the Yangtze River’s midstream (UMYR) and Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) and weakest in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD), Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao (GHM), and Chengdu-Chongqing (CC). (3) Policies such as the Low-Carbon City Pilot (LCCP), National Demonstration City for the Circular Economy (CEDC), and Ecological Compensation Pilot (ECP) have caused the eco-innovation efficiency of urban agglomerations to increase after 2012. Additionally, the Ecological Civilization in the Pioneer Demonstration Zone (ECDAP) and LCCP can explain the inverted “N”-shaped characteristics of the urban agglomerations of the HC and GZ. Improvements in eco-innovation efficiency in the UMYR and Central Plains (CP) depend on ECP implementation. (4) ECDAP and CEDC can explain the inverted “U”-shaped spatial convergence of the eco-innovation efficiency in urban agglomerations. The spatial convergence of eco-innovation efficiency in the CP, GZ, and HC depends on policies other than the CEDC. The strong spatial convergence of BTH and UMYR was due to the ECDAP implementation.