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Protection of Ecosystem and Sustainable Development: Strategies and Practices for Ecological Restoration, Biodiversity Conservation, and Ecosystem Services

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2024) | Viewed by 7383

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Yuan Li

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Global Regional and Urban Research Institute, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an 710119, China
Interests: ecological restoration; land and resource management; ecosystem services
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

It is widely recognized that the protection of ecosystems and sustainable development are crucial for maintaining the health and balance of our natural environment. The diverse and complex nature of ecosystems, including soil microorganisms, soil animals, and plant diversity, is facing increasing challenges due to human activities and global change. Disturbances such as deforestation, pollution, and other human interventions are altering the structure and function of these ecosystems.

The Special Issue aims to develop effective restoration strategies by understanding the impacts of disturbances on biodiversity, ecological processes, and ecosystem services. We welcome submissions exploring recent advances in ecological restoration, biodiversity conservation, and ecosystem services, including theory, methods, and practices. We are particularly interested in research investigating the relationship between ecosystem disturbances and the provision of ecosystem services, such as water purification, climate regulation, and soil fertility, and encourage innovative approaches to restore and enhance these services.

We invite researchers and scholars to contribute their work to this Special Issue, with the goal of advancing our knowledge and promoting the protection and restoration of ecosystems for sustainable development, while also emphasizing the critical role of ecosystem services in supporting human well-being.

Dr. Yuan Li
Guest Editor

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • ecosystem protection
  • sustainable development
  • natural environment
  • soil microorganisms
  • soil animals
  • plant diversity
  • global change
  • deforestation
  • pollution
  • restoration strategies
  • biodiversity conservation
  • ecological processes
  • ecosystem services

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

23 pages, 11095 KiB  
Article
Bayesian Network Analysis: Assessing and Restoring Ecological Vulnerability in the Shaanxi Section of the Qinling-Daba Mountains Under Global Warming Influences
by Zezhou Hu, Nan Li, Miao Zhang and Miao Miao
Sustainability 2024, 16(22), 10021; https://doi.org/10.3390/su162210021 - 17 Nov 2024
Viewed by 1224
Abstract
Human activities, especially industrial production and urbanization, have significantly affected vegetation cover, water resource cycles, climate change, and biodiversity in the Qinling-Daba Mountain region and its surrounding areas. These activities contribute to complex and lasting impacts on ecological vulnerability. The Qinling Mountain region [...] Read more.
Human activities, especially industrial production and urbanization, have significantly affected vegetation cover, water resource cycles, climate change, and biodiversity in the Qinling-Daba Mountain region and its surrounding areas. These activities contribute to complex and lasting impacts on ecological vulnerability. The Qinling Mountain region exhibits a complex interaction with human activities. The current research on the ecological vulnerability of the Qinling Mountain region primarily focuses on spatial distribution and the driving factors. This study innovatively applies the VSD assessment and Bayesian networks to systematically evaluate and simulate the ecological vulnerability of the study area over the past 20 years, which indicates that the integration of the VSD model with the Bayesian network model enables the simulation of dynamic relationships and interactions among various factors within the study areas, providing a more accurate assessment and prediction of ecosystem responses to diverse changes from a dynamic perspective. The key findings are as follows. (1) Areas of potential and slight vulnerability are concentrated in the Qinling-Daba mountainous regions. Over the past 20 years, areas of extreme and high vulnerability have significantly decreased, while areas of potential vulnerability and slight vulnerability have increased. (2) The key factors impacting ecological vulnerability during this period included industrial water use, SO2 emissions, industrial wastewater, and ecological water use. (3) Areas primarily hindering the transition to potential vulnerability are concentrated in well-developed small urban regions within basins. Furthermore, natural factors like altitude and temperature, which cannot be artificially regulated, are the major impediments to future ecological restoration. Therefore, this paper recommends natural restoration strategies based on environmental protection and governance strategies that prioritize green development as complementary measures. The discoveries of the paper provide a novel analytical method for the study of ecological vulnerability in mountainous areas, offering valuable insights for enhancing the accuracy of ecological risk prediction, fostering the integration of interdisciplinary research, and optimizing environmental governance and protection strategies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Protection of Ecosystem and Sustainable Development: Strategies and Practices for Ecological Restoration, Biodiversity Conservation, and Ecosystem Services)
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22 pages, 708 KiB  
Article
Have Climate Factor Changes Jeopardized the Value of Qinghai Grassland Ecosystem Services within the Grass–Animal Balance?
by Jize Zhang and Pengwei Chen
Sustainability 2024, 16(19), 8463; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16198463 - 28 Sep 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1381
Abstract
Internal and external environmental changes have led to changes in the service value of plateau ecosystems. Plateau ecosystems are facing a risk of falling into “recession”. Meanwhile, climate change has become an important factor affecting the service value of plateau grassland ecosystems. In [...] Read more.
Internal and external environmental changes have led to changes in the service value of plateau ecosystems. Plateau ecosystems are facing a risk of falling into “recession”. Meanwhile, climate change has become an important factor affecting the service value of plateau grassland ecosystems. In this paper, from the perspective of how changes in climate factors inhibit the value of ecosystem services of plateau grasslands, we adopt the equivalent factor method to measure the value of grassland ecosystem services in eight municipal levels in Qinghai Province from 2000 to 2021. We also construct a fixed utility model to test how changes in climate factors affect the value of ecosystem services and use the grass–animal balance as a mediating effect model for the test. The results of the study showed that (1) the increase in temperature and precipitation among the changes in climate factors significantly suppresses the ecosystem service value of grassland in the plateau. (2) The mediation test shows that the grass–livestock balance helped suppress the effects of climate factor changes on the ecological service value of plateau grassland. (3) The heterogeneity test shows that the area containing the Three-River-Source National Park is more resistant to climate factor changes. Climate factor changes have a greater impact on the ecosystem service value of plateau grassland in high altitude areas and have a significant positive effect on sustained low grassland carrying pressure index status. Therefore, in the protection of plateau grassland ecosystems, we should pay attention to the inputs in the ecosystems as well as appropriate grazing. At the same time, this study can provide a reference value for the decision-making with respect to ecological natural resources protection or restoration in plateau grassland under the effects of climate factors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Protection of Ecosystem and Sustainable Development: Strategies and Practices for Ecological Restoration, Biodiversity Conservation, and Ecosystem Services)
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17 pages, 2465 KiB  
Article
Land Green Utilization Efficiency and Its Driving Mechanisms in the Zhengzhou Metropolitan Area
by Linger Yu and Keyi Liu
Sustainability 2024, 16(13), 5447; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16135447 - 26 Jun 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1525
Abstract
Improving land green use efficiency is of great significance for promoting high-quality economic development and promoting the modernization of harmonious coexistence between humans and nature. In this study, the super-efficiency SBM model with non-expected output was used to measure the level of land [...] Read more.
Improving land green use efficiency is of great significance for promoting high-quality economic development and promoting the modernization of harmonious coexistence between humans and nature. In this study, the super-efficiency SBM model with non-expected output was used to measure the level of land green use efficiency at county scale in the Zhengzhou metropolitan area from 2005 to 2020. Based on this, the spatio-temporal evolution and spatial agglomeration characteristics were analyzed. Finally, the driving mechanisms were revealed by using the geographical detector model. The results were as follows: (1) From 2005 to 2020, the land green use efficiency of the Zhengzhou metropolitan area fluctuated from 0.5329 to 0.5164, with an average annual decline rate of 0.21%, exhibiting three stages: decline, rise, then another slight decline. At the city level, Luohe City had the highest land green use efficiency, while Zhengzhou City had the lowest. (2) The land green use efficiency of the Zhengzhou metropolitan area showed a significant spatial positive correlation, Moran’s I index increased from 0.1472 to 0.2991, and the spatial agglomeration effect was continuously enhanced. On the local scale, high-high (H-H) aggregation and low-low (L-L) aggregation were dominant, high-high (H-H) aggregation areas were mainly distributed in the southwest and southeast of the Zhengzhou metropolitan area, and low-low (L-L) aggregation areas were mainly distributed in the central and western parts of the Zhengzhou metropolitan area. (3) There is heterogeneity in the degree of influence of different driving factors on land green use efficiency in the Zhengzhou metropolitan area, which is ranked as topographic relief (X7) > forest coverage rate (X8) > social consumption (X6) > industrial structure (X3) > urbanization rate (X2) > economic development (X1) > industrial added value scale (X5) > financial expenditure (X4). q values were 0.1856, 0.1119, 0.1082, 0.0741, 0.0673, 0.0589, 0.0492 and 0.0430, respectively. The interaction of two factors can enhance the explanatory power of land green use efficiency in the Zhengzhou metropolitan area. Except for the interaction of topographic relief and forest coverage rate, the other factors all show double factor enhancement. The explanatory power of the interaction between topographic relief and urbanization rate is the strongest, at 0.3513. In the future, policy regulation should be carried out from the perspectives of the interaction of social and economic conditions such as improving forest coverage rate, improving consumption power, optimizing industrial structure and improving land green use mechanisms to promote the improvement of land green use efficiency. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Protection of Ecosystem and Sustainable Development: Strategies and Practices for Ecological Restoration, Biodiversity Conservation, and Ecosystem Services)
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23 pages, 25107 KiB  
Article
Variation in Debris-Flow-Prone Areas with Ecosystem Stability: A Case Study of the Qipan Catchment in the Wenchuan Earthquake Region
by Xiaoyu Zhan, Xudong Hu, Zexin Jing, Wennian Xu, Dong Xia and Gujie Ding
Sustainability 2024, 16(9), 3855; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16093855 - 4 May 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1925
Abstract
The spatial distribution of vegetation in a basin has a far-reaching influence on the potential for sediment separation and transport capacity. However, many landslides induced by strong earthquakes have greatly changed the existing pattern, which further increases the probability of debris flow in [...] Read more.
The spatial distribution of vegetation in a basin has a far-reaching influence on the potential for sediment separation and transport capacity. However, many landslides induced by strong earthquakes have greatly changed the existing pattern, which further increases the probability of debris flow in a basin during heavy rainfall and has a significant impact on the stability of the basin. Thus, this study selected the debris flow basin in the Qipan catchment of the Wenchuan earthquake area as the research object. Multisource and high-precision remote sensing images were used to analyze the land use changes in the basin, and the index of connectivity (IC) was introduced to analyze the evolution of sediment transport capacity. An ecosystem stability assessment method suitable for post-earthquake debris flow basins was proposed. Through quantitative assessment of the ecosystem stability of the basin after the Wenchuan earthquake in 2008 and the two debris flow events after the earthquake, the dynamic relationship between the debris-flow-prone area and the ecosystem stability of the basin was revealed. The results showed that the stability of the ecosystem in the Qipan catchment increased annually, indicating a stable and substable state. The spatial distribution characteristics were lower in the north and south and greater in the middle. By comparing the evaluation results with the actual terrain change trend, the accuracy and feasibility of the evaluation method are verified. The results of this study provide a scientific basis for the formulation of regional disaster prevention strategies and help to accelerate the improvement of regional stability in debris-flow-prone areas. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Protection of Ecosystem and Sustainable Development: Strategies and Practices for Ecological Restoration, Biodiversity Conservation, and Ecosystem Services)
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