Assessing restoration and degradation of natural and artificial vegetation in the arid zone of Northwest China
Assessing vegetation restoration and degradation trends is important for regional ecological conservation and sustainable development, yet few studies have examined the characteristics of these trends in natural and artificial vegetation in arid zones. In this study, we develop an assessment framewo...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-03-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2023.1131210/full |
| _version_ | 1811155459980132352 |
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| author | Jinxia Zhang Jinxia Zhang Zhi Li Weili Duan Hongfang Zhao Hongfang Zhao Haichao Hao Haichao Hao Yanyun Xiang Qifei Zhang |
| author_facet | Jinxia Zhang Jinxia Zhang Zhi Li Weili Duan Hongfang Zhao Hongfang Zhao Haichao Hao Haichao Hao Yanyun Xiang Qifei Zhang |
| author_sort | Jinxia Zhang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Assessing vegetation restoration and degradation trends is important for regional ecological conservation and sustainable development, yet few studies have examined the characteristics of these trends in natural and artificial vegetation in arid zones. In this study, we develop an assessment framework based on two common ecological indicators, Net Primary Productivity (NPP) and Water Use Efficiency (WUE). We discuss the restoration and degradation trends of natural and artificial vegetation in China’s Northwest Arid Region (NAR) and analyze the similarities and differences between the changes in the two. Our results reveal the following: (1) Both natural vegetation (Nav) NPP and artificial vegetation (Arv) NPP in the NAR are dominated by significant growth, with precipitation being the most influential factor. Arv NPP changes are greater than Nav NPP. (2) WUE and NPP have similar spatial distribution characteristics, with precipitation and temperature dominating WUE changes in the Qilian Mountains and s southern Xinjiang, respectively. In the near future, Nav WUE is expected to be dominated by improvement to degradation, while Arv WUE will continue to improve under human intervention. These two indices respond differently to the environmental factors that cause their changes. (3) Nav and Arv exhibit similar restoration and degradation trends, mainly dominated by early recovery with Nav displaying a slightly more prominent restoration trend than Arv. The NPP-WUE assessment framework will help to rapidly assess vegetation degradation and restoration at large scales, providing new perspectives for research in this field. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T04:33:26Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-eb5ff1d6cda349c785ccda07ca5e9fdc |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-701X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T04:33:26Z |
| publishDate | 2023-03-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj.art-eb5ff1d6cda349c785ccda07ca5e9fdc2023-03-10T05:33:47ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution2296-701X2023-03-011110.3389/fevo.2023.11312101131210Assessing restoration and degradation of natural and artificial vegetation in the arid zone of Northwest ChinaJinxia Zhang0Jinxia Zhang1Zhi Li2Weili Duan3Hongfang Zhao4Hongfang Zhao5Haichao Hao6Haichao Hao7Yanyun Xiang8Qifei Zhang9School of Geographic Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai, ChinaKey Laboratory of Geographic Information Science, Ministry of Education, East China Normal University, Shanghai, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Urumqi, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Urumqi, ChinaSchool of Geographic Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai, ChinaKey Laboratory of Geographic Information Science, Ministry of Education, East China Normal University, Shanghai, ChinaSchool of Geographic Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai, ChinaKey Laboratory of Geographic Information Science, Ministry of Education, East China Normal University, Shanghai, ChinaSchool of Public Administration, Shanxi University of Finance and Economics, Taiyuan, ChinaSchool of Geographic Sciences, Shanxi Normal University, Taiyuan, ChinaAssessing vegetation restoration and degradation trends is important for regional ecological conservation and sustainable development, yet few studies have examined the characteristics of these trends in natural and artificial vegetation in arid zones. In this study, we develop an assessment framework based on two common ecological indicators, Net Primary Productivity (NPP) and Water Use Efficiency (WUE). We discuss the restoration and degradation trends of natural and artificial vegetation in China’s Northwest Arid Region (NAR) and analyze the similarities and differences between the changes in the two. Our results reveal the following: (1) Both natural vegetation (Nav) NPP and artificial vegetation (Arv) NPP in the NAR are dominated by significant growth, with precipitation being the most influential factor. Arv NPP changes are greater than Nav NPP. (2) WUE and NPP have similar spatial distribution characteristics, with precipitation and temperature dominating WUE changes in the Qilian Mountains and s southern Xinjiang, respectively. In the near future, Nav WUE is expected to be dominated by improvement to degradation, while Arv WUE will continue to improve under human intervention. These two indices respond differently to the environmental factors that cause their changes. (3) Nav and Arv exhibit similar restoration and degradation trends, mainly dominated by early recovery with Nav displaying a slightly more prominent restoration trend than Arv. The NPP-WUE assessment framework will help to rapidly assess vegetation degradation and restoration at large scales, providing new perspectives for research in this field.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2023.1131210/fullartificial vegetationnatural vegetationnet primary productivitywater use efficiencyrestoration and degradation |
| spellingShingle | Jinxia Zhang Jinxia Zhang Zhi Li Weili Duan Hongfang Zhao Hongfang Zhao Haichao Hao Haichao Hao Yanyun Xiang Qifei Zhang Assessing restoration and degradation of natural and artificial vegetation in the arid zone of Northwest China Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution artificial vegetation natural vegetation net primary productivity water use efficiency restoration and degradation |
| title | Assessing restoration and degradation of natural and artificial vegetation in the arid zone of Northwest China |
| title_full | Assessing restoration and degradation of natural and artificial vegetation in the arid zone of Northwest China |
| title_fullStr | Assessing restoration and degradation of natural and artificial vegetation in the arid zone of Northwest China |
| title_full_unstemmed | Assessing restoration and degradation of natural and artificial vegetation in the arid zone of Northwest China |
| title_short | Assessing restoration and degradation of natural and artificial vegetation in the arid zone of Northwest China |
| title_sort | assessing restoration and degradation of natural and artificial vegetation in the arid zone of northwest china |
| topic | artificial vegetation natural vegetation net primary productivity water use efficiency restoration and degradation |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2023.1131210/full |
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