GIS analysis of changes in ecological vulnerability using a SPCA model in the Loess plateau of Northern Shaanxi, China.

Kang Hou,Xuxiang Li,Jing Zhang

doi:10.3390/ijerph120404292

Abstract

Changes in ecological vulnerability were analyzed for Northern Shaanxi, China using a geographic information system (GIS). An evaluation model was developed using a spatial principal component analysis (SPCA) model containing land use, soil erosion, topography, climate, vegetation and social economy variables. Using this model, an ecological vulnerability index was computed for the research region. Using natural breaks classification (NBC), the evaluation results were divided into five types: potential, slight, light, medium and heavy. The results indicate that there is greater than average optimism about the conditions of the study region, and the ecological vulnerability index (EVI) of the southern eight counties is lower than that of the northern twelve counties. From 1997 to 2011, the ecological vulnerability index gradually decreased, which means that environmental security was gradually enhanced, although there are still some places that have gradually deteriorated over the past 15 years. In the study area, government and economic factors and precipitation are the main reasons for the changes in ecological vulnerability.

Highlights

The Northern Shaanxi agropastoral areas in the hilly-gully region of the Loess Plateau are typical of ecologically fragile areas where water and wind erosion are very serious problems
According to the correlation analysis, all 12 of the factors selected for the ecological vulnerability assessment represent important aspects of the environment, and the spatial principal component analysis (SPCA) identified four principal components
From 1997 to 2011, the overall ecological vulnerability index decreased in Northern Shaanxi, which means that the ecological environment was gradually stabilizing, but the ecological vulnerability index gradually increased in some counties, in the Yulin Region

Summary

Introduction

The Northern Shaanxi agropastoral areas in the hilly-gully region of the Loess Plateau are typical of ecologically fragile areas where water and wind erosion are very serious problems. A comprehensive eco-environment evaluation would be the basis for taking effective measures to control the deterioration of the ecological environment and effectively prevent the unreasonable destruction of the socio-ecological environment due to the effects of human activities as well as protect China's energy and chemical resources and ensure the safety of the Yellow River downstream. It provides the theoretical and scientific basis for regional eco-environmental development in ecologically fragile areas [2,3]

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion