Spatial analysis of multimodal connectivity in Mexico to identify strategic states for nearshoring

In this study, the non-intrusive embedded discrete fracture model (EDFM) in combination with the Oda method are employed to characterize natural fracture networks fast and accurately, by identifying the dominant water flow paths through spatial connectivity analysis. The purpose of this study is to present a successful field case application in which a novel workflow integrates field data, discrete fracture network (DFN), and production analysis with spatial fracture connectivity analysis to characterize dominant flow paths for water intrusion in a field-scale numerical simulation. Initially, the water intrusion of single-well sector models was history matched. Then, resulting parameters of the single-well models were incorporated into the full field model, and the pressure and water breakthrough of all the producing wells were matched. Finally, forecast results were evaluated. Consequently, one of the findings is that wellbore connectivity to the fracture network has a considerable effect on characterizing the water intrusion in fractured gas reservoirs. Additionally, dominant water flow paths within the fracture network, easily modeled by EDFM as effective fracture zones, aid in understanding and predicting the water intrusion phenomena. Therefore, fracture clustering as shortest paths from the water contacts to the wellbore endorses the results of the numerical simulation. Finally, matching the breakthrough time depends on merging responses from multiple dominant water flow paths within the distributions of the fracture network. The conclusions of this investigation are crucial to field modeling and the decision-making process of well operation by anticipating water intrusion behavior through probable flow paths within the fracture networks.

Unlike urban planning processes have actively used empirical approaches, the urban park design and planning still uses the conceptual research approach; therefore, discrepancies often arise between the designer’s intention and real phenomena. In this work, we examine and propose a trade-off method for sustainable urban park design and planning that integrates conceptual and connectivity analyses, specifically for the Yongsan Park master plan. Yongsan Park is a mega-scale urban park project with a unique history as being a military post-industrial site for a long time. To re-link the isolated park site to current urban context, the park connectivity requires careful consideration both conceptually and empirically during the design and planning process. We used the spatial network analysis and statistical methods to investigate the potential visitation proposed by the park master plan and to understand the correlations with built environment factors. The results indicate that an iterative process is needed between conceptual design ideas and empirical connectivity analyses to properly reflect the designers’ intent and improve the long-term outcomes of large urban park design and planning. The trade-off method also provides insights of the urban planning strategies for nearby neighborhoods to enhance park connectivity and potentially contribute to the park management phase.

Purpose: The aim of the study was to investigate the analysis of wildlife migration patterns and habitat connectivity in Malaysia. Methodology: This study adopted a desk methodology. A desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. This is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. Our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries. Findings: Recent studies on wildlife migration patterns in Malaysia highlight critical corridors for genetic diversity and species resilience, emphasizing the urgent need for conservation efforts to combat habitat fragmentation. Spatial analysis techniques have been crucial in mapping optimal routes and prioritizing conservation areas, offering valuable guidance for policymakers and conservationists aiming to sustain Malaysia's biodiversity. Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: Met population theory, landscape ecology theory & movement ecology theory may be used to anchor future studies on the analysis of wildlife migration patterns and habitat connectivity in Malaysia. Insights from wildlife migration studies inform practical conservation strategies. Policies informed by migration research can address climate change impacts on wildlife by preserving migration corridors that allow species to adapt to changing environmental conditions.

Liberia has been influenced by the Ebola crisis since 2014, but the economy is now recovering quickly. Still, significant challenges lie ahead: Agriculture, an important sector employing approximately half of the labor force, still has a weak growth trajectory. Many rural people are not well connected to markets and live below the poverty line. To use limited resources effectively, strategic planning and prioritization of public investment are essential. Particularly, the Ebola crisis revealed the vulnerability of the country’s transport connectivity and health systems. Spatial Analysis of Liberia’s Transport Connectivity and Potential Growth analyzes the country’s transport connectivity, identifying the existing bottlenecks and possible economic potentials. By taking advantage of the country’s first-ever geo-referenced road network data, the analysis casts light on various aspects of connectivity, such as rural accessibility, market access, access to port and health facilities, and multi-modal connectivity, including cabotage. It is shown that transport connectivity is crucial to increase agricultural production, stimulate agglomeration economies, and support people’s access to healthcare services. Significant resources are likely to be required to meet the existing gap. Spatial Analysis of Liberia’s Transport Connectivity and Potential Growth estimates the financial needs by development objective and discusses important policy issues, including the possibility of public and private partnerships to finance transport infrastructure.

The province of Coclé is in the central zone of the Republic of Panama but lacks development of the road network. In order to assess the spatial analysis of territorial accessibility and connectivity, the methodology of this study was divided into three stages: determination of the working scenario, data acquisition, and spatial analyses. The data acquisition includes the GIS development and the field work for GIS validation. Within the province of Coclé, 19.55% of the population lives more than 500 m away from the nearest paved road, with the distance of the town farthest away from the nearest paved road being 36 km, which leads to different levels of accessibility and connectivity in this province. This study of the spatial analysis of connectivity and territorial accessibility sheds light on how the expansion of the road network affects access to health services and education.

P3. Multimodal effective connectivity analysis reveals seizure focus and propagation in musicogenic epilepsy

Tapir distribution in Guatemala has dropped dramatically over the past century, causing populations to be restricted to protected areas of the northeastern region of the country. This study seeks to determine the conservation status of the species habitat in the country based on its presence, the importance of forest remnants in system connectivity and coverage of formal mechanisms of protection. The Maxent distribution modeling was performed using 62 records of presence 10 climatic variables and terrain elevation. The resulting map was reclassified into a binary map (cutoff 0.3) and using the Morphological Spatial Pattern Analysis tool of GUIDOS program, a map in which the 12 larger forest remnants were selected was obtained. To these remnants the Integral Connectivity Index (dIIC) with Sensinode CONEFOR program was calculated. From the above, classifications of forest remnants were established to determine the conservation status of the species habitat. The potential distribution model had an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.815 and from the binary map it was estimated that the potential habitat of the tapir in 2012 was 26,095.82 km2. The Morphological Spatial Pattern Analysis showed that the tapir habitat is mainly composed of core area (43 %). The connectivity analysis indicated that the forest remnants of the Maya Biosphere Reserve (Northwest and East) and the Sierra de las Minas Biosphere Reserve have a dIIC of 33.505662, 0.51311405 and 0.38876015, respectively. The remnants of larger extension and higher dIIC correspond to the northeast and west section of the Maya Biosphere Reserve and Sierra de las Minas Biosphere Reserve. Compared with previous studies, there is a tendency in reducing coverage and degradation (fragmentation) tapir habitat, highlighting the vulnerability of the species populations in the country.

Land space planning is an important way to realize the construction of ecological civilization. It is important to improve the ecological service capacity of urban blue-green space during land space planning and combine it with planning strategies. With Ruzhou City from Henan Province as the research area, we constructed the current blue-green ecological network by morphological spatial pattern analysis (MSPA), connectivity analysis and minimum cumulative resistance model, and explored the application of corridor construction in land spatial planning. The results showed that there were seven first-level core patches, which were mainly distributed in the mountain forest space in the southwest and northeast of the city and the belt ecological space formed by Ruhe River in the middle. There were nine second-level core patches. A total of 256 ecological corridors and 135 ecological nodes were screened out. Most of the corridors crossed Ruhe River, so we should focus on protecting Ruhe River and its surrounding environment, providing temporary habitat for biological migration from north to south, improving the stability of overall ecological network, and concerning the restoration of the corridor breakpoints on the west and south sides of the city. It could guide the division of urban development boundaries, and provide scientific basis for the functional orientation and classified management and control of corridors from the perspective of planning.

Landscape fragmentation in mountainous resource-based cities has become increasingly serious, particularly in blue-green spaces. This study aims to establish a quantitative theoretical foundation for constructing an ecological network using the integrated morphological spatial pattern analysis (MSPA)–Conefor–minimum cumulative resistance (MCR) model. It employs multiple data sets, including land use data, remote sensing images, Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) digital elevation, vegetation coverage data, etc., to conduct the quantitative analysis. Five groups of spatial resolution datasets (i.e., 30 m, 60 m, 90 m, 150 m, and 300 m) are employed for comparison and selection through MSPA to identify and analyze core landscape types. Connectivity analysis uses Conefor 2.6 software, and ecological sources are selected accordingly. Subsequently, the MCR model is applied to construct ecological corridors. Moreover, 153 ecological corridors are delineated, comprising 78 primary and 58 secondary corridors. The results show that most ecological core patches are fragmented and dispersed, while ecological corridors are vulnerable to disruption by external interference. This study also identifies 470 ecological breakpoints, mainly concentrated in the northeast, central, and southwestern areas characterized by high corridor density and intense anthropogenic activity. Additionally, 39 biological resting points are primarily located in the central urban area, and peripheral areas show few or no such points. This suggests establishing additional biological resting points to facilitate species migration and diffusion and complement the ecological network. This research addresses a significant gap in ecological network modeling within mountainous resource-based cities by developing a blue-green ecological network model. The findings encourage ecological governance bodies and technical professionals to recognize the interdependent relationship between blue and green spaces. This study supports the formulation of targeted planning strategies and helps maintain the potential connectivity essential for ecological balance.

Farmland – an Elephant in the Room of Urban Green Infrastructure? Lessons learned from connectivity analysis in three German cities

In the vernacular architectural history of the Arabian Gulf region (the Gulf), the courtyard house is a common domestic typology. Islamic and sociological precepts regulate the design and the function of vernacular courtyard dwellings, resulting in homogeneity and harmony in the entire urban fabric of historic settlements. In this research endeavor, the aim is to investigate the degree to which the shaping of the spatial form in a sample of vernacular courtyard houses in the Gulf inscribes socio-cultural factors. It sheds light on visibility graph analysis, human behavior, and the system of activities in the domestic space. As a hypothesis, visibility and connectivity analysis could prove the existence of common spatial patterns among courtyards in the vernacular courtyard houses of the Gulf, attributing it to the similar socio-cultural context, the climatic effect, and the architectural and construction knowledge of the region. This study utilizes a collection of courtyard houses from the Gulf as a pilot study to investigate the emerging patterns in the spatial analysis and room layout, or in the distribution of activities or functions in the domestic space. It, therefore, offers a visual analysis (VGA) of six regional courtyard houses from each Gulf country that were built during the period 1850–1950. This study anticipates an affirmation of a direct inscription of socio-cultural factors in the spatial form of the courtyard house in the Gulf. Conclusively, a sustainable, organic linkage between architecture and society exists where the three criteria of housing spatial form, socio-cultural factors, and system of activities interact.

Based on ArcGIS, Erdas, GuidosToolbox, Conefor and other software platforms, using morphological spatial pattern analysis (MSPA) and landscape connectivity analysis methods, this paper quantitatively analysed the scale effect, edge effect and distance effect of the Nanjing urban green infrastructure network pattern in 2013 by setting different pixel sizes (P) and edge widths in MSPA analysis, and setting different dispersal distance thresholds in landscape connectivity analysis. The results showed that the type of landscape acquired based on the MSPA had a clear scale effect and edge effect, and scale effects only slightly affected landscape types, whereas edge effects were more obvious. Different dispersal distances had a great impact on the landscape connectivity, 2 km or 2.5 km dispersal distance was a critical threshold for Nanjing. When selecting the pixel size 30 m of the input data and the edge wide 30 m used in the morphological model, we could get more detailed landscape information of Nanjing UGI network. Based on MSPA and landscape connectivity, analysis of the scale effect, edge effect, and distance effect on the landscape types of the urban green infrastructure (UGI) network was helpful for selecting the appropriate size, edge width, and dispersal distance when developing these networks, and for better understanding the spatial pattern of UGI networks and the effects of scale and distance on the ecology of a UGI network. This would facilitate a more scientifically valid set of design parameters for UGI network spatiotemporal pattern analysis. The results of this study provided an important reference for Nanjing UGI networks and a basis for the analysis of the spatial and temporal patterns of medium-scale UGI landscape networks in other regions.

Green infrastructure networks enhance the protection and improvement of urban ecological environments, augment the efficiency and quality of ecosystem services, and furnish residents with healthier and more comfortable living conditions. Although previous research has investigated the construction or optimization methods of green infrastructure networks, these studies have been relatively isolated and lacking in case studies for mountainous cities. In the development of green infrastructure, mountainous cities must specifically consider the impact of terrain on network construction. Taking Fuzhou, a mountainous city in China, as an example, this study constructs and optimizes the green infrastructure network by employing morphological spatial pattern analysis, connectivity analysis, the Minimum Cumulative Resistance model, and circuit theory. These methodologies increase the connectivity of the Green Infrastructure within the study area, thereby promoting the health of the local ecosystem and creating conducive circumstances for the city’s sustainable development. The findings reveal that: (1) Green infrastructure in Fuzhou takes up 5366.38 ha, constituting 21.76% of the study area, primarily situated in the northwest and south; (2) Fuzhou’s Green Infrastructure network comprises 10 hubs and 17 corridors with a hub area of 1306.98 ha, predominantly distributed in the mountains encircling the city, including Meifeng Mountain, Gaogai Mountain, and Qingliang Mountain; (3) Based on optimization, the circuit centrality index categorizes hub importance into three protection levels, pinpointing nine crucial protected areas in the corridors and 680 areas requiring enhancement, including 68 areas for first-level improvement, 149 areas for second-level improvement, and 463 areas for third-level improvement. This research offers a methodological reference for constructing and optimizing green infrastructure networks in mountainous cities, providing both theoretical and practical foundations for optimizing green infrastructure networks in Fuzhou City.

Influence of the resolution of forest cover maps in evaluating fragmentation and connectivity to assess habitat conservation status

Optimizing the spatial pattern of the cold island to mitigate the urban heat island effect