Prioritizing Protection and Restoration Areas Based on Ecological Security Pattern with Different Resistance Assignments

Balancing socio-economic development with ecological protection amid rapid urbanization is a pressing global issue. The ecological security pattern (ESP) follows the reciprocal relationship between pattern and function to conserve ecological processes, providing an effective approach to address this...

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Main Authors: Dingyi Jia, Weiguo Qiu, Rongpeng Guo, Min Wu, Zhanyong Wang, Xisheng Hu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-02-01
Series:Land
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/2/349
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author Dingyi Jia
Weiguo Qiu
Rongpeng Guo
Min Wu
Zhanyong Wang
Xisheng Hu
author_facet Dingyi Jia
Weiguo Qiu
Rongpeng Guo
Min Wu
Zhanyong Wang
Xisheng Hu
author_sort Dingyi Jia
collection DOAJ
description Balancing socio-economic development with ecological protection amid rapid urbanization is a pressing global issue. The ecological security pattern (ESP) follows the reciprocal relationship between pattern and function to conserve ecological processes, providing an effective approach to address this problem. However, most studies have adopted a single subjective assignment method for resistance factors, lacking the exploration of the impact of various assignment methods on the ESP. Taking the Fuzhou metropolitan area as a case, this study proposes different resistance assignment methods: favorable, moderate, and unfavorable. By applying circuit theory, it constructs the ESP and identifies critical areas for protection and restoration. The findings show that (1) as the cumulative resistance threshold increases, the area of ecological corridors expands from 171.36 km<sup>2</sup> to 1439.24 km<sup>2</sup>, with the moderate method identified as the optimal resistance assignment approach; (2) significant differences exist in the identification of key corridors under different resistance assignment methods. The moderate method identifies 26 key corridors, spanning a total length of 41.29 km; (3) the key ecological protection areas cover 2469.79 km<sup>2</sup>, including 13 patches and 26 pinch points, while the key ecological restoration areas cover 14.55 km<sup>2</sup>, including 7 barriers and 21 breaking points. By pinpointing key ecological areas and proposing targeted strategies, this study can facilitate practical ecological protection efforts, thereby achieving the sustainable development goal of minimizing economic costs while maximizing ecological benefits.
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spelling doaj-art-0e5b3761cd174d8eb9b3ff3fba37b5b22025-08-20T02:03:39ZengMDPI AGLand2073-445X2025-02-0114234910.3390/land14020349Prioritizing Protection and Restoration Areas Based on Ecological Security Pattern with Different Resistance AssignmentsDingyi Jia0Weiguo Qiu1Rongpeng Guo2Min Wu3Zhanyong Wang4Xisheng Hu5College of Transportation and Civil Engineering, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, ChinaCollege of Transportation and Civil Engineering, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, ChinaCollege of Transportation and Civil Engineering, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, ChinaCollege of Transportation and Civil Engineering, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, ChinaCollege of Transportation and Civil Engineering, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, ChinaCollege of Transportation and Civil Engineering, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, ChinaBalancing socio-economic development with ecological protection amid rapid urbanization is a pressing global issue. The ecological security pattern (ESP) follows the reciprocal relationship between pattern and function to conserve ecological processes, providing an effective approach to address this problem. However, most studies have adopted a single subjective assignment method for resistance factors, lacking the exploration of the impact of various assignment methods on the ESP. Taking the Fuzhou metropolitan area as a case, this study proposes different resistance assignment methods: favorable, moderate, and unfavorable. By applying circuit theory, it constructs the ESP and identifies critical areas for protection and restoration. The findings show that (1) as the cumulative resistance threshold increases, the area of ecological corridors expands from 171.36 km<sup>2</sup> to 1439.24 km<sup>2</sup>, with the moderate method identified as the optimal resistance assignment approach; (2) significant differences exist in the identification of key corridors under different resistance assignment methods. The moderate method identifies 26 key corridors, spanning a total length of 41.29 km; (3) the key ecological protection areas cover 2469.79 km<sup>2</sup>, including 13 patches and 26 pinch points, while the key ecological restoration areas cover 14.55 km<sup>2</sup>, including 7 barriers and 21 breaking points. By pinpointing key ecological areas and proposing targeted strategies, this study can facilitate practical ecological protection efforts, thereby achieving the sustainable development goal of minimizing economic costs while maximizing ecological benefits.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/2/349key ecological protection areaskey ecological restoration areasresistance assignment methodscircuit theoryecological security pattern
spellingShingle Dingyi Jia
Weiguo Qiu
Rongpeng Guo
Min Wu
Zhanyong Wang
Xisheng Hu
Prioritizing Protection and Restoration Areas Based on Ecological Security Pattern with Different Resistance Assignments
Land
key ecological protection areas
key ecological restoration areas
resistance assignment methods
circuit theory
ecological security pattern
title Prioritizing Protection and Restoration Areas Based on Ecological Security Pattern with Different Resistance Assignments
title_full Prioritizing Protection and Restoration Areas Based on Ecological Security Pattern with Different Resistance Assignments
title_fullStr Prioritizing Protection and Restoration Areas Based on Ecological Security Pattern with Different Resistance Assignments
title_full_unstemmed Prioritizing Protection and Restoration Areas Based on Ecological Security Pattern with Different Resistance Assignments
title_short Prioritizing Protection and Restoration Areas Based on Ecological Security Pattern with Different Resistance Assignments
title_sort prioritizing protection and restoration areas based on ecological security pattern with different resistance assignments
topic key ecological protection areas
key ecological restoration areas
resistance assignment methods
circuit theory
ecological security pattern
url https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/2/349
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