Landscape Controls on Structural Variation in Eucalypt Vegetation Communities: Woronora Plateau,Australia

Quantification of landscape-based vegetation structural variation and pattern is a significant goal for a variety of ecological, monitoring and biodiversity studies. Vegetation structural metrics, derived from airborne laser scanning (ALS or aerial light detection and ranging—LiDAR) and QuickBird satellite imagery, were used to establish the degree of plot-based vegetation variation at a hillslope scale. Topographic position is an indicator of energy and water availability, and was quantified using DEM-based insolation and topographic wetness, respectively, stratifying areas into hot-warm-cold and wet-moist-dry topographic classes. A range of vegetation metrics—maximum and modal canopy height, crown cover, foliage cover, NDVI and semivariance—were compared among randomly selected plots from each topographic class. NDVI increases with increasing landscape wetness, whereas ALS-derived foliage cover decreases with increasing insolation. Foliage cover is well correlated with crown cover (R ² =0.65), and since foliage cover is readily calculable for whole-of-landscape application, it will provide valuable and complementary information to NDVI. Between-plot heterogeneity increases with increasing wetness and decreasing insolation, indicating that more sampling is required in these locations to capture the full range of landscape-based variability. Pattern analysis in landscape ecology is one of the fundamental requirements of landscape ecology, and the methods described here offer statistically significant, quantifiable and repeatable means to realise that goal at a fine spatial grain.     

西部山区县级土地利用制图的尺度选择——以四川省甘孜州为例

针对西部山区县级土地利用总体规划修编工作中暴露出的制图尺度问题,以四川省甘孜州为例,在土地利用制图成果的基础上分析了该区内石渠、甘孜、乡城不同尺度的县级土地利用制图效果。通过对比,探讨了西部山区土地利用制图适宜尺度的选择。结果表明：（1）不同尺度下县级土地利用制图在保持精度前提下,更注重经费和人力投入来合理选择尺度。（2）西部山区土地详细规划制图宜采用大比例尺（1∶5万或更大）;县级重点城镇的土地详细规划,以1∶500或1∶1 000为主。土地利用总体规划制图,州级重点县可以考虑1∶1万-1∶5万尺度,重点城镇采用1∶1 000和1∶500;一般县宜采用1∶5万-1∶10万的尺度;而其他如位于高寒牧区的县可以采取1∶10万-1∶25万的数据。     

Vulnerability of Kuwait coast to sea level rise

Assessing coastal vulnerability to sea level rise (SLR) at local and regional scales is a fundamental step for designing successful long-term coastal management plans. This study was thus designed to assess Kuwait coastal vulnerability to SLR at four scenarios (.5, 1, 1.5 and 2 m). Potential inundated areas and the number of people at risk were estimated based on these SLR scenarios. A coastal vulnerability index (CVI) map of Kuwait was then computed based on the lowest scenario using eight parameters: elevation, coastal slope, geomorphology, distance to 20-m isobath, population, land use, cultural heritage and transportation. The geographic distribution of inundated areas at an SLR of .5 m revealed that the northern islands of Kuwait and coastal areas along Kuwait Bay would be highly impacted, whereas the coastal area near Shuaibah Port was the most influenced among the southern coasts. Most of the coastal area exhibited a moderate vulnerability to SLR, especially the northern islands. This study presented an initial vulnerability assessment for Kuwait coasts to SLR, which can be extended with more variables. The integrated remote sensing and geographic information system methodology demonstrated in this study can be applied in similar studies elsewhere.     

Estimation of Grassland Production in Central and Eastern Mongolia from 2006 to 2015 via Remote Sensing

Mongolia is an important part of the Belt and Road Initiative “China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor” and a region that has been severely affected by global climate change. Changes in grassland production have had a profound impact on the sustainable development of the region. Our study explored an optimal model for estimating grassland production in Mongolia and discovered its temporal and spatial distributions. Three estimation models were established using a statistical analysis method based on EVI, MSAVI, NDVI, and PsnNet from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) remote sensing data and measured data. A model evaluation and accuracy comparison showed that an exponential model based on MSAVI was the best simulation (model accuracy 78%). This was selected to estimate the grassland production in central and eastern Mongolia from 2006 to 2015. The results show that the grassland production in the study area had a significantly fluctuating trend for the decade study; a slight overall increasing trend was observed. For the first five years, the grassland production decreased slowly, whereas in the latter five years, significant fluctuations were observed. The grassland production (per unit yield) gradually increased from the southwest to northeast. In most provinces of the study area, the production was above 1000 kg ha ^-1, with the largest production in Hentiy, at 3944.35 kg ha ^-1. The grassland production (total yield) varied greatly among the provinces, with Kent showing the highest production, 2341.76×10 ⁴ t. Results also indicate that the trend in grassland production along the China-Mongolia railway was generally consistent with that of the six provinces studied.     

Demographic and Economic Changes in Remote Australia

Varied distribution of resources, populations and Indigenous people result in significant socio-economic differences among statistical local areas (SLAs) in remote Australia. These differences indicate that the experience of change at the height of the resources boom will differ among SLAs in the region. Using hierarchical cluster analysis with Ward's minimum variance method, four socio-economic clusters were identified among the 197 SLAs in the region. The first was the most disadvantaged, with limited resources and human capital and the highest percentage of Indigenous people. The other three clusters improved in sequence, with the fourth having the most resources with the highest employment rate and income but least number of Indigenous people. Multivariate analysis of variance with main and interaction effects showed changes in demographics, industry structure, human capital and income over the period of investigation for the region as a whole and differences in the extent of these changes among the clusters. Policy interventions in the region are suggested for each group to match its specific needs.     

太湖流域重污染区土地利用变化对生态系统服务价值的影响

通过对太湖流域重污染区1999年、2007年遥感影像数据解译结果的分析,获取了太湖流域重污染区主要土地利用类型的信息,分析了8 a来研究区内土地利用与覆被变化趋势,对区域土地利用类型的生态系统服务价值进行评估。结果表明,1999~2007年,太湖流域重污染区内耕地面积从2 033.53 km2减少到1 401.04 km2,而林地、建设用地、园地、水域总体呈增加的趋势,其中减少的耕地主要转化为建设用地。1999~2007年太湖流域重污染区的生态系统服务价值呈减少趋势,土地利用变化使研究区生态资产减少了2.40亿元,除气体调节和原材料以外,各单项服务功能的价值量均呈现递减的趋势。     

A study on the early-warning technique concerning debris flow disasters

According to the principle of the eruption of debris flows, the new torrent classification techniques are brought forward. The torrent there can be divided into 4 types such as the debris flow torrent with high destructive strength, the debris flow torrent, high sand-carrying capacity flush flood torrent and common flush flood by the techniques. In this paper, the classification indices system and the quantitative rating methods are presented. Based on torrent classification, debris flow torrent hazard zone mapping techniques by which the debris flow disaster early-warning object can be ascertained accurately are identified. The key techniques of building the debris flow disaster neural network (NN)real time forecasting model are given detailed explanations in this paper, including the determination of neural node at the input layer, the output layer and the implicit layer, the construction of knowledge source and the initial weight value and so on. With this technique, the debris flow disaster real-time forecasting neural network model is built according to the rainfall features of the historical debris flow disasters, which includes multiple rain factors such as rainfall of the disaster day, the rainfall of 15 days before the disaster day, the maximal rate of rainfall in one hour and ten minutes. It can forecast the probability, critical rainfall of eruption of the debris flows, through the real-time rainfall monitoring or weather forecasting. Based on the torrent classification and hazard zone mapping, combined with rainfall monitoring in the rainy season and real-time forecasting models, the debris flow disaster early-warning system is built. In this system, the GIS technique, the advanced international software and hardware are applied, which makes the system′s performance steady with good expansibility. The system is a visual information system that serves management and decision-making, which can facilitate timely inspect of the variation of the torrent type and hazardous zone, the torrent management, the early-warning of disasters and the disaster reduction and prevention.     

Extraction and spatiotemporal evolution analysis of tidal flats in the Bohai Rim during 1984-2019 based on remote sensing

Tidal flats, a precious resource that provides ecological services and land space for coastal zones, are facing threats from human activities and climate change. In this study, a robust decision tree for tidal flat extraction was developed to analyse spatiotemporal variations in the Bohai Rim region during 1984-2019 based on 9539 Landsat TM/OLI surface reflection images and the Google Earth Engine (GEE) cloud platform. The area of tidal flats significantly fluctuated downwards from 3551.22 to 1712.36 km² in the Bohai Rim region during 1984-2019, and 51.31% of tidal flats were distributed near the Yellow River Delta and Liaohe River Delta during 2017-2019. There occurred a drastic spatial transition of tidal flats with coastline migration towards the ocean. Low-stability tidal flats were mainly distributed in reclamation regions, deltas, and bays near the estuary during 1984-2019. The main factors of tidal flat evolution in the Bohai Rim region included the direct impact of land cover changes in reclamation regions, the continuous impact of a weakening sediment supply, and the potential impact of a deteriorating sediment storage capability. The extraction process and maps herein could provide a reference for the sustainable development and conservation of coastal resources.     

山东省县域生态效率测算与时空特征分析

基于多源遥感数据提取投入产出数据,采用考虑非期望产出的超效率EBM模型对2000—2015年山东省县域生态效率进行测度,在此基础上采用核密度估计、空间自相关等方法对山东省县域生态效率的时空特征进行分析。研究表明：①山东省县域生态效率呈现波动式发展趋势;高值区与低值区存在显著空间分化,胶东半岛与济南都市圈构成高值集聚区,鲁西北、鲁西南、鲁南地区形成低值连绵带;②山东省县域生态效率无明显的两极分化现象,处于高值区、低值区的县域生态效率值变化较大,生态效率空间非均衡性逐渐扩大;③山东省县域生态效率存在显著空间正相关,且空间集聚性呈现增强态势;县域生态效率存在空间俱乐部趋同特征。