Linking net ecosystem benefits and human activity: Regional management implications on the China’s Loess Plateau

Abstract

Understanding the complex interactions between human activities and ecosystem functions is a prerequisite for achieving sustainable development. Since the implementation of the “Grain for Green” Project in 1999, ecosystem functions in China’s Loess Plateau have significantly improved. However, intensified human activities have also exacerbated the pressures on the region’s fragile ecological environment. This study investigates the spatiotemporal variations in the human activity intensity index (HAI) and net ecosystem benefits (NEB) from 2000 to 2020, using expert-based assessments and an enhanced cost-benefit evaluation framework. Results indicate that HAI increased by 16.7 % and 16.6 % at the grid and county levels, respectively. NEB exhibited pronounced spatial heterogeneity, with a total increase of USD 36.2 trillion at the grid scale. At the county level, the average NEB rose by 75 %. The degree of trade-off was higher at the grid scale than at the county scale, while the synergistic areas initially expanded and then declined at both scales. Key areas for improvement and regions of lagging development were identified as priority zones for ecological management and spatial planning at both spatial resolutions. This study offers scientific insights and practical guidance for harmonizing ecological conservation with high-quality development in ecologically vulnerable regions.

Keywords

Eco-environment management / Net ecosystem benefits / Human activity / Regional management implications / Scale effects / Sustainable development

CRediT authorship contribution statement

Xiaozhen Wang: Writing - original draft, Methodology, Conceptualization. Shuai Wang: Writing - review & editing, Supervision. Kangying Li: Writing - review & editing. Xing Wu: Writing - review & editing. Chunbo Huang: Writing - review & editing. Zhouping Shangguan: Writing - review & editing. Kaibo Wang: Writing - review & editing, Supervision. Lei Deng: Writing - review & editing, Visualization, Conceptualization.

Declaration of competing interests

We declared no conflict of interest exits in the submission of this manuscript, and the work described was original research that has not been published previously, and not under consideration for publication elsewhere, in whole or in part. Shuai Wang is an Editorial Board Member for this journal and was not involved in the editorial review or the decision to publish this article.

Acknowledgements

This study was sponsored by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. U2243225), the Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. XDB40000000), the Natural Science Basic Research Program of Shaanxi (Grant No. Z2024-ZYFS-0065), the Funding of Top Young talents of Ten Thousand talents Plan in China (2021), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (Grants No. 2452023071 and 2023HHZX002).

Supplementary materials

Supplementary material associated with this article can be found, in the online version, at doi:10.1016/j.geosus.2025.100398.

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