A comparison of metric scoring and health status classification methods to evaluate benthic macroinvertebrate-based index of biotic integrity performance in Poyang Lake wetland

Good surface water quality is critical to human health and ecology. Land use determines the surface water heat and material balance, which cause climate change and affect water quality. There are many factors affecting water quality degradation, and the process of influence is complex. As rivers, lakes, and other water bodies are used as environmental receiving carriers, evaluating and quantifying how impacts occur between land use types and surface water quality is extremely important. Based on the summary of published studies, we can see that (1) land use for agricultural and construction has a negative impact on surface water quality, while woodland use has a certain degree of improvement on surface water quality; (2) statistical methods used in relevant research mainly include correlation analysis, regression analysis, redundancy analysis, etc. Different methods have their own advantages and limitations; (3) in recent years, remote sensing monitoring technology has developed rapidly, and has developed into an effective tool for comprehensive water quality assessment and management. However, the increase in spatial resolution of remote sensing data has been accompanied by a surge in data volume, which has caused difficulties in information interpretation and other aspects. 

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What is the relationship between land use and surface water quality? A review and prospects from remote sensing perspective

This research evaluates the effects of the Three Red Lines policy on water usage efficiency (WUE), production technology heterogeneity, and water productivity change in 31 Chinese provinces between 2006 and 2020. SMB-DEA, Meta-frontier analysis, and Malmquist–Luenberger index (MLI) techniques were employed for estimation. Results revealed that the mean WUE (2006–2020) in all Chinese provinces was 0.52, with an improvement potential of 48%. Shanghai, Beijing, Shaanxi, and Tianjin were the best performers. The WUE scores before (2006–2011) and after (2012–2020) water policy implementation were 0.58 and 0.48, respectively; on average, there was more than a 9% decline in WUE after the implementation of the water policy. The eastern region has the most advanced water utilization technology as its technology gap ratio (TGR) is nearly 1. The average MLI (2006–2020) score was 1.13, suggesting that the MLI has increased by 12.57% over the study period. Further technology change (TC) is the key predictor of MLI growth, whereas efficiency change (EC) diminished from 2006 to 2020. The mean MLI score for 2006–2011 was 1.16, whereas the MLI Score for the period 2012–2020 was 1.10, indicating a modest decline following the implementation of the water policy. All three Chinese regions experienced MLI growth during 2006–2020, with TC the main change factor.

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Impact of “Three Red Lines” Water Policy (2011) on Water Usage Efficiency, Production Technology Heterogeneity, and Determinant of Water Productivity Change in China

Human-induced changes in landscapes are one of the major drivers of wetland loss and degradation. The Poyang Lake wetland in China has been experiencing severe degradation due to human disturbance and landscape modification. Indicators to assess the condition of this wetland are thus needed urgently. Here, a landscape-based multi-metric index (LMI) is developed to evaluate the condition of the Poyang Lake wetland. Twenty-three candidate metrics that have been applied to wetland health assessment in published studies were tested. Metrics that show strong discriminative power to identify reference and impaired sites, having significant correlations with either benthic macroinvertebrate- or vegetation-based indices of biotic integrity (B-IBI or V-IBI), were chosen to form the LMI index. Five of these metrics (largest patch index, modified normalized differential built-up index, Shannon’s diversity index, connectance index, and cultivated land stress index) were selected as our LMI metrics. A 2 km buffer zone around sample sites had the strongest explanatory power of any spatial scale on IBIs, suggesting that protecting landscapes at local scales is essential for wetland conservation. The LMI scores ranged between 1.05 and 5.00, with a mean of 3.25, suggesting that the condition of the Poyang Lake wetland is currently in the “fair” category. The areas along lakeshores were mainly in poor or very poor conditions, while the less accessible inner areas were in better conditions. This study demonstrates significant links between landscape characteristics and wetland biotic integrity, which validates the utility of satellite imagery-derived data in assessing wetland health. The LMI method developed in this study can be used by land managers to quickly assess broad regions of the Poyang Lake wetland.

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Development of a Landscape-Based Multi-Metric Index to Assess Wetland Health of the Poyang Lake

Abstract Safeguarding natural resources and energy is essential to ensure food security for future generations. Given the increase of published papers in the agricultural field applying Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), this review seeks to address the special requirements of this methodology when implemented in the agricultural sector as well as to classify papers under sustainability aspects (economic, environmental, social). More specifically, 120 papers from Scopus and Web of Science databases were included in this review by using PRISMA methodology, and they were tested in the following groups (i) General information, (ii) DEA implementation, (iii) DEA extensions, (iv) Data type, (v) Data collection and processing, and (vi) Sustainability dimensions. Results indicate that there is a great need for weights use when performing DEA in the agricultural sector, to acquire results with greater explanatory power. Moreover, systematic data collection of multiple factors could lead to the implementation of complex methodologies, providing feasible solutions to the involved stakeholders. Lastly, the social aspect is the least represented dimension out of the three aspects of sustainability, indicating the need for the integration of social factors in such analyses, especially when DEA is used to create a policy framework in a specific area. 

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A systematic literature review of data envelopment analysis implementation in agriculture under the prism of sustainability

Measurement of Resource Environmental Performance of Crop Planting Water Consumption Based on Water Footprint and Data Enveloped Analysis

Water is a crucial environmental element that affects various ecological processes in wetlands. Poyang Lake is the largest freshwater lake in China, where seasonal variation in water level generates a unique landscape of wetland in the dry season-a critical habitat for Siberian migratory birds. Nevertheless, the water quality of the Poyang Lake wetland has not been systematically and rigorously studied. In this study, we analyzed the spatial pattern of water quality in the Poyang Lake wetland based on four key physicochemical parameters[i.e. chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), chemical oxygen demand using permanganate index, total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP)] at 30 randomly selected sample sites. We also investigated the relationships between water quality parameters and land use types at different spatial scales. We found that water quality at the sample sites varied from level III (fair) to level V (very poor), with an average of level IV (poor). TN and TP were the main pollutants in the water of Poyang Lake wetland, while Chl-a content and permanganate index were comparatively low. There were significant correlations between water quality parameters and land use types at different spatial scales. Land use types within a 500 m buffer zone had the strongest explanatory power on the spatial variation of permanganate index, while those within a 1 km buffer zone had the strongest relationships with Chl-a, TN, TP, and the overall water quality. Land use types in buffer zones exhibited stronger explanatory power than those at watershed scales. Built-up land was positively correlated with all water quality parameters, while farmland had positive relationships with TN and TP. Rivers within a 200 m buffer zone were positively correlated with TN and TP, indicating that the river input might be an important source of nitrogen and phosphorus in Poyang Lake. The percentage of lake area had negative relationships with Chl-a, TN, and TP, suggesting that wetland was a source of pollutants compared with the main region of Poyang Lake. Our study shows that controlling the land use patterns within small spatial scales (≤ 1 km), especially minimizing the area of built-up land and farmland, is important for the protection of water resources in the Poyang Lake wetland.

Na Tian

Papers

Measurement of Resource Environmental Performance of Crop Planting Water Consumption Based on Water Footprint and Data Enveloped Analysis

Effects of Land Use Types at Different Spatial Scales on Water Quality in Poyang Lake Wetland

Impacts of Land Use and Land Cover Changes on Regional Atmospheric Environment and Human Health in Changchun, Northeast China

Identification of a wetland ecological network for urban heat island effect mitigation in Changchun, China

Impacts of land use and land cover changes on local meteorology and PM2.5 concentrations in Changchun, Northeast China