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In the context of a growing number of socio-environmental conflicts, different actors emphasise that territorial planning promises to strengthen democratic participation, reduce conflicts, and enable the coexistence of mining with other economic activities. As there are few studies on these processes, this article contributes by asking: To what extent do ecological and economic zoning and related territorial planning (ZEE-OT) open up a decentralised political space for influencing territorial development? Based on interviews and written documents, the article shows that without a basic agreement regarding the purpose and decision-making structures of ZEE-OT, these processes are unlikely to reinforce more democratic forms of territorial governance.

Aquatic ecosystems have often been significantly altered by multiple impacts. The Guapiaçu-Macacu Hydrographic Complex is an important basin in Rio de Janeiro characterized by distinct ecological zones that make up an Ecological Economic Zoning. This research evaluated ecological upright in segments of this Complex located in Wildlife Conservation Zone (WCZ) and the Agricultural Use Zone (AUZ) using the Protocol Visual Assessment (PVA) and physical, chemicals and microbiology methods. The results showed a significant difference between the points of lowest contamination degree in WCZ and stretches with a greater impact degree in AUZ. The PVA was more sensible than the conventional parameters in the resolution between segments impacted environmentally and impacted middle located in AUZ. This type of evaluation proved to be more effective in environmental monitoring the water quality for watersheds that have their Ecological Economic Zoning Plan. Therefore, the use of physical, chemical and microbiological methods must be complemented by the PVA.

The construction of ecological security pattern is one of the important ways to alleviate the contradiction between economic development and ecological protection, as well as the important contents of ecological civilization construction. How to scientifically construct the ecological security pattern of small-scale counties, and achieve sustainable economic development based on ecological environment protection, it has become an important proposition in regulating the ecological process effectively. Taking Fengxian County of China as an example, this paper selected the importance of ecosystem service functions and ecological sensitivity to evaluate the ecological importance and identify ecological sources. Furthermore, we constructed the ecological resistance surface by various landscape assignments and nighttime lighting modifications. Through a minimum cumulative resistance model, we obtained ecological corridors and finally constructed the ecological security pattern comprehensively combining with ecological resistance surface construction. Accordingly, we further clarified the specific control measures for ecological security barriers and regional functional zoning. This case study shows that the ecological security pattern is composed of ecological sources and corridors, where the former plays an important security role, and the latter ensures the continuity of ecological functions. In terms of the spatial layout, the ecological security barriers built based on ecological security pattern and regional zoning functions are away from the urban core development area. As for the spatial distribution, ecological sources of Fengxian County are mainly located in the central and southwestern areas, which is highly coincident with the main rivers and underground drinking water source area. Moreover, key corridors and main corridors with length of approximately 115.71 km and 26.22 km, respectively, formed ecological corridors of Fengxian County. They are concentrated in the western and southwestern regions of the county which is far away from the built-up areas with strong human disturbance. The results will provide scientific evidence for important ecological land protection and ecological space control at a small scale in underdeveloped and plain counties. In addition, it will enrich the theoretical framework and methodological system of ecological security pattern construction. To some extent, it also makes a reference for improving the regional ecological environment carrying capacities and optimizing the ecological spatial structure in such kinds of underdeveloped small-scale counties.

In order to safeguard and restore ecological security in ecologically fragile regions, a regionally appropriate land use structure and ecological security pattern should be constructed. Previous ecological security research models for ecologically fragile areas are relatively homogenous, and it is necessary to establish a multi-modeling framework to consider integrated ecological issues. This study proposes a coupled “PLUS-ESI-Circuit Theory” framework for multi-scenario ecological security assessment of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (NHAR). Firstly, the PLUS model was used to complete the simulation of four future development scenarios. Secondly, a new ecological security index (ESI) is constructed by synthesizing ecological service function, ecological health, and ecological risk. Finally, the Circuit Theory is applied to construct the ecological security pattern under multiple scenarios, and the optimization strategy of ecological security zoning is proposed. The results show that (1) from 2000 to 2030, the NHAR has about 80% of grassland and farmland. The built-up area is consistently growing. (2) Between 2000 and 2030, high ecological security areas are primarily located in Helan Mountain, Liupan Mountain, and the central part of NHAR, while the low ecological security areas are dominated by Shapotou District and Yinchuan City. (3) After 2010, the aggregation of high-security areas decreases, and the fragmentation of patches is obvious. Landscape fragmentation would increase under the economic development (ED) scenario and would be somewhat ameliorated by the ecological protection (EP) and balanced development (BD) scenarios. (4) The number of sources increases but the area decreases from 2000 to 2020. The quantity of ecological elements is on the rise. Ecological restoration and protection of this part of the country will improve its ecological security.

The rapid development of urbanization has caused many ecological issues and greatly threatened the sustainable development of human society. The construction of ecological security patterns (ESPs) offers an effective way to balance ecological conservation and urbanization. This study aimed to take the highly urbanized city of Shenzhen, China, as a study area to construct an urban ESP and put forward suggestions for the urban development of ecological security. Ecological sources were identified through the Habitat Quality module in the InVEST model, and ecological corridors, strategic ecological nodes, and stepping-stone patches were extracted based on the minimum cumulative resistance (MCR) model. These elements together constituted the ESP. In particular, with the results of the continuous decline in the overall habitat quality, this study identified ten ecological sources with superior habitat quality, mainly distributed in rural woodlands, in urban green land, and in forest park patches. An optimized pattern for Shenzhen City with one axis, three belts, and four zones is proposed, with the study area divided into an ecological preservation zone, a limited development zone, an optimized development zone, and a key development zone. Moreover, forty-five ecological corridors were extracted and graded into three levels, presenting a spatial pattern of one axis and three belts. The appropriate widths of these ecological corridors were suggested to be between 30 and 60 m in Shenzhen City. In addition, we identified twenty-five ecological nodes, sixteen ecological fracture points, and sixteen stepping stones to improve the maintenance and construction of the ecological corridor network. More generally, this study demonstrates a scientific approach to identifying ESPs based on habitat quality, and can serve as a reference for the planning of urban ecological function regionalization.

Scientifically evaluating the current ecological environment situation in karst areas and constructing a reasonable ecological zoning system are of great significance for promoting the rational allocation of regional land resources, maintaining ecological security, and driving sustainable development. Based on land use data from 1973 to 2020, the temporal and spatial dynamic evolution of the ecosystem service value (ESV) and landscape ecological risk (LER) were quantitatively analyzed using an ecosystem service model and ecological risk model, and four types of ecological zones were constructed using the Z-score standardization method. The findings indicated that (1) The land use types in Puding County were mainly shrub land (330.61 km 2 ) and dry land (277.34 km 2 ). During the research period, the area of construction land increased most significantly due to the conversion from dry land and paddy fields, with an increased area of 96.55 km 2 . The overall landscape fragmentation and heterogeneity increased, and the landscape diversity remained at a relatively high level. (2) The ecosystem services in Puding County were predominantly regulating services, and the ESV showed a fluctuating trend of decreasing first and then increasing, with a small overall change of 15.11%. The value supplied by shrub land was the highest, accounting for 24.85% of the total value of the study area. The overall ESV showed a spatial allocation pattern of “high in the northeast and low in the southwest”. (3) The LER in the study area is mostly low, showing a pattern of being “high in the middle and low around”. Accounting for approximately 64% of the total area, the lower and moderate ecological risk zones were the most prevalent. (4) Based on the ESVs and LERs, the research area has been divided into four ecological zones: ecological risk improvement zone, ecological comprehensive restoration zone, ecological function enhancement zone, and ecological conservation and maintenance zone. The different ecological zones had a weak spatial distribution continuity, and the low ESV - low LER zone (III) was the most common. The research results of this study aim to provide an important reference basis for the optimization and scientific management of the ecological environment in karst areas.

Ecosystems in arid inland river basins provide critical ecological functions while facing multiple ecological risks, necessitating comprehensive protection and restoration strategies that balance conservation and restoration efforts. Establishing ecological zones based on functional importance and risk assessment is imperative. Water resources sustain economic development and ecosystem stability in arid regions, making rational ecological water allocation essential for restoration initiatives. This study examines the Shiyang River Basin, establishing a technical framework for delineating mountain, oasis, and desert systems. We quantify spatiotemporal patterns of ecological importance and risk, delineate protection and restoration zones, and calculate ecological water requirements to propose targeted management strategies. Results demonstrate: (1) The study area exhibits distinct southwest-northeast differentiation, with mountain, oasis, and desert systems predominantly represented by mountain and desert systems. (2) Ecosystem service importance displays “southwest-high, northeast-low” spatial patterns, increasing from 12.66 to 15.50 during the study period. (3) Ecological risk levels increase progressively across mountain, oasis, and desert systems, rising overall from 3.84 to 3.90, with oasis systems showing the most pronounced increases. (4) Based on ecological importance and risk assessment results, grid-scale ecological protection and restoration zones align closely with mountain-oasis-desert characteristics, providing clear management orientation. (5) Total ecological water requirements amount to 340.43 billion m³, displaying “south-high, north-low” patterns. Ecological core zones, ecological restoration zones, and wilderness protection zones demonstrate relatively high total ecological water requirements, while ecological set-aside zones and ecological buffer zones exhibit relatively high per-unit-area ecological water demands. Grid-scale zoning and water requirement calculations facilitate efficient ecological management in inland river basins, advancing ecological civilization and sustainable development in arid regions.

Vegetation change and ecological quality of the Loess Plateau (LP) are directly related to ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin. Based on LP ecological zoning and multisource remote sensing data, we analyzed vegetation change and its relationship with climate, terrestrial water storage (TWS), and land use/cover change from 2000 to 2020, using the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), fraction of vegetation cover (FVC), and net primary productivity (NPP). And ecological environmental quality was evaluated based on the remote sensing ecological index (RSEI). The results showed that the spatial distribution pattern of NDVI, FVC and NPP decreased from southeast to northwest in the LP as a whole. Vegetation in the LP recovered significantly, and NDVI, FVC, and NPP showed significant increases of 35.66%, 34%, and 54.69%, respectively. The average NDVI and FVC in the earth–rocky mountainous region and river valley plain region (Area D) were the highest, but the growth rate was the slowest. The average NDVI, FVC, and growth rates in the loess hilly and gully regions (Area B) were slightly higher than those in the loess sorghum gully region (Area A). The average NDVI, FVC, and NPP in the sandy land and agricultural irrigation regions (Area C) were the lowest but showed significant increase. RSEI in most LP areas changed from poor to medium, increasing by 43.45%. Precipitation is the basic factor affecting vegetation cover pattern, with the increase (40.79 mm/10a) promoting vegetation restoration in the LP. Vegetation restoration lost much TWS (−0.6 mm/month), and Area D had the highest average NDVI, FVC, and NPP but the largest TWS loss. Anthropogenic land use/cover change (LUCC) (decrease in cultivated land and unused land; increase in forest, grassland, and construction land) is the primary factor affecting LP vegetation change. This study provides a scientific reference for further vegetation restoration in the LP.

The Great Barrier Reef (GBR) provides a globally significant demonstration of the effectiveness of large-scale networks of marine reserves in contributing to integrated, adaptive management. Comprehensive review of available evidence shows major, rapid benefits of no-take areas for targeted fish and sharks, in both reef and nonreef habitats, with potential benefits for fisheries as well as biodiversity conservation. Large, mobile species like sharks benefit less than smaller, site-attached fish. Critically, reserves also appear to benefit overall ecosystem health and resilience: outbreaks of coral-eating, crown-of-thorns starfish appear less frequent on no-take reefs, which consequently have higher abundance of coral, the very foundation of reef ecosystems. Effective marine reserves require regular review of compliance: fish abundances in no-entry zones suggest that even no-take zones may be significantly depleted due to poaching. Spatial analyses comparing zoning with seabed biodiversity or dugong distributions illustrate significant benefits from application of best-practice conservation principles in data-poor situations. Increases in the marine reserve network in 2004 affected fishers, but preliminary economic analysis suggests considerable net benefits, in terms of protecting environmental and tourism values. Relative to the revenue generated by reef tourism, current expenditure on protection is minor. Recent implementation of an Outlook Report provides regular, formal review of environmental condition and management and links to policy responses, key aspects of adaptive management. Given the major threat posed by climate change, the expanded network of marine reserves provides a critical and cost-effective contribution to enhancing the resilience of the Great Barrier Reef.

Campaign-style environmental enforcement that involves the destruction of infrastructure has become increasingly common. Scholars have theorized such crackdowns as a form of bureaucratic control. These explanations are compelling, yet incomplete. This paper adopts an infrastructural lens to call attention to the fact of infrastructural demolition. I argue that the reduction of existing infrastructure to rubble is a way of clearing space for other kinds of infrastructure, specifically natural infrastructure, which has become central in the pursuit of ecological civilization. The creation of natural infrastructure requires calculative tools, which work to obscure the profoundly political nature of the natural infrastructure that they create through spatial zoning, ecological functional zoning and ecological conservation red lines (ECRLs). The article then scales down to two case studies of villages in post-earthquake Sichuan that are within ECRLs and designated for the function of providing ecosystem services. In both, infrastructure within scenic areas that was previously encouraged by the state and central to village livelihoods was suddenly destroyed following ecological civilization enforcement campaigns. The arrival of natural infrastructure marks a national-scale infrastructural time that promises a new future in which village-controlled scenic areas have no part, leading to a ruination of their imagined futures.