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NDVI-Based Greening of Alpine Steppe and Its Relationships with Climatic Change and Grazing Intensity in the Southwestern Tibetan Plateau

Author

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  • Yan Li

    (Key Laboratory of Western China’s Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China)

  • Jie Gong

    (Key Laboratory of Western China’s Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China)

  • Yunxia Zhang

    (Key Laboratory of Western China’s Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China)

  • Bingli Gao

    (Key Laboratory of Western China’s Environmental Systems (Ministry of Education), College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China)

Abstract

Alpine vegetation on the Southwestern Tibetan Plateau (SWTP) is sensitive and vulnerable to climate change and human activities. Climate warming and human actions (mainly ecological restoration, social-economic development, and grazing) have already caused the degradation of alpine grasslands on the Tibetan Plateau (TP) to some extent. However, it remains unclear how human activities (mainly grazing) have regulated vegetation variation under climate change and ecological restoration since 2000. This study used the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and social statistic data to explore the spatiotemporal changes and the relationship between the NDVI and climatic change, human activities, and grazing intensity. The results revealed that the NDVI increased by 0.006/10a from 2000 to 2020. Significant greening, mainly distributed in Rikaze, with partial browning, has been found in the SWTP. The correlation analysis results showed that precipitation is the most critical factor affecting the spatial distribution of NDVI, and the NDVI is correlated positively with temperature and precipitation in most parts of the SWTP. We found that climate change and human activities co-affected the vegetation change in the SWTP, and human activities leading to vegetation greening since 2000. The NDVI and grazing intensity were mainly negatively correlated, and the grazing caused vegetation degradation to some extent. This study provides practical support for grassland use, grazing management, ecological restoration, and regional sustainable development for the TP and similar alpine areas.

Suggested Citation

  • Yan Li & Jie Gong & Yunxia Zhang & Bingli Gao, 2022. "NDVI-Based Greening of Alpine Steppe and Its Relationships with Climatic Change and Grazing Intensity in the Southwestern Tibetan Plateau," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-16, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:11:y:2022:i:7:p:975-:d:848267
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Xiuyan Zhang & Yuhui Yang & Haoyue Gao & Shu Xu & Jianming Feng & Tianling Qin, 2024. "Land Cover Changes and Driving Factors in the Source Regions of the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers over the Past 40 Years," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-24, February.
    2. Meng Wang & Zhengfeng An, 2022. "Regional and Phased Vegetation Responses to Climate Change Are Different in Southwest China," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(8), pages 1-21, July.
    3. Jinxu Han & Xiangyu Zhang & Jianhua Wang & Jiaqi Zhai, 2023. "Geographic Exploration of the Driving Forces of the NDVI Spatial Differentiation in the Upper Yellow River Basin from 2000 to 2020," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-15, January.

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