IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jlands/v14y2024i1p48-d1555622.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Drivers and Dynamics of Forest and Grassland Ecosystems in the Altai Mountains: A Framework for National Park Conservation

Author

Listed:
  • Menghan Deng

    (School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Faxiang Hu

    (School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Wanli Ma

    (School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China)

  • Wenchao Yang

    (School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China)

  • Xiaofeng Luan

    (School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China)

Abstract

The Altai Mountains region, characterized by its unique biodiversity and significant ecological value, is increasingly under pressure from anthropogenic activities and climate change. This study investigates the spatial and temporal dynamics of forest and grassland ecosystems in the Altai Mountains National Park Candidate Area from 2000 to 2020, and proposes a comprehensive framework for the conservation and management of national parks. Through a detailed analysis of land cover changes, we observed significant forest expansion of 13.65% and grassland degradation of 11.69%. Rapid forest expansion occurred before 2010, followed by accelerated grassland degradation after that, with 2010 identified as the critical turning point. Our analysis highlights the role of key drivers, such as soil type, elevation, cropland expansion, and human activities, in shaping these ecosystems. Using Geodetector and propensity score matching methods, we evaluated the effectiveness of existing protected areas in mitigating forest and grassland loss. While protected areas effectively contributed to forest restoration, they were less successful in preventing grassland decline, underscoring the need for integrated management approaches. The findings from this study provide critical insights into ecosystem dynamics and conservation effectiveness, offering valuable guidance for the establishment of national-park-type protected areas and broader regional conservation efforts.

Suggested Citation

  • Menghan Deng & Faxiang Hu & Wanli Ma & Wenchao Yang & Xiaofeng Luan, 2024. "Drivers and Dynamics of Forest and Grassland Ecosystems in the Altai Mountains: A Framework for National Park Conservation," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(1), pages 1-20, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:14:y:2024:i:1:p:48-:d:1555622
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/1/48/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/14/1/48/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jonathan M. Chase & Shane A. Blowes & Tiffany M. Knight & Katharina Gerstner & Felix May, 2020. "Ecosystem decay exacerbates biodiversity loss with habitat loss," Nature, Nature, vol. 584(7820), pages 238-243, August.
    2. Mengdi Gao & Shilong Piao & Anping Chen & Hui Yang & Qiang Liu & Yongshuo H. Fu & Ivan A. Janssens, 2019. "Divergent changes in the elevational gradient of vegetation activities over the last 30 years," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 10(1), pages 1-10, December.
    3. Chen, Wei-Bo, 2024. "Analysing seven decades of global wave power trends: The impact of prolonged ocean warming," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 356(C).
    4. Tyler J. Lark & Seth A. Spawn & Matthew Bougie & Holly K. Gibbs, 2020. "Cropland expansion in the United States produces marginal yields at high costs to wildlife," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 11(1), pages 1-11, December.
    5. Giovanni Forzieri & Vasilis Dakos & Nate G. McDowell & Alkama Ramdane & Alessandro Cescatti, 2022. "Emerging signals of declining forest resilience under climate change," Nature, Nature, vol. 608(7923), pages 534-539, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Qiang Wang & Yuanfan Li & Rongrong Li, 2024. "Rethinking the environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis across 214 countries: the impacts of 12 economic, institutional, technological, resource, and social factors," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-19, December.
    2. Coline C. F. Boonman & Josep M. Serra-Diaz & Selwyn Hoeks & Wen-Yong Guo & Brian J. Enquist & Brian Maitner & Yadvinder Malhi & Cory Merow & Robert Buitenwerf & Jens-Christian Svenning, 2024. "More than 17,000 tree species are at risk from rapid global change," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-14, December.
    3. Naimah Alanazi, 2024. "Tree resources decline in Saudi Arabia: Climate change or pest attack causes?," Journal of Forest Science, Czech Academy of Agricultural Sciences, vol. 70(5), pages 223-234.
    4. Gackstetter, David & von Bloh, Malte & Hannus, Veronika & Meyer, Sebastian T. & Weisser, Wolfgang & Luksch, Claudia & Asseng, Senthold, 2023. "Autonomous field management – An enabler of sustainable future in agriculture," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 206(C).
    5. Zefeng Chen & Weiguang Wang & Giovanni Forzieri & Alessandro Cescatti, 2024. "Transition from positive to negative indirect CO2 effects on the vegetation carbon uptake," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-13, December.
    6. Deng, Guangyi & Jiang, Haibo & Ma, Shuai & Wen, Yang & He, Chunguang & Sheng, Lianxi & Gu, Dehai, 2025. "How water–energy–food services and their interactions change along multiple environmental gradients," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 309(C).
    7. Xiaobo Zhu & Honglin He & Mingguo Ma & Xiaoli Ren & Li Zhang & Fawei Zhang & Yingnian Li & Peili Shi & Shiping Chen & Yanfen Wang & Xiaoping Xin & Yaoming Ma & Yu Zhang & Mingyuan Du & Rong Ge & Na Ze, 2020. "Estimating Ecosystem Respiration in the Grasslands of Northern China Using Machine Learning: Model Evaluation and Comparison," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-17, March.
    8. Simpkins, Craig E. & Bellingham, Peter J. & Reihana, Kiri & Brock, James M.R. & Perry, George L.W., 2025. "Evaluating the effects of two newly emerging plant pathogens on northern Aotearoa-New Zealand forests using an individual-based model," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 500(C).
    9. I. Wayan Susi Dharmawan & Yunita Lisnawati & Hengki Siahaan & Bambang Tejo Premono & Mohamad Iqbal & Ahmad Junaedi & Niken Sakuntaladewi & Bastoni & Ridwan Fauzi & Ramawati & Ardiyanto Wahyu Nugroho &, 2024. "Use of an Adaptive-Vegetation Model to Restore Degraded Tropical Peat Swamp Forest to Support Climate Resilience," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-21, August.
    10. Zhang, Pengyi & Liang, Yu & Liu, Bo & Ma, Tianxiao & Wu, Mia M., 2023. "A coupled modelling framework for predicting tree species’ altitudinal migration velocity in montane forest," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 484(C).
    11. Spawn-Lee, Seth A. & Lark, Tyler J. & Gibbs, Holly & Houghton, Richard A. & Kucharik, Christopher J & Malins, Chris & Pelton, Rylie & Robertson, G. Philip, 2021. "Refuting recent claims of an improved carbon intensity of U.S. corn ethanol," EcoEvoRxiv cxhz5, Center for Open Science.
    12. Eric Strobl, 2022. "Preserving local biodiversity through crop diversification," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 104(3), pages 1140-1174, May.
    13. Xi Liu & Guoming Du & Xiaodie Zhang & Xing Li & Shining Lv & Yinghao He, 2024. "Vegetation Dynamics and Driving Mechanisms Considering Time-Lag and Accumulation Effects: A Case Study of Hubao–Egyu Urban Agglomeration," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-17, August.
    14. Liu, Qianze & He, Wenping & Xie, Xiaoqiang & Mei, Ying & Sun, Hui & Boers, Niklas, 2024. "Early warning signal of abrupt change in sea level pressure based on changing spectral exponent," Chaos, Solitons & Fractals, Elsevier, vol. 187(C).
    15. Meng Wang & Qingchen Xu & Zemeng Fan & Xiaofang Sun, 2021. "The Imprint of Built-Up Land Expansion on Cropland Distribution and Productivity in Shandong Province," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(6), pages 1-12, June.
    16. Marconi, Mathias & Alfaro-Bittner, Karin & Sarrazin, Lucas & Giudici, Massimo & Tredicce, Jorge, 2024. "Critical slowing down in a real physical system," Chaos, Solitons & Fractals, Elsevier, vol. 186(C).
    17. Eric G. O’Neill & Caleb H. Geissler & Christos T. Maravelias, 2024. "Large-scale spatially explicit analysis of carbon capture at cellulosic biorefineries," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 9(7), pages 828-838, July.
    18. Benxu Wang & Xuanqin Yang & Yaquan Dou & Qingjun Wu & Guangyu Wang & Ya Li & Xiaodi Zhao, 2024. "Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of Economic Density and Vegetation Cover in the Yellow River Basin: Unraveling Interconnections," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-22, April.
    19. Wu, Chen-Fa & Wang, Hsiao-Hsuan & Chen, Szu-Hung & Trac, Luu Van Thong, 2024. "Assessing the efficiency of bird habitat conservation strategies in farmland ecosystems," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 492(C).
    20. Wei Li & Zhenbang Ma & Ruisi Luo & Yiying Hong & Sijian Wang & Xing Ma & Qiong Bao, 2025. "Balancing Poverty Alleviation and Ecosystem Vulnerability Reduction: Implication from China’s Targeted Interventions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(6), pages 1-29, March.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:14:y:2024:i:1:p:48-:d:1555622. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.