Analysis of spatiotemporal changes in ecological environment quality in the Yangtze River delta region from 2012 to 2022 based on multi-source data

Ecological environment protection is one of the key concerns of the Chinese government. With the release of more and more satellite remote sensing datasets or products, it has become possible to conduct comprehensive evaluation and monitoring of global and local ecological environment quality (EEQ). In this paper, the multi-source data from satellite remote sensing, ground observations, atmospheric models, and source emission inventories are used to evaluate the EEQ in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region from 2012 to 2022 and to monitor its spatiotemporal change. Compared with the traditional ecological indicators, a new comprehensive remotely sensed ecological index (still denoted as RSEI) that additionally considers air pollution and human activities is proposed. Preliminary monitoring results show that compared to 2012, due to economic development and urban expansion, there was a decrease in forest and cropland in the YRD region in 2022, which has also caused a deterioration of the EEQ in some areas (approximately 30%). It also indicates that in future development, the government and the public should pay more attention to monitoring and protecting the ecological environment, in order to truly achieve green and sustainable development.