Dataset Construction for Monitoring the Effects of Ecosystem Restoration Projects

Climate change have increased the necessity for developing climate adaptation strategies. Ecological restoration projects have been implemented to restore the structure and function of degraded natural environments, thus enabling adaptation to the climate crisis. However, due to the lack of subsequent monitoring and evaluation, the effectiveness and success of these restoration efforts remain unverified. Verification of restoration effectiveness is essential for establishing ecological restoration and adaptation policies. Therefore, this study catalogs 338 cases of ecosystem restoration projects (including Ecosystem Conservation Fund Return Projects, Jayeon Madang Restoration Projects, and Urban Ecological Corridor Restoration Projects) conducted between 2010 and 2023 to effectively select monitoring sites. Using satellite-based spatial data, we quantified the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), normalized difference built-up index (NDBI), normalized difference moisture index (NDMI) and land surface temperature (LST). This study shows that higher NDVI values significantly lower LST and NDMI, indicating that the more vegetation restored in ecosystems, the more effectively it reduces surface temperatures. The NDVI across all land cover types averaged above 0.2, corresponding to a high vegetation cover density. Specifically, forests exhibited significantly higher NDVI and NDMI, whereas bare land and used area showed significantly higher NDBI and LST. Over the time series, NDVI and NDMI increased, and NDBI decreased, suggesting the positive effects of restoration. The ranges of NDVI, NDBI, NDMI and LST values by land cover type for the 338 restoration project sites provided in this study can be utilized for selecting specific monitoring sites and verifying effectiveness.