Anthropogenic influencing mechanisms on earthen sites preservation under the spatial-temporal variation of land utilization

Rapid urbanization and land use change increasingly threaten earthen site conservation. As a primary medium of human activities, land use reflects diverse human behaviors. Clarifying the correlation between earthen site preservation and land use is essential to uncover the mechanisms of influence of anthropogenic activities. This study selected 44 castles of the Ming Great Wall in Shaanxi Province, China, as research objects. Through applying the gravity model, multiple linear regression, and the Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm, a theoretical model was established to reveal the relationship between the linear absence ratio of sites and land use. The results have shown that construction land negatively affects site preservation in an exponential decay pattern, while agricultural and ecological lands support conservation, following exponential and power-law decay patterns, respectively. By 2035, approximately 60% of the castles will face challenges due to urban growth. Two protection zones were comprehensively determined. This study provides valuable insights for heritage conservation and urban planning.