Study on the ecological restoration zoning and strategy of the West Qinling Mountains

To solve the conflict between ecological conservation and humanistic development in the West Qinling Mountains, optimize the land space governance, promote high-quality regional development, this study systematically assessed the ecological baseline and stress risks using remote sensing land use data, the InVEST habitat quality model, land use ecological risk evaluation and spatial overlay analysis. It established an ecological restoration zoning framework based on "natural geographical conditions-ecological stressors-reducing ecological risks". Key findings include: (1) Grassland and farmland areas in the West Qinling Mountains significantly decreased between 1990 and 2020; (2) The average value of habitat quality shows a persistent decline trend with polarized characteristics; (3) The average value of habitat degradation shows an increasing trend with the characteristic of gathering to the medium risk; (4) The land use ecological risk is predominantly moderate and persistently intensifying, with high-risk zones concentrated in the north, east and southeast. (5) Based on these results, the West Qinling Mountains were divided into five ecological restoration zones, forming a strategic pattern of "west and south protection, east restoration, north prevention". The framework includes the priority restoration zone for engineering management, the key restoration zone combining industrial transformation with engineering measures, the preventive restoration zone managed through development restrictions and ecological compensation, the general protection zone mandating strict protection alongside scientific research and monitoring, the key protection zone relying on natural restoration supported by monitoring and early warning systems. The zoning framework and differentiated restoration strategies proposed in this study provide scientific basis and practical paradigms for achieving synergistic ecological conservation and humanistic development in the West Qinling Mountains.