No abstract

Landscapes provide significant ecosystem service value in Natural World Heritage Sites (NWHSs) and are required to be preserved by regular monitoring and evaluation. It is vital to choose appropriate monitoring tools according to local conditions to guarantee the process is effective and efficient. This study aims to find out the spatial suitability of monitoring tools under a three-dimension system of space-based monitoring, sky-based monitoring, and ground-based monitoring. A suitability assessment was conducted from three aspects—the monitoring environment, object, and effect—from which typical differences existed among the three types of tools. Nine indicators were finalized, in which eight were classified and scored using the Delphi method with objectivity, and the remaining indicator was processed subjectively by quantifying the different monitoring effects on different landscape units by each of the tools. The method was verified using a case study in Bogda of Xinjiang Tianshan through overlay analysis in ArcGIS. The results showed an apparently stepped distribution characteristic related to altitude, where space-based monitoring zones are located in regions of high altitude, and the landscapes in low-altitude regions had the best monitoring effects using the ground-based tool and sky-based tool. Combined with the distribution characteristics of the 3-level protected zones, the results show a consistency with reality and could help planners to strategically deploy monitoring sites and allocate them advisable monitoring facilities and staffing.