Integrated Evaluation of Coupling Coordination for Land Use Change and Ecological Security: A Case Study in Wuhan City of Hubei Province, China

Abstract

As land resources and ecosystems provide necessary materials and conditions for human development, land use change and ecological security play increasingly important roles in sustainable development. This study aims to reveal the mutual-influence and interaction between land use change and ecological security in Wuhan, based on the coupling coordination degree model. As such, it provides strategies for the achievement of the synchronous and coordinated development of urbanization and ecological security. The results showed that, during the period from 2006 to 2012, the size of built-up area in Wuhan increased to 26.16%, and that all the other types of land use reduced due to the urbanization process, which appeared to be the main driving force of land use change. The ecological security in Wuhan has been improving as a whole although it was somewhat held back from 2006 to 2008 due to the rapid growth of built-up area. The coupling coordination analysis revealed that the relationship between built-up area and ecological security was more coordinated after 2008. The results can provide feasible recommendations for land use management and environmental protection from the viewpoint of coordinated development. To achieve sustainable development from economic and ecological perspective, policy makers should control the rate of urban expansion and exert more effort on intensive land use, clean energy development and emission reduction.

Quantifying Land Use/Land Cover and Landscape Pattern Changes and Impacts on Ecosystem Services

“…Land use and land cover changes play a key role in ecosystem service supply and other landscape functions [7][8][9], which is a multidimensional process with multiple driving forces [10]. Maintaining ecosystem functions and ecosystem service flows is a major challenge under the premise of ensuring the sustainable management of forest resources, food security and other socio-economic development needs [11][12][13], as it is likely to generate a strong conflict between land resource supplies and utilization [5,14]. The optimization of land use and land cover depends on the inherent laws, spatiotemporal changes of biophysical conditions and ecosystem structures and functions [15][16][17].…”

Prediction Analysis of the Coordinated Development of the Sports and Pension Industries: Taking 11 Provinces and Cities in the Yangtze River Economic Belt of China as an Example

“…In the analysis of complex systems, the coupling coordination model has obvious advantages, mainly including coupling degree and coupling coordination [34,35]. The coupling degree is used to describe the influence degree of interaction between systems or elements, and the coupling coordination degree is used to measure the benign cycle and coordination relationship between systems or between internal elements of the system [36,37]. When the coordinated development and cooperation between the systems or between the internal elements of the system are good, it is a benign coupling; otherwise it is a malignant coupling [38].…”

Assessing the Performance of Land Consolidation Projects in Different Modes: A Case Study in Jianghan Plain of Hubei Province, China

“…Land consolidation began in the 14th century and the legislation appeared in the middle of the 18th century [1][2][3][4]. It is a tool for solving land fragmentation and increasing land use efficiency [5][6][7]. Along with land consolidation processes, it is also a useful tool for addressing the social, economic, public space governance, and sustainable development in rural area [8][9][10].…”