Evaluating the Sustainability of Nature Reserves Using an Ecological Footprint Method: A Case Study in China

Abstract

Nature reserves are established to protect ecosystems and rare flora and fauna. However, with the rapid development of the social economy, many nature reserves are facing enormous pressures from human activities. The assessment of the sustainability of nature reserves is a fundamental task for the planning and management of such areas. In this study, the sustainability of China's 319 national nature reserves (NRRs) was evaluated based on an ecological footprint (EF) method. The results indicated that the per capita ecological footprints of all national nature reserves increased 85.86% from 2000 to 2010. Meanwhile, the per capita biocapacity (BC) of all national nature reserves increased slightly, with a rate of increase of 1.79%. The 'traffic light' method was adopted to identify the sustainability status of those national nature reserves. It was found that currently (2010) 45% of NRRs were in the condition of ecological deficit. In terms of dynamic changes in EF and BC, only 16% of NRRs were sustainable. The 124 national nature reserves that were in the red light state were mainly distributed in Anhui Province, Chongqing City, Hunan, Guizhou, Fujian, Shandong Province, and Inner Mongolia. The percentage of nature reserves at the red light state in these areas were 83. 3%, 66.7%, 64.7%, 62.5%, 58.3%, 57.1%, and 56.5%, respectively. The reserves in the red light state should be included in the priority concern level and should be strictly controlled in terms of population growth and the intensity of exploitation. The results of this study will provide more effective data for reference and for decision making support in nature reserve protection.

Impacts of Land Cover Changes on Ecosystem Carbon Stocks Over the Transboundary Tumen River Basin in Northeast Asia

“…Additionally, legislation should be implemented to protect wetland and forestland that serve the key leading role of storing large amounts of biomass carbon over time. In 1998, the Chinese government completed the 'The Land Administration Law of the People's Republic of China' and formulated a systematic land protection policy at a national scale (Wang et al, 2003;Liu et al, 2016). At the provincial level, Huangnong River Provincial Nature Reserve of Jilin Province was formally established in 2000, and Jilin Hunchun Northeast Tiger Nature Reserve was formally established in 2001.…”

Sustainability Evaluation Based on a Three-Dimensional Ecological Footprint Model: A Case Study in Hunan, China

“…Zhen and Du [23] suggested that the Grain for Green program increased the biological capacity (BC) of forest and grassland, but it also decreased the BC of cultivated land. In addition, some literatures has investigated the new agricultural animal husbandry projects (such as the "hog-biogas-fish" system) [37], national nature reserves [38], the ecological footprint of food consumption of residents [39,40].…”

Evaluation on the sustainability of urbanization process based on biological footprint model

“…In China, Gu [5] analyzed the ecological footprint of urban agglomeration in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and found that the local ecological deficit was serious. Liu et al [6] evaluated 319 natural reserves in China with ecological footprint analysis, which provides a powerful reference for decisions on protection of natural reserves. Chen [7] studied the sustainability of ecological environment in Xinjing district, Taiwan with emergetic ecological footprint model and ecological safety assessment to ensure the balance between ecological protection and tourism development.…”