Improving Hierarchical Ecosystem Structures and Multicriteria Evaluations for Current Land Ecosystem Classification

Abstract

Background Ecosystem classification provides a systematic means to organize landscape resources for the purposes of environmental management and planning. The ecosystem classification attempts to capture earth processes over large geographic areas that produce persistent ecosystem patterns on the landscape. Past studies included the hierarchical ecosystem classification in the 300 Dry Domain of the United States and the 100 Polar Domain of Canada. In this paper, the land ecosystem classification (LEC) was developed and simplified as the structure level of organization with the hierarchical system and global ecoregions examined by using hierarchical theory and Multicriteria Evaluations. Results The generalized real-world components model relates the classification and level structure as a function of climate, landform, parent material, hydroregime, soil, ecological site, and fauna. Top Domain verification provided physical links and comparison bases for developing mapping ecosystems at continental and global scales. The focal levels were the main national and regional ecosystem classification components. The bottom level and its component were objectively defined by the related ecological site or vegetation stand. Conclusions The real-world component model was used to implement the analysis. Once the dimension of the ecosystem classification was significantly reduced to less than ten levels, the component effect ranks and importance ranks demonstrated the comprehension of the level of organizational structures and the land ecosystem classification. Furthermore, the Real-World Component Model quantitatively assessed the component effect and importance features. The component effect values Wi of the ecosystem hierarchies exhibited a significant relationship with the component importance values Vi (R2 = 0.8025, P < 0.01).