Landscape pattern changes in coal resource-based cities: A case study of Huainan City in China

Abstract

Currently, coal resource-based cities (CRBCs) are facing challenges such as ecological destruction, resource exhaustion, and disordered urban development. By analyzing the landscape pattern, the understanding of urban land use can be clarified, and optimization strategies can be proposed for urban transformation and sustainable development. In this study, based on the interpretation of remote sensing data for three dates, the landscape pattern changes in the urban area of Huainan City, a typical coal resource-based city in Anhui Province, China were empirically investigated. The results indicate that: (1) There is a significant spatial-temporal transformation of land use, with construction land gradually replacing arable land as the dominant land use type in the region. (2) Landscape indices are helpful to reveal the characteristics of land transfer and distribution of human activities during a process. At the landscape type level, construction land, grassland, and water bodies are increasingly affected by human activities. At the landscape composition level, the number of landscape types increases, and the distribution of different types of patches becomes more balanced. In addition, to address the problems caused by the coal mining subsidence areas in Huainan city, three landscape pattern optimization strategies are proposed at both macro and micro levels. The research findings contribute to a better understanding of land use changes and their driving forces, and offer valuable alternatives for ecological environment optimization.