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Acta Prataculturae Sinica ›› 2026, Vol. 35 ›› Issue (5): 1-19.DOI: 10.11686/cyxb2025327

   

Google Earth Engine-based dynamic monitoring of ecological status in the Weihe River Basin and mechanisms driving it

Yi-bo WANG1(), Xin-ning HAN2(), Ke AN3, Meng-jie ZHANG4, Hui-hui TIAN1, Hang-hang TUO5, Xiao-shan ZHANG5, Fa-ming YE6,7, Zi-ming YIN5, Xiao-rui MA5, Qing YANG6,7, Tao SHI5, Wei LI5()   

  1. 1.College of Grassland Agriculture,Northwest A&F University,Yangling 712100,China
    2.College of Resources,Environment and Life Sciences,Ningxia Normal University,Guyuan 756000,China
    3.Dingbian County Meteorological Bureau,Dingbian 718600,China
    4.College of Agriculture,Ningxia University,Yinchuan 750021,China
    5.College of Soil and Water Conservation Science and Engineering,Northwest A&F University,Yangling 712100,China
    6.Institute of Soil and Water Conservation,Chinese Academy of Sciences & Ministry of Water Resource,Yangling 712100,China
    7.College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences,University of Chinese Academy of Science,Beijing 111049,China
  • Received:2025-08-14 Revised:2025-09-15 Online:2026-05-20 Published:2026-03-11
  • Contact: Xin-ning HAN,Wei LI

Abstract:

As an important tributary of the Yellow River, the ecological status of the Weihe River Basin plays a significant role in regional sustainable development. This study employed the remote sensing ecological index (RSEI), developed on the Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform, to comprehensively analyze the spatial and temporal variations in ecological status of the Weihe River Basin from 2000 to 2024, along with its underlying drivers. Methods including Theil-Sen trend analysis, Mann-Kendall test, Hurst exponent, and coefficients of variation were used to examine these changes. Additionally, the eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) model, enhanced with SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) values, was used to identify and elucidate the primary factors influencing the spatial heterogeneity of ecological status. Over the studied period, the RSEI of the Weihe River Basin is projected to increase from 0.37 to 0.53, representing an initial rise followed by stabilization. The spatial distribution shows that the ecological quality is higher in the southeast and edges, and lower in the northwest and center, with the ecological backbone formed along the northern foot of the Qinling Mountains. Meanwhile, ecological quality in the Guanzhong urban agglomeration has deteriorated. The analysis reveals a 27.4% reduction in areas of poor ecological quality, expansion of medium-quality areas, and a slow growth in high-quality areas, indicating that ecological restoration is approaching a bottleneck. Predictions suggest that 72.7% of the basin will continue to show improvements, whereas 24.4%-particularly in the mining areas of upper Jinghe River and the western expansion zones of the metropolitan area-face ongoing degradation risks. High volatility is evident in 59.3% of the basin. The spatial heterogeneity of RSEI in the Weihe River Basin is the result of the interaction of multiple factors, and there are complex synergistic and antagonistic relationships between the factors, which are driven by the dual combination of “climate mastery and anthropogenic amplification”: climatic factors [actual evapotranspiration (AET), land surface temperature (LST), potential evapotranspiration (PET), temperature (TMP), precipitation (PRE)] affect RSEI through the water-heat balance, of which precipitation is the key regulator of the negative effect of PET, and 20-25 ℃ is the optimal temperature window for water-heat synergy; AET and LST promote positive synergy within a moderate temperature range; and PET and PRE produce negative antagonism in areas with sufficient precipitation. At the same time where population density exceeds 600 persons·km-2, urbanisation triggers ecological degradation through the heat island effect (amplifying LST) and surface hardening (weakening PRE infiltration). The methodologies and findings of this study provide a detailed understanding and ongoing monitoring of the dynamic evolution of RSEI in the Weihe River Basin amidst climate and population changes. This research offers a scientific foundation for the ecological protection, restoration, and sound ecological development of the Yellow River Basin.

Key words: remote sensing ecological index, XGBoost model, machine learning, Weihe River Basin