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Simple Summary: In recent years, the shortage of cow stocks and the reduction of cow breeders in China have caused a shortage of cattle resources and a high price of calves, which has become a bottleneck restricting the further development of China's beef cattle industry. At present, there are few studies on the decision-making behavior of cow breeding in China. In order to explore the factors that affect the decision-making behavior on cow breeding by beef cattle farmers, this paper uses field survey data to make an empirical analysis through the Logit ISM model. The results show that the age of the breeder, the breeding year, the planting area of forage, market expectations, the loan amount, the breeding method policy publicity and policy subsidies are significant factors affecting the decision-making behavior of beef cattle farmers on cow breeding. The beef cattle industry is an important part of herbivorous animal husbandry and an important industry to enrich the dietary structure of residents and promote the income of farmers and herdsmen. The cow is an important foundation to support the healthy development of the beef cattle industry, which is related to the stability of cattle sources and the sustainable development of the industry. However, in recent years, the shortage of cows in our country has led to the shortage of cattle resources and the high price of calves, which has restricted the further development of our beef cattle industry. In order to explore the factors that affect the decision-making behavior behind cow breeding and to find the right policy to mobilize the enthusiasm for cow breeding, based on the field survey of five provinces (cities and regions), including Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, this paper conducts an empirical analysis through the Logit ISM model. The results show that market expectation is the surface factor that directly affects the decision-making behavior of cow breeding. The influencing factors of the middle layer are policy propaganda, policy subsidies, breeding years, and feeding methods. The deep root factors are the age of the breeder, the amount of loan, and whether to plant feed crops. Based on this, this paper proposes that we should actively promote the importance of cow breeding, strengthen policy support for cow breeding, formulate scientific and reasonable subsidy policies for cows, innovate financial support methods to solve the problem of fund shortage of farmers, and develop forage resources and reduce the breeding cost of cows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Static single-path assessment methods usually underestimate the lake basin pressure (LBP). Considering the cumulative transmission of multiple paths, how to assess the dynamic changes of LBP and reveal the driving evolution is not clear. Here, taking Hulun, Daihai and Wuliangsuhai lake basins in the cold and arid region as the study case, we established an LBP assessment method that coupled multiple driving paths. For the first time, this study reveals the dynamic and driving evolution of LBP and found that rapid economic development and accelerated urbanization dramatically increased the LBPs in the three lakes. Specifically, the LBPs in the three lake basins has increased by 90%–270 % in the past 32 years, and they experienced a stable stage driven by climate (1987–1992), followed by a slight increasing stage driven by agriculture (1993–2004) and finally a significant increase stage (2005–2018) driven by industry and urbanization. Different degrees of warming, populations and development intensities of agriculture and livestock were the main factors driving the spatial differences in LBPs in the three lake basins. The LBPs in the Hulun, Daihai and Wuliangsuhai Lake Basins exhibited phase driving, continuous driving and ineffective driving characteristics to the water environment changes, respectively, which were related to lake basin governance. Compared with the driving paths of water quality and water quantity, the LBP was most strongly transmitted through the water ecological path. Rapid economic development and accelerated urbanization will bring greater LBPs to the lake basins. Lake management should promote the construction of water environmental protection mechanisms that correspond to urbanization, such as land use, and continue to strengthen watershed governance to alleviate the impact of LBP, especially the impact on the service functions of water ecosystem. Our method quantified the LBPs that were transmitted from different driving paths and provided action priorities for watershed management. • A lake basin pressure (LBP) assessment method coupled multiple driving paths was established. • LBPs experienced the stable, slight increasing and significant increase stages. • The LBPs exhibited different driving characteristics to the water environment changes. • LBP was most strongly transmitted through water ecological path. • We should construct water environment protection mechanisms that correspond to urbanization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]