Search

The Yellow River Basin (YB) acts as a key barrier to ecological security and is an important experimental region for high-quality development in China. There is a growing demand to assess the ecological status in order to promote the sustainable development of the YB. The eco-environmental quality (EEQ) of the YB was assessed at both the regional and provincial scales utilizing the remote sensing-based ecological index (RSEI) with Landsat images from 2000 to 2020. Then, the Theil–Sen (T-S) estimator and Mann–Kendall (M-K) test were utilized to evaluate its variation trend. Next, the optimal parameter-based geodetector (OPGD) model was used to examine the drivers influencing the EEQ in the YB. Finally, the geographically weighted regression (GWR) model was utilized to further explore the responses of the drivers to RSEI changes. The results suggest that (1) a lower RSEI value was found in the north, while a higher RSEI value was found in the south of the YB. Sichuan (SC) and Inner Mongolia (IM) had the highest and the lowest EEQ, respectively, among the YB provinces. (2) Throughout the research period, the EEQ of the YB improved, whereas it deteriorated in both Henan (HA) and Shandong (SD) provinces. (3) The soil-available water content (AWC), annual precipitation (PRE), and distance from impervious surfaces (IMD) were the main factors affecting the spatial differentiation of RSEI in the YB. (4) The influence of meteorological factors (PRE and TMP) on RSEI changes was greater than that of IMD, and the influence of IMD on RSEI changes showed a significant increasing trend. The research results provide valuable information for application in local ecological construction and regional development planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The planting year of apple orchard not only determines the fruit output but also provides information for the governmental management of the fruit industry. However, considering that different orchards use different management and cultivation methods, this may result in some trees having similar outlines but different planting years, and it is, therefore, difficult to effectively determine the actual planting year based on textural or structural characteristics. Therefore, the monitoring method provided in this paper is not to monitor the growing year positively from the planting of orchard seedlings but to use time series remote sensing data to reverse determine the continuous growth age of each existing orchard. The city of Qixia, Shandong Province, China, was used as a case study. Firstly, the spatial distribution of apple orchards was accurately extracted using the Sentinel-2 normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) spatiotemporally fused images and phenological vegetation information. Secondly, using region of interest (ROI) data for different vegetation types obtained from a field survey, NDVI time series were extracted from the Sentinel-2 NDVI spatiotemporally fused image. Among them, three characteristic phenological periods were selected, and the NDVI time series for apple orchards was used as a template to extract the apple orchard distribution area from 2000 to 2017. Then, the distribution area of apple orchards was defined as the area of interest in the planting year, combined with the Landsat NDVI time series image composed of three characteristic phenological periods each year from 2000 to 2017, and the apple orchard phenological curve. Subsequently, a Euclidean distance (ED) method was used to calculate the distribution area of apple orchards for each year between 2000 and 2017. Finally, a pixel-by-pixel inverse time series calculation method was used to obtain the planting year of apple orchards in the study area. This study provides a new way to accurately identify the planting year of apple orchards using satellite remote sensing images. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Apple is one of the most important cash crops in China. However, negative economic, environmental and social impacts are associated with its production. This study aims to apply a holistic systems perspective to understand existing problems associated with apple production in China and use this information to improve its sustainability. A structured survey was administered to farmers (n = 245) in Shandong and Shanxi provinces, combined with semi-structured interviews with apple supply chain stakeholders (n = 25). Themes, dimensions and relationships were identified based on an inductive thematic analysis of interview data, and then triangulated against the survey data. Interpretive Structural Modelling and Cross-Impact Matrix Multiplication Applied to Classification methods were applied to investigate interrelationships and effects of the elicited elements within the system. The results indicated that various environmental, economic and social problems are associated with apple production in China, including environmental and health risks associated with synthetic input applications, yield instability, deterioration of apple quality, farmers' uncertainty about accessing routes to market, and the ageing farming workforce. The interaction of socio-economic and supply chain issues has contributed to the system "lock-in" to unsustainable practices within the apple production system. Existing agricultural policies were ineffective as they did not include policy leverage to mitigate the multiple factors driving lock-in to unsustainable practices within the system. The research has provided evidence to enable policymakers to develop effective and targeted strategies to facilitate sustainable production within the apple production system. In particular, the future policy mix should consider the entirety of the food system including perspectives and requirements of different stakeholders. The three-stage approach applied has demonstrated its feasibility of investigating sustainability issues facing a particular industry within a specific cultural and policy context. [Display omitted] • 21 barriers to Chinese sustainable apple production were identified. • Vicious circles trap different problems in the apple production system. • There exists socio-technical lock-in around existing tools and practices. • Ineffective agricultural policies strongly hinder upgrading apple production. • A three-stage approach was established for researching agricultural sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Apple is one of the most important cash crops in China. However, negative economic, environmental and social impacts are associated with its production. This study aims to apply a holistic systems perspective to understand existing problems associated with apple production in China and use this information to improve its sustainability. A structured survey was administered to farmers (n = 245) in Shandong and Shanxi provinces, combined with semi-structured interviews with apple supply chain stakeholders (n = 25). Themes, dimensions and relationships were identified based on an inductive thematic analysis of interview data, and then triangulated against the survey data. Interpretive Structural Modelling and Cross-Impact Matrix Multiplication Applied to Classification methods were applied to investigate interrelationships and effects of the elicited elements within the system. The results indicated that various environmental, economic and social problems are associated with apple production in China, including environmental and health risks associated with synthetic input applications, yield instability, deterioration of apple quality, farmers' uncertainty about accessing routes to market, and the ageing farming workforce. The interaction of socio-economic and supply chain issues has contributed to the system "lock-in" to unsustainable practices within the apple production system. Existing agricultural policies were ineffective as they did not include policy leverage to mitigate the multiple factors driving lock-in to unsustainable practices within the system. The research has provided evidence to enable policymakers to develop effective and targeted strategies to facilitate sustainable production within the apple production system. In particular, the future policy mix should consider the entirety of the food system including perspectives and requirements of different stakeholders. The three-stage approach applied has demonstrated its feasibility of investigating sustainability issues facing a particular industry within a specific cultural and policy context. [Display omitted] • 21 barriers to Chinese sustainable apple production were identified. • Vicious circles trap different problems in the apple production system. • There exists socio-technical lock-in around existing tools and practices. • Ineffective agricultural policies strongly hinder upgrading apple production. • A three-stage approach was established for researching agricultural sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]