Analysis of landscape fragmentation and driving forces in semi-arid ecologically fragile regions based on the moving window method

In order to explore the problem of increased landscape fragmentation in semi-arid ecologically fragile areas during the urbanization process, based on the two periods of land use data from Guanghe County, Gansu Province from 2011 to 2018, this study integrated the moving window method, transect method, and gray correlation method to analyze the dynamic changes and driving mechanisms of landscape fragmentation in semi-arid ecologically fragile areas. The results suggested that the cultivated land was the landscape matrix of Guanghe County from 2011 to 2018, and the structural changes in landscape use types were clearer. Based on the transect method, the best research scale was determined to be 900 m, which was conducted at the township scale. The transect analysis found that the clustering effect of villages and towns led to a trend of landscape fragmentation. The closer the townships, the greater the degree of regional change, whereas the hills and mountains that were farther away had less changes. From the perspective of spatial distribution pattern changes, the overall landscape fragmentation showed an increasing trend. The sharply changing areas were concentrated in the towns and villages along the Guangtong River valley and the road, and showed a belt-like extension in space. The main driving forces for the fragmentation of the landscape in Guanghe County were the combined effects of policies and socioeconomic factors. Through the gray correlation analysis, it was found that five indicators, namely the regional gross product, population, gross per capita GDP, gross industrial output value, and transportation industry, were the main driving factors leading to the deterioration of the landscape. The influence of climate factors was lower than that of social economy factors. The research results can provide a reasonable basis for ecological environmental protection and sustainable development in semi-arid ecologically fragile areas.