Quantitative assessment of ecological assets in the world heritage karst sites based on remote sensing: with a special reference to South China Karst

A quantitative assessment of ecological assets in two UNESCO World Heritage karst sites—Shibing and Libo-Huanjiang—reveals significant improvements in forest and impervious surface areas, while cropland and grassland declined. The study, using remote sensing data and the Ecological Asset Index (EQi), found that excellent or good asset areas increased by 95.371 km² in Shibing and 168.227 km² in Libo-Huanjiang, with EQ enhancements of 45.427 and 80.806, respectively. These changes are attributed to ecological protection projects and conservation policies, highlighting the pivotal role of socio-economic conditions and management strategies in shaping heritage site assets.

Liu, Q., Wang, J., Xiong, K., Gong, L., Chen, Y., Yang, J., Xiao, H., & Bai, J. (2024). Quantitative assessment of ecological assets in the world heritage karst sites based on remote sensing: with a special reference to South China Karst. Heritage Science, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40494-024-01243-z