Dynamic simulation and projection of land use change using system dynamics model in the Chinese Tianshan mountainous region, central Asia

A critical step in alleviating the contradiction between human activities and land systems is to project and analyze land use change traits in various scenarios to furnish a basis for formulating economic development and ecological conservation strategies. However, few studies have examined land use change using the system dynamics (SD) model and patch-generating land use simulation (PLUS) model in the Chinese Tianshan mountainous region (CTMR) affected by different economic growth patterns and climate change contexts. Therefore, based on the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways and Representative Concentration Pathways (SSPs-RCPs) scenarios, we attempted to construct a regional SD model (RSDM) including population, economic, land, and climate subsystems. Then, the coupled model by combining RSDM and PLUS was employed to simulate and project land use/cover changes (LUCC) in the CTMR at the regional level to explore the spatial distribution of land and its pattern of change in different climate contexts. The SD model is an effective method that can simulate the nonlinear behavior of a complex system and predict its evolution through the interactions and feedback relationships between different influencing factors. The PLUS model is an effective tool that can be used to simulate the evolution of land patches and capture the extent to which the driving factors contribute to LUCC. The relative errors were less than 5%, and the total accuracy of PLUS model was 91.77%. The above results demonstrated the effectiveness of RSDM and PLUS model in modeling LUCC across the CTMR. From 2005 to 2020, there was an expansion trend in the area of forest and construction land as well as in the area of cultivated land, while the grassland area displayed a significant decline. By 2040, the area of unused land, grassland, and water is expected to demonstrate a decreasing trend while other land types increase, with construction land showing the most significant increase of 101.37% under the SSP585 scenario. It is anticipated to expand mainly to cultivated land and grassland around cities. The cultivated land is expected to primarily encroach on the regions of unused land and grassland under the three scenarios, reaching the expansion demand. As opposed to the scenarios of SSP126 and SSP245, the SSP585 scenario distribution of the cultivated land patches will be more compact and denser. The SSP126 and SSP245 scenarios will exhibit similar patterns of future spatial distribution of land. The SSP585 scenario is anticipated to display marked differences. According to the three scenarios, grassland degradation will be severe and require increased grassland protection. The findings can offer novel perspective concepts with regard to future ecological and environmental management, judicious distribution of land resources, and sustainable progression in the CTMR.

Automated summary

This study examines land use change in the Chinese Tianshan mountainous region using system dynamics and patch-generating land use simulation models. The results show an expansion in forest and construction land, a decline in grassland area, and an increase in cultivated land area from 2005 to 2020. By 2040, unused land, grassland, and water are expected to decrease while other land types increase, with construction land showing the most significant increase. The study provides insights for future ecological and environmental management in the region.