Ecological carrying capacity evaluation for villages’ spatial planning in rural revitalization strategy in gully regions of the Loess Plateau (China)

Figures & data

Figure 1. Location of gully regions.

Table 1. Space distribution in gully regions of the Loess Plateau.

Region	Sub-regions	Provinces	Cities	Land areas (km^2)	Total population (mil.)
Gully regions of Loess Plateau	Gully regions of Long Dong	Gan Su	Qing Yang	9213	4.3
			Ping Lang
	Gully regions of Shan Bei	Shaanxi	Yan’an	3505
			Tong Chuan
			Wei Nan
	Gully regions of Wei Bei	Shaanxi	Xian Yang	2058
			Bao Ji

Figure 2. The same outlook of villages in Qianyang County. (a) Xiaozhai village. (b) Longquansi village. (c) Sipo village.

Table 2. Comparison of commonly used ecological carrying capacity research methods.

Analysis methods	Theory	Advantages	Deficiency
Ecological footprint	Use equivalent productivity land as measure index, quantitative characterization of human activity load on ecology and the natural carrying capacity, to check the security.	1. Ecological footprint analysis method is a systematic, fairness and comprehensive index system.2. Comparable.3. Understandable.	1. The results in over general, cannot be used in small area.2. Ignore on the land multi-functions.3. Equivalence factors’ selection is not very reasonable
Measurement of natural vegetation as first productivity	Through the assessment of natural vegetation as first productivity, the index of ecological carrying capacity in certain areas can be fixed. And by practical measurement, the results can show the gap between present ecological environment quality and assessment.	1. It is an important index for evaluating ecological system construction and its functions.2. It can reflect the productivity of natural system and its recover ability after the outside disturbance.	1. Equations for measurement are too complex.2. Limited in the research of vegetation.3. In China, the document for vegetation yield is few, and the accuracy is low, thus it is difficult to use.
Balance between supply and requirements	Ecological carrying capacity is valued by two kinds of dispersion relationship: the dispersion between the resources supplied by local ecological system and the requirements of social and economic development; the current ecological environment and people’s equipments.	1. This method can analysis and forecast the ecological carrying capacity simply and effectively.2. This method is widely used in the evaluation of basin ecological carrying capacity.	1. It is hard to analysis the exact carrying capacity for the coming years.2. This method cannot show the social and economic developing level and people’s living standards.
State space method	This method is essentially an area analysis method, composed by three-dimensional space made from different factors. Using the point of carrying in space, the state of carrying capacity can be showed in a certain time.	1. This method is common used in multivariate time series; it can show the constructional construction and the quantitative relation between vectors and measurement.2. This method can describe the carrying capacity in the measurement area.	It is just visual expression form to show the analysis results, but cannot be used to calculate the ecological carrying capacity.
Model forecast method	With the support of computer, ecological carrying capacity can be analyzed by a series of mathematical models.	This method can greatly improve the research qualified level and degree of accurate.	Difference will show by the different mathematical models it selected.

Figure 3. Present situation of Tao Qu Yuan Village. (a) North bird’s view of village. (b) South bird’s view of village.

Figure 4. Present situations on revolutionary tourist spot in Tao Qu Yuan village. (a) Original place of directorate in Ye Tai Shan Battle. (b) Tao Qu Yuan Revolutionary museum. (c) Greening landscape in tourist resort. (d) Architecture landscape in tourist resort.

Figure 5. Present situation of infrastructure in Tao Qu Yuan village. (a) Main village road. (b) Drainage ditch. (c) Road landscape in village. (d) Center village landscape.

Figure 6. Cultivable land carrying capacity of the villages in current time and 2025.

Table 3. Current cultivable land areas and the supporting population in research areas.

Villages	Current population (No.)	Real cultivable land area (mu)	Real needed cultivable land per capita (mu)	Current support population by cultivable land (No.)	2025 year, cultivable land support population (No.)
Tao Qu Yuan	508	2550	5.02	742	783

Figure 7. Present construction situation and suitable construction land in Tao Qu Yuan village.

(Source: Land Resources Bureau of Chun Hua County and Land Resources Office of Qin He Town).

Figure 8. Division of suitable construction land.

Figure 9. Distribution map of water resource carrying capacity.

Table 4. Statistics on the investigation of infrastructure importance and their influencing index.

First layer	Second layer	Third layer	Statistics of importance	Influencing index
A Productivity facility	A1 Road facility	A11 Road facility	96	0.96
		A12 Parking area	12	0.12
		A13 Station	-	-
		A14 Bridge facility	-	-
		A15 Dock	-	-
	A2 Energy and communication facility	A21 Electricity facility	100	1.00
		A22 Gas facility	-	-
		A23 Coal, wood and straw	-	-
		A24 Fuel facility	-	-
		A25 Clean energy facility	7	0.07
		A26 Post facility	14	0.14
	A3 Industrial supporting facility	A31 Agricultural training facility, technology promote base and agricultural activity service station	4	0.04
		A32 Plant and animal epidemic prevention facility	4	0.04
		A33 Agricultural products quality tested facility	6	0.06
		A34 Storage facility	-	-
		A35 Farmland construction and high quality farmland	-	-
		A36 Buildings for livestock and poultry	-	-
	A4 Farmland water conservancy facility	A41 River, water reservoir, ditches, pumps	-	-
		A42 Soil improving facility	-	-
		A43 Water supply facility	-	-
BLiving facility	B1 Safety and disaster prevention facility	B11 Firefighting equipment	13	0.13
		B12 Flood control facility	-	-
		B13 Earthquake proof facility	-	-
	B2 Water supply facility	B21 Centralized water supply facility	-	-
		B22 Dispersed water supply facility	-	-
	B3 Public service facility	B31 Education and culture facility	92	0.92
		B32 Medical facility	98	0.98
		B33 Management facility	65	0.65
		B34 Industrial service facility	100	1.0
		B35 Entertainment facility	21	0.21
		B36 Village landscape facility	42	0.42
CEcological facility	C1 Drainage facility	C11 Drainage Dutch	71	0.71
		C12 Water resource protection	-	-
		C13 Waste water treatment facility	17	0.17
	C2 Environmental improving facility	C21 Waste collection facility	39	0.39
		C22 Waste treatment facility	21	0.21
		C23 Public toilet	56	0.56
	C3 Ecological improving facility	C31 Yard greening	14	0.14
		C32 Greening belts	2	0.02
		C33 Patch-Corridor-Matrix of landscape	4	0.04

Figure 10. Distribution map of infrastructure carrying capacity.

Figure 11. Overlaying distribution map of water resource and infrastructure carrying capacity.

Figure 12. Division of priority construction area in Tao Qu Yuan village.