Changes in NDVI and human population in protected areas on the Tibetan Plateau

Figures & data

Figure 1. Six World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Ecoregions and 3,000-m contours on the Tibetan Plateau.

Figure 2. Sixty-nine terrestrial protected areas on the Tibetan Plateau.

Table 1. Changes in NDVI using summer AVHRR imagery (15 July to 30 July) from GIMMS_3g over the Tibetan Plateau (above 3,000 m) from 1982 to 2015.

Year	Mean	SD	Median	Minimum	Maximum
1982	0.293	0.263	0.185	−0.300	0.985
2015	0.311	0.273	0.203	−0.300	0.999
Change	0.018	0.074	0.007	−1.036	0.777

Table 2. Changes in NDVI over six ecoregions on the Tibetan Plateau using summer AVHRR imagery (15 July to 30 July) from 1982, 2000, and 2015. Mean and SD of NDVI and number of pixels with no significant change in NDVI, number of pixels with significant increase in NDVI, and number of pixels with significant decrease from 1982 to 2015.

WWF Ecoregions	1982 Mean (SD)	2000 Mean (SD)	2015 Mean (SD)	Pixels no change (%)	Pixels significant increase (%)	Pixels significant decrease (%)
Central TP alpine steppe	0.171 (0.136)	0.182 (0.140)	0.178 (0.146)	6,902 (78)	1,556 (18)	331 (4)
Karakoram–West TP alpine steppe	0.093 (0.090)	0.080 (0.083)	0.089 (0.113)	1,548 (76)	331 (16)	153 (8)
North TP–Kunlun mountains alpine desert	0.092 (0.067)	0.081 (0.068)	0.101 (0.070)	2,933 (54)	2,135 (40)	315 (6)
Southeast Tibet shrublands and meadows	0.605 (0.201)	0.624 (0.182)	0.641 (0.165)	5,361 (84)	617 (10)	400 (6)
TP alpine shrublands and meadows	0.433 (0.184)	0.450 (0.183)	0.435 (0.173)	3,079 (81)	465 (12)	249 (7)
Yarlung Zambo arid steppe	0.266 (0.157)	0.332 (0.164)	0.280 (0.148)	680 (85)	95 (12)	22 (3)
All six ecoregions in Tibet	0.293 (0.253)	0.300 (0.258)	0.305 (0.257)	20,503 (76)	5,199 (19)	1,470 (5)

TP = Tibetan Plateau.

Figure 3. Changes in NDVI using AVHRR from GIMMS_3g between 1982 and 2015 over the Tibetan Plateau and ecoregions.

Table 3. Protected areas on the Tibetan Plateau with area from Protected Planet GIS polygons, NDVI values in summer 1982 and 2015 from AVHRR imagery from GIMMS_3g, protected areas that have had a significant change in NDVI from 1982 to 2015, mean population in protected areas from LandScan in 2015 and significant change in population 2000 to 2015.

Ecoregions and protected areas	Area (km^2)	Mean NDVI 1982	Mean NDVI 2015	Significant increase in pixels (%)	Significant decrease in pixels (%)	Population 2015
Central Tibetan Plateau alpine steppe
1. Qinghaihuniaodao	5,955	−0.01	0.01*	8	6	9,963
2. Selincuoheijinghe	17,883	0.19	0.17	3	17	26,853
Karakoram–West Tibetan Plateau alpine steppe
3. Changthang (India)	8,693	0.06	0.04	8	6	19,843*
4. K2	2,335	−0.01	−0.02	22	16	501
5. Kilik/Mintaka	504	0.00	−0.01	0	13	375
North Tibetan Plateau–Kunlun mountains alpine desert
6. Kekexili	49,532	0.14	0.17**	50	4	4,339
7. Qiangtang	321,252	0.12	0.13**	24	5	51,288
Southeast Tibet shrublands and meadows
8. A’rengou	92	0.75	0.84	0	0	306
9. Baihe (Sichuan)	207	0.83	0.88	0	0	1,852
10. Baiyang	775	0.13	0.54	0	0	14
11. Bajie	557	0.67	0.76	0	0	139
12. Changlingshan	35	0.33	0.41	0	0	236
13. Changshagongma	6,676	0.63	0.58	1	11	22,376
14. Chaqinsongduo	1,523	0.65	0.65	7	7	4,500
15. Dasongdu	157	0.44	0.46	0	0	354
16. Dugoula	1,295	0.66	0.70	12	6	3,461
17. Gajinxueshan	778	0.78	0.80	0	0	7,445
18. Gansulianhuashan	168	0.67	0.86**	50	0	11,276
19. Gemu	177	0.41	0.55	0	0	874
20. Genieshenshan	553	0.58	0.66*	14	14	522
21. Gonggashan (Sichuan)	3,793	0.42	0.48	11	8	1,3576
22. Guiqingshan	20	0.71	0.84	0	0	2,667
23. Haizishan	3,096	0.52	0.56	5	0	19,101
24. Hongba	371	0.60	0.69	0	0	1,920
25. Huang Long	809	0.53	0.70*	17	0	1,344
26. Huangheshouqu	3,223	0.80	0.79	6	17	23,412
27. Huanglong Scenic …	450	0.56	0.71	0	0	935
28. Huanglongsi	611	0.50	0.68*	17	0	1,298
29. Jiuzhaigou Valley Scenic	727	0.70	0.75	8	0	12,812
30. Kashahu	405	0.67	0.70	0	0	535
31. Labahe	651	0.61	0.72	17	0	2,664*
32. Langcun	716	0.69	0.71	11	11	8,043
33. Leiwuqi	610	0.58	0.59	10	10	4,341
34. Liancheng	1,298	0.61	0.74	0	0	25,259*
35. Longbao	215	0.75	0.74	0	0	936
36. Luoxu	2,098	0.68	0.68	3	3	7,239
37. Mangkang	3,448	0.57	0.52	0	5	22,852
38. Manzetangshidi	4,313	0.77	0.74	4	19	37,389
39. Mengda	374	0.55	0.64	33	0	37,065
40. Minjiangbai	749	0.67	0.67	0	0	1,046
41. Mosika	306	0.61	0.61	0	0	4,062
42. Nianlong	621	0.79	0.78	0	0	645
43. Queershan	252	0.53	0.74	0	0	2,678
44. Ribaxueshan	148	0.39	0.45	0	0	318
45. Riganqiaoshidi	1,330	0.83	0.84	0	0	12,942
46. Ruoergaishidi	1,753	0.77	0.80	13	9	11,228
47. Sandagu	596	0.69	0.68	11	0	8,339
48. Shoulushan	253	0.39	0.46	0	0	4,559*
49. Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries	9,861	0.69	0.68	5	2	33,504
50. Siguliangshan	204	0.70	0.79	0	0	2,005
51. Taizhangou	140	0.29	0.54	0	0	339
52. Three Parallel Rivers	21,134	0.44	0.46	17	0	1,324
53. Tiebu	450	0.78	0.81	0	0	3,010
54. Wahuishan	606	0.61	0.58	0	20	4,583
55. Wanglang	295	0.59	0.75	33	0	2,400
56. Wujiao	307	0.82	0.88	0	0	1,570
57. Xinluhai	165	0.59	0.65	0	0	123
58. Xionglongxi	1,648	0.58	0.66	0	0	2,831
59. Yading	1,640	0.44	0.49	0	0	1,023
60. Yaluzangbujiangzhon	6,625	0.42	0.41	0	0	868
61. Yanboyezeshan	3,557	0.80	0.80	8	10	20,298
62. Yele	239	0.81	0.77	0	0	686*
63. Youyi	667	0.55	0.62	13	0	2,382
64. Yuke	1,196	0.64	0.69	0	0	5,618
65. Zhagashenshan	514	0.51	0.57	0	0	361
Tibetan Plateau alpine shrublands and meadows
66. Maidika	424	0.55	0.56	33	17	807
67. Sanjiangyuan	303,608	0.49	0.50	13	7	812,703
Yarlung Zambo arid steppe
68. Lalushidi	52	0.44	0.36	0	0	584*
69. Pengboheijinghe	64	0.55	0.49	0	0	1,089

*p < .05. **p < .01.

Figure 4. Changes in NDVI using AVHRR from GIMMS_3g between 1982 and 2015 in protected areas.

Figure 5. Changes in human population from LandScan inside sixty-nine protected areas on the Tibetan Plateau from 2000 to 2015. The color ramp indicates a significant increase or decrease in population from 2000 to 2015 per 1-km LandScan pixel. Grey areas indicate no significant changes.