Assessment of ecological vulnerability of resource-based cities based on entropy-set pair analysis

ABSTRACT

Resource-based cities rise in the process of industrialization in China. These cities provide important resources for economic development of the country. However, due to the long-term and high-intensity exploitation of resources, resource-based cities are generally facing serious environmental pollution and ecological damages, which seriously threaten the survival and development of them. In order to evaluate and monitor ecological vulnerability of resource-based cities effectively, and solve the problem of fuzziness and randomness in the evaluation process, a comprehensive evaluation model based on entropy-set pair analysis has been built. First, the evaluation index system of resource-based cities’ ecological vulnerability is constructed from four aspects of resource, economy, society and ecological environment. Second, the paper gets weights by entropy and evaluates vulnerability using the set pair theory. Finally, the level of ecological vulnerability of the case city is confirmed according to the principle of maximum connection degree. The results show that the evaluation indexes of resource, economy, society and ecological environment fluctuated but improved eventually in the year 2010 to 2016. And during this period, the ecological vulnerability of the case city changed from IV level to II level with a fluctuating state.

GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

KEYWORDS:

• Resource-based cities
• ecological vulnerability
• SPA analysis
• entropy method

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work is supported by the following programs: (1) The National Natural Science Foundation of China with the title ‘Evaluation of Coal Miners’ Safety Behavioural Ability and Its Dynamic Pre-warning under the Interaction between Individuals and Environment’ (No. 51574010). (2) Key Projects of Humanities and Social Sciences in Anhui with the title ‘Research on Coal Mine Staff Safety Behaviour Evaluation and Pre-warning based on Genetic BP Neural Network’ (No. SK2018A0098). (3) Social science innovation and development research project in Anhui with the title ‘Research on ecological compensation mechanism, path and benefit in middle and lower reaches of Huaihe River’. (4) Planning project of philosophy and social sciences in Anhui with the title ‘Research on the coupling and coordinated development of industrial transformation and upgrading and ecological environment in Huaihe River ecological economic belt’.