Regional ecological risk assessment of the Yellow River Delta High-efficiency Eco-economic Zone, China, with respect to human production–living disturbance

Up to now, almost all the land-based regional/landscape ecological risk assessment studies are constructed on land use structure information. However, related research with land use function perspective and information is still scarce. Thus, in this study, a new human disturbance source–receptor characterization system based on production–living–ecology (PLE) land use function analysis was employed for regional ecological risk assessment (RERA) purposes. Firstly, regional production, living and ecology function indices were produced using related methods and datasets. Then, incorporating eco-environmental vulnerability indices in terms of both land and sea, an integrated human disturbance-related RERA framework was established for the Yellow River Delta High-efficiency Eco-economic Zone, China. The practice and results of this work demonstrated that (1) it is rational to employ this land function-based RERA framework because of its unique research perspective, higher information richness and effective spatial expression of PLE functions; (2) coastal zones had higher integrated ecological risk levels (mainly grades 3 and 4) than inland regions (mainly grades 1 and 2), reflecting the significant differences in ecology function and eco-environmental vulnerability levels between them; and (3) from a proportional viewpoint, the low-, medium-, high- and very high-risk grades accounted for 52.13%, 31.99%, 12.87% and 3.02% of the whole region, respectively. For regional ecological risk management, promoting production function optimization of coastal salterns/breeding ponds through circular economy mode and enhancing coastal wetland protection by pertinent spatial/nonspatial measures will be helpful. This work can facilitate coastal zone RERA research in terms of human disturbance and eco-environmental vulnerability manifestation.