Ecological evolution of coal resource-based regions: A case study of Shanxi Province

Shanxi Province is recognized as a significant coal base in China. The extensive and intensive coal mining activities have adversely affected the local ecology, rendering the research on ecological evolution in Shanxi Province highly significant. Utilizing the Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform, this study calculated the 2000-2022 remote sensing ecological index (RSEI) of Shanxi Province using images from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS). The Mann-Kendall trend analysis method was employed to analyze the evolutionary trends of RSEI, while Pettitt mutation tests were conducted to identify RSEI mutations. Furthermore, the Pearson correlation coefficient was used to analyze the correlation between RSEI and climatic factors. The results indicate that Shanxi Province exhibited relatively high ecological quality on average during the period. However, the coal mining areas in the province displayed moderate ecological quality overall. The spatial distribution of precipitation and temperature can effectively account for the spatial distribution of RSEI. Most regions in Shanxi Province showed an upward trend in RSEI, with areas with reduced RSEI predominantly located in coal mining areas and basin areas with high population density and a developed economy. During the 23 years, the ecological quality in Shanxi Province has evolved from poor to moderate and then to relatively good, increased while fluctuating from 2000 to 2006, kept stable from 2006 to 2012, regressed after increase from 2012 to 2019, and continuously increased from 2019 to 2022. Similarly, the ecological quality in coal mining areas has shifted from relatively poor to relatively good, increased while fluctuating from 2000 to 2006, kept stable from 2006 to 2012, decreased while fluctuating from 2012 to 2019, and continuously increased from 2019 to 2022. The year 2010 is identified as a pivotal point for the ecological quality of Shanxi Province, with the ecological quality trending upward from 2000 to 2010 and comprehensively improving after 2010 across the province and its coal mining areas. The interannual variations in precipitation generally produce positive impacts on the ecological quality, while the variations in interannual temperature exert insignificant impacts.