The Rio Turvo Hydrographic Basin, which is located in the Zona da Mata region, in Minas Gerais, within the Rio Doce Hydrographic Basin – located in the eastern region of the State of Minas Gerais and northeast of the State of Espírito Santo – has been widely affected by processes of erosion and soil degradation. Consequently, such processes directly compromise the quality of the watercourses that constitute it. Given the current scenario, strategies that minimize and promote the recovery of the characteristics of the hydrographic basin are required. The implementation and recovery of vegetation zones that reduce the damage caused by precipitation on exposed soil and their correct allotment are essential factors to obtain effective results. The tools available by a Geographic Information System (GIS) make it possible to approach the various factors involved in the environmental degradation of a basin, allowing the planning and, subsequently, the resolution of the problems associated with it. The Unit Stream Power Based Erosion Deposition (USPED) model estimates erosion and sediment deposition based on calculations which evaluates the change in sediment flow from the steepest slope, indicating whether a given area is more likely to be a producer or a deposit of sediments. Obtaining erosion and deposition patterns makes it possible to assess different possible soil cover scenarios, although the zones that show efficient locations for forest restoration are already known, the optimal allocation that maximizes the retention process of the sediments carried is extremely important. The predominance of pasture, agriculture + pasture and forest formation contributed to the concentration of deposition erosion values close to 0.10 ton ha -1 year -1, which is considered as a low rate of soil loss. The Genetic Algorithm (GA) was efficient in accurately allocating vegetation zones to reduce soil loss. This reduction was 53.85% for the scenario with 116 GA interactions and 45.45% for 200 interactions; the AG promoted a increase of 66.50% in the area of forest formation for the allocation of vegetation zones in this process. The methodology used proved to be applicable and consistent with the processes of erosion and deposition, being an effective tool for the study and environmental management, determination of priority areas for recovery and maintenance of the quality of environmental resources.

Wildfires have become increasingly frequent and intense worldwide over the past decades, raising concerns about their impacts on soil systems. However, limited information is available on how fire-induced heating affects the structural properties of clay-rich soil aggregates, particularly those dominated by iron and aluminum oxides. The objectives of this study were to: 1) assess the effects of simulated peak fire temperatures on the structural properties of clayey Oxisol aggregates; 2) investigate the relationship between aggregate stability (AS) and tensile strength (TS) under heating; and 3) identify the main biophysical mechanisms influencing AS and TS. Six clayey Oxisols were selected, and surface samples (0–5 cm; n = 6 per soil) were collected. Soil aggregates were classified into two size fractions (12–19 mm and 4–8 mm), and the clay fraction (< 0.002 mm) was isolated for complementary analyses. A laboratory setup was used to simulate a realistic fire temperature gradient ranging from 100 °C to 600 °C. The following properties related to aggregate structural strength were evaluated: soil organic matter (SOM) content, the oxalate/dithionite-extractable Fe ratio, mineralogical and micromorphological features, aggregate stability (AS), and tensile strength (TS). A distinct temperature threshold was identified at 300 °C, corresponding to a significant reduction in SOM and TS (R 2 = 0.99), accompanied by an increase in AS. Principal component analysis (PCA) and Pearson correlation results revealed a clear distinction between TS and other soil properties. The strong positive correlation between TS and SOM suggests that the decrease in organic matter caused by heating promotes the development of microcracks within aggregates, thereby reducing TS.

Monoculture of Eucalyptus urophylla × E. grandis negatively impacts soil and forest ecosystems. Mixed plantations with thinning practices are proposed to improve soil fertility, though their effects on soil carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and microbial functions are not well known. We conducted an experiment on Eucalyptus forests (Planted in 2008) with varying thinning intensities (D1=no-thinning, D2=60%, D3=70%, D4=85%) and stand types (Pure Forest-PF) and Mixed ForestMF) to assess soil quality at depths of 0-20 and 20-40 cm. Results showed significant improvements in soil physical properties, including total, dissolved, particulate, and resistant organic carbons, light fraction carbon, and microbial biomass carbon, with increases of 65%, 97%, 149%, 111%, 87%, and 30% in D3 and MF treatments compared to PF. Additionally, total nitrogen (TN), nitrate nitrogen (NO3 －-N), ammonium nitrogen (NH4 +-N), and microbial biomass N significantly increased in D3 under MF treatment. Thinning up to 70% enhanced soil enzyme activities and populations of cellulose-decomposing and ammonifying bacteria in MF. Positive correlations were found between soil physiochemical properties and these bacteria. Our findings suggest that mixed plantations in Eucalyptus forests enhance soil functions, structure, biochemical attributes, and nutrient cycling, informing forest management in subtropical regions.

Addressing the risks of functional land degradation caused by farmland fragmentation and misaligned agricultural inputs, this study investigates the spatial coordination between land consolidation and agricultural service systems in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei (BTH) region—a critical area facing both urban expansion and rural transition. Historically, asynchronous development between these systems has led to structural mismatches in Chinese agriculture, increasing the risk of land underutilization, ecological inefficiency, and productivity decline. This study evaluates the degree of coordination between land scale and service scale, and explores their nonlinear relationship with grain yield to inform region-specific optimization strategies for sustainable land use. Farmland Landscape Pattern Index (FLP) and a TOPSIS-based service input index were used to quantify land and service scaling. The Coupling Coordination Degree model assessed land–service synergy, while a generalized additive model (GAM) captured the nonlinear effects of coordination on yield. K-means clustering identified three dominant agricultural systems: (1) low-coordination, low-yield zones in ecologically sensitive areas; (2) moderate-coordination, high-yield peri-urban zones; and (3) high-coordination, moderate-yield traditional farming regions. Within each cluster, XGBoost and SHAP analyses revealed spatial heterogeneity in the yield impacts of key inputs, including irrigation, labor, fertilizer, protected agriculture, and FLP. A second level of clustering was conducted within each major system to identify internally differentiated patterns of input configuration and yield performance, enabling the formulation of fine-grained, county-level land management strategies. Results highlight that excessive input intensification under poor structural coordination may lead to declining efficiency and latent land degradation risks. Enhancing productivity thus depends more on optimizing land structure and aligning service provision than on simply increasing input volume. By integrating coordination analysis with interpretable machine learning, this study provides a hierarchical classification framework—first distinguishing macro-regional systems and then refining intra-cluster strategies—that supports spatially targeted, sustainability-oriented land governance in the BTH region.

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) plays a critical role in soil biogeochemical processes and affects the responses of soil organic matter (SOM) to agricultural practices. However, the effect of converting forests to intensive orchards on the chemodiversity of soil DOM remains poorly understood. In this study, we systematically investigated molecular-scale transformations in soil DOM resulting from the conversion of Chinese fir ( Cunninghamia lanceolata [Lamb.] Hook) plantations to citrus orchards of varying ages (10, 30, and 50 years) using an integrative approach combining UV–Vis spectroscopy, EEM–PARAFAC, and FT-ICR MS. Long-term citrus cultivation promoted the stabilization of DOM, which was associated with increased aromaticity (SUVA 524, SUVA 280), oxidation (O/C wa: 0.440 to 0.566), and molecular weight (m/z wa: 395.977 to 413.460), alongside decreased aliphaticity (H/C wa: 1.368 to 1.023). In 50-year orchards, recalcitrant compounds dominated the DOM pool (87.7% vs. an initial 77.9%), and the abundance of combustion-derived polycyclic aromatics (+1,292%) and lignin derivatives (from 2,204 to 4,485 molecules) increased. In contrast, microbial-derived components (e.g., proteins and carbohydrates) declined substantially with prolonged cultivation. Soil acidification (pH 5.42 to 4.08) and organic fertilization jointly enhanced the formation of aromatic-condensed DOM structures, with the 30-year stage marking a critical transition in humification processes. These findings underscore the role of agricultural intensification in shaping soil carbon persistence and provide molecular-level insights to inform carbon sequestration strategies in managed ecosystems.

Accelerated urbanization highlights the significant role of urban soil black carbon (BC), a key component of soil organic carbon, for ecosystem function and human health. This meta-analysis systematically synthesized data from 54 published studies encompassing 4,548 sampling sites across 40 Chinese cities, supplemented by targeted field sampling to investigate the distribution characteristics, primary sources, and influencing factors of soil BC in China’s urban environments. Following rigorous screening, standardization, and outlier removal, correlation analysis and multivariate statistics were applied. Results revealed an average urban topsoil BC content of 6.70 ± 5.34 g/kg, exhibiting significant spatial heterogeneity: levels were higher in eastern compared to the western regions, and in northern relative to the southern cities. Fossil fuel combustion (primarily from vehicle emissions and industrial coal burning) was the dominant source, while iomass burning constituted the secondary source, with notable local contributions from urban expansion and straw burning. Further analysis indicated that higher precipitation (among natural factors) in the southern regions promotes BC migration, contributing to lower observed concentrations. Anthropogenic factors exerted a stronger influence: cities with greater urbanization levels and higher energy consumption exhibited significantly elevated BC inputs. This study comprehensively elucidates the distribution patterns and source contributions of BC in China’s urban soils. The findings provide crucial scientific support for urban environmental governance and soil quality improvement strategies during ongoing urbanization, contributing to achieving balanced urban ecosystems and promoting sustainable urban development.

Soil organic carbon (SOC) as an indicator of soil quality, plays a dual role in stabilizing oasis ecosystems and regulating carbon sequestration in arid, lakeside environments. However, the accurate estimation of SOC using visible-near-infrared (VNIR) spectral data is limited by spectral redundancy and high dimensionality. This research enhances SOC estimation accuracy by combining wavelet analysis and machine learning in the lakeside oasis of Bosten Lake in Xinjiang. SOC content was measured for each sample (82 samples from the 0–20 cm depth), and their corresponding VNIR spectral data were obtained. The hyperspectral reflectance data were processed using continuous wavelet transform (CWT) and discrete wavelet transform (DWT). The successive projections algorithm (SPA), Boruta, and competitive adaptive reweighted sampling (CARS) algorithm identified relevant spectral bands to develop SOC estimation models based on partial least squares regression (PLSR), backpropagation neural networks (BPNN), and random forest (RF) algorithms. The results revealed that CWT offered superior noise reduction performance, particularly at low decomposition scales (1–5), achieving a 19.21% improvement in noise suppression compared to DWT. The optimal CWT-based model showed 23.20% improvement in residual prediction deviation (RPD) compared to the DWT-based counterpart. Feature selection algorithms significantly improved estimation accuracy, with enhancements of up to 49.04% in the determination coefficient (R 2) and 58.23% in RPD. Among the algorithms, CARS provided the highest improvement, followed by SPA and Boruta. Thus, the combination of CWT-1-CARS and the RF algorithm showed the strongest nonlinear modeling performance. This configuration achieved calibration metrics of R 2 = 0.79, root mean square error (RMSE) = 2.57, and RPD = 2.23 to outperform the original spectral models, with improvements of 63.3% over PLSR (RPD = 1.84) and BPNN (RPD = 1.91). The spatial interpolation analysis showed 91.3% consistency with field-measured SOC values, validating the model’s practical reliability. The most sensitive spectral response bands for SOC were primarily located in the visible range (401–504 nm) and the near-infrared range (1,638–2,369 nm). This study establishes a robust technical foundation for accurate estimation of SOC, for precise ecological monitoring, and sustainable management of arid, lakeside oases.

Satellite-based solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) has the potential for an early detection and accurate impact assessment of meteorological drought on vegetation photosynthesis. However, how the response of satellite SIF to meteorological drought varies under different climatic conditions and biome types remains poorly understood. In this study, we determined the drought time-scale at which the vegetation photosynthesis response was highest based on the standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI) and satellite SIF, and examined how the sensitivity of SIF signals from different ecosystems to drought varied along an aridity gradient in northern China. The results showed that spatial variability of the annual maximum SIF was constrained by wetness conditions and biome types. Annual maximum SIF was positively correlated with SPEI in 57.9% of vegetated lands (P < 0.05). 34.8% of humid ecosystems were characterized by a significant SIF-SPEI correlation (P < 0.05). This percentage reached 44%, 71.4% and 86.2% for arid, sub-humid and semi-arid ecosystems, respectively. The variation of SIF-SPEI correlations was a Gaussian function of the aridity index (AI), with the highest SIF-SPEI correlation appearing in the AI bin of 0.4 (0.37-0.46). The drivers for this pattern were vegetation composition and water availability. The variation of SIF time-scales in response to SPEI was a linear function of the AI, but the slope varied among biomes. To summarize with increasing aridity drought-induced declines in vegetation photosynthesis will be quicker and more significant.

Soil pH is strongly associated with soil biogeochemical cycles and biodiversity in terrestrial ecosystems. GE has been widely adopted as an effective practice to restore degraded grasslands. However, the effect of GE on soil pH is still poorly understood and remains inconclusive. We synthesized data from 63 sites in the literature and 43 additional field sites and investigated the dynamics of soil pH following GE across China’s grasslands. Mean pH decreased 0.13 units with GE (mean pH was 8.15 and 8.02 for grazed and GE groups, respectively, p < 0.001). The pH of surface soil (0–20 cm) showed greatest decrease rates in GE grasslands, whereas that of deep soil (20–100 cm) had limited responses to GE. In general, the largest decrease in the rates of soil pH occurred after medium-term periods (5–15 years) of GE, whereas a smaller rate of change was found over short- (≤5 years) and long-term periods (≥15 years) of GE. Of the factors examined, the rate of soil pH change was negatively correlated to MAP, but had no significant relationship with MAT. The rate of soil pH change decreased linearly with RCC, RNC, RAC and RBC. Sedge-dominated grassland had higher pH decrease rates at 0–10 cm soil depth than grass-dominated grassland, whereas grassland dominated by forbs and shrub species showed the highest decrease in pH at 20–30 cm. Our results indicate that GE causes significant soil acidification, especially in surface soil and humid areas, which provides an important reference for future management of China’s grasslands.

Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIH) is developing country facing extensive land degradation. As a post-conflict society with underlying poor socio-economic conditions, the value of land and its degradation status are not perceived to be an important problem neither a priority to address. BIH currently exists as a decentralized state, where land and land resources are under exclusive jurisdiction of two entities and one district, rather than state-level legislation. Complex land related administration between entities functioning independently from each other, and thus not sinchronized, leads to frequent political conflicts about land property, and limited data exchange which may exacerbate current land degradation. This paper investigates (i) the institutional setting and policy framework related to land, discussing the effectiveness and limitations of the current policies in this post-conflict society; (ii) stakeholders’ perception of land degradation under such complex institutional and policy structures; and (iii) the current state of land degradation, with a focus on soil erosion as one of the most important indicators in BIH. Communication and cooperation are major challenges for sustainable land management in post conflict societies. The existence of a policy framework is important, but not sufficient if implementation is weak and the perception of decision makers differs. Limited data on the impact of 1992 War on soil and land status represents an additional challenge to combat land degradation. Reliable national data on land degradation are crucial for assessment and development of strategic and policy frameworks devoted to those issues and to raise awareness on how to foster their implementation.

Efforts to tackle land degradation worldwide have spurred the adoption of soil and water conservation (SWC) practices intended to reduce surface runoff and erosion. Despite their widespread implementation, missing or incomplete monitoring remains a pervasive problem preventing evaluation of how well SWC practices meet these aims. Key metrics to evaluate SWC efficacy are the production of flow per unit rainfall (runoff ratio), and exported sediment (sediment concentration). We develop a method to assess changes in these metrics in the absence of a flow rating curve, using more complete and reliable measurements of stage (flow depth). We apply these methods to incomplete monitoring datasets collected from five watersheds included in the Tana and Beles Integrated Water Resource Development Project (TBIWRDP) in the Abay (Blue Nile) basin, Ethiopia. Changes in runoff ratio and sediment concentration relative to the first year of treatment varied by season. In the long wet season (Kiremt) that generates most runoff and erosion, reductions in runoff ratio occurred in three watersheds, and reductions in sediment concentration in four watersheds. Reductions in the runoff ratio were directly proportional to the areal density of SWC treatments in the watersheds, suggesting that SWC treatments were effective in controlling runoff and erosion. We suggest that stage and sediment concentration information can be used to assess watershed responses to SWC treatments. Focusing on these relatively robust measurements, may facilitate the design of reliable and affordable monitoring programs, and ultimately facilitate improved financing approaches based on reasonable estimates of likely SWC practice performance.

Insect herbivore has great impacts on biogeochemical cycling in forest ecosystem, but experimental tests on the herbivory-decomposability relationship at the inter-specific level are rare. We conducted a 400-day field decomposition experiment in a temperate mixed deciduous forest and measured mass remaining rate, decomposition constant, total loss of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) of litter leaf with/without obvious damage by chewing insects for different tree species. We found that herbivory effect on initial litter quality (C: N ratio) varied with species, showing a markedly negative effect on M. alba (-5.78%) and positive effect on Q. acutissima (+5.35%). Herbivory damage increased decomposition constant for M. alba and L. formosana with higher special leaf area, but decreased it for D. kaki and Q. acutissima with lower special leaf area. The contrasting effects of insect herbivory on litter decomposition could be attributed to the variability of litter initial quality caused by herbivory. Our finding that herbivore damage showed inter-specific variability in both litter quality and decomposition rate suggests that herbivory induced feedbacks to nutrient cycling and ecosystem function should be estimated at the species level in multi-species mixed deciduous forest.

Stopping land degradation is one of the biggest challenges worldwide and particularly in Burundi, which currently faces unprecedented rates of soil loss and food insecurity. This paper proposes a different development discourse on how to stop land degradation, and presents results and lessons learned of a bottom-up inclusive approach implemented since 2014 in Burundi: the Integrated Farm Planning approach (PIP) approach. This approach aims to build a solid foundation for sustainable change towards enhanced food production and good land stewardship, based on three foundation principles (motivation, stewardship and resilience) and three guiding principles (empowerment, integration and collaboration). Findings from an impact study on the PIP approach and testimonies of farmers from a qualitative study show profound changes in land management practices and diversity of activities on the farm, as well as in the social cohesion in households and villages. Based on a vision and a plan, nearly 80,000 motivated households are currently actively involved to stop land degradation and make their farms more productive, while in all PIP villages concrete collective action is undertaken for sustainable land stewardship. Given that these actions are widespread and come along with a change in mind-set rooted in all three foundation principles, the paper concludes that the PIP approach is able to effectively build a foundation for sustainable change. Five key lessons from this experience reveal the key elements of a different development discourse that actually motivates and mobilises farmers to stop land degradation.

Tobacco production and curing is the single most important contributor to soil degradation and deforestation. To minimise the environmental effects of tobacco production, the environmentally friendly, and energy-efficient rocket barns technology was developed. In spite of its energy saving and environmental benefits, the adoption of rocket barns remains low and understudied. This paper assessed farmers perception and factors affecting the adoption of rocket barn technology. Data was collected using in a cross-sectional survey using structured questionnaires were from 242 Flue Cured Virginia (FCV) tobacco farmers in Uganda. Analysed was done using SPSS and STATA software. Results show that the adoption of rocket barn technology was low, at 12%, with farmers. Farmers perceived adopting the rocket barns technology to be risky and costly. Experience, training, distance to wood fuel, access to extension information, and benefits and risk perceptions were the major determinants of adoption of rocket barns technology. Promotion and adoption of rocket barns technology will require concerted sensitization and training of farmers on the environmental benefits of rocket barn technology. Emphasis such efforts should target the relatively young and inexperienced FCV tobacco farmers.

How soil quality and microbial communities change in conjunction with stand age in plantations is poorly understood. Here, we evaluated soil quality by using an integrated soil quality index (SQI) and traced the paralleled shifts in fungal community composition by high-throughput sequencing in a chronosequence of Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata) plantations (stand age of 3, 16, 25, 32, >80 years). Soil properties showed pronounced changes with stand age in the top 0-5 cm. The most prominent increase from 3 to >80-year-old stand was for soil organic carbon (SOC, by 2.1-times), total nitrogen (TN, 1.9-times) and available phosphorus (AP, 2.2-times). SQI increased logarithmically with stand age, with sharper change seen in the 0-5 cm layer than in the 5-15 cm layer. Mycorrhizal fungi increased in abundance initially in younger stands, but then they were gradually replaced by saprotrophic fungi in older stands due to the increase in litter input, which sustains saprotrophs. The positive correlation between saprotrophic fungi and the key soil quality indicators, such as TN, AP and NH4+, showed that higher soil quality was tightly linked with the enrichment of decomposers. Mycorrhizal taxa, such as orders Sebacinales, Thelephorales and Russulales, were positively correlated with acid phosphatase mobilizing P from organic matter. This suggests that the establishment of mycorrhizal fungi sustains tree productivity in younger stands under low soil quality. We conclude that the increase in soil quality throughout the development of Chinese fir plantations is closely linked with the observed transition of fungal communities from mycorrhizae to saprotrophs.

Over the past 90 years, anthropogenic degradation of soil caused by alkaline, magnesium-rich dust deposit has presented a serious problem near magnesite processing factories in Jelšava and in Lubeník (Slovakia). The objective of this study was to investigate the chemical and biological soil properties in 14 sampling sites at different distances from factories, and based on the results, to propose further use of affected land. Results revealed that the available Mg 3–68 fold exceeded very high content for texturally medium soils at all grassland sampling sites, and areas close factory contained up to 14.4–17.4 g kg-1. Higher excess of available Mg caused significant increase of soil pH (up to 9.39) and worsened the conditions for the growth of vegetation. As a result, lower stock of newly formed organic matter (0.50–0.96 g kg-1 of labile carbon) with consequently weaker enzymatic activity occurred. Therefore, enrichment by organic matter provides a measure to support the biological activity of soil. The content of monitored heavy metals (Zn, Cu, Pb and Ni) was not related to Mg and did not influence the enzymatic activity of soil. Because alkaline emissions have decreased by 99.8% since 1970, the application of classical measures (mechanical removal of the Mg-rich crust, incorporation of gypsum and manure to the soil), or newer methods (growing of Mg hyper-accumulating plants) can offer more lasting positive effects than those of 50 years ago. This study concluded that Mg-rich, alkaline dust deposition causes long-lasting anthropogenic soil degradation.

Soil resources in East Africa are being rapidly depleted by erosion, threatening food-, water- and livelihood security in the region. Here we demonstrate how integration of evidence from natural and social sciences has supported community-led change in land management in an agro-pastoral community in northern Tanzania impacted by soil erosion. Drone survey data and geospatial analysis of erosion extent and risk, supported by communication of ‘process’ and ‘structural’ hydrological connectivity, was integrated with local environmental knowledge within participatory community workshops. Rill density data were compared between cultivated plots that had been converted from pastoral land recently and more established plots where slow-forming terrace boundaries were more established. Slope length and connectivity between plots were key factors in development of rill networks. At the two extremes, recently converted land had a rill density ca 14 times greater than equivalent established slow forming terraces. Direction of cultivation, regardless of plot boundary orientation with contours, also enhanced rill development. Evidence of this critical time window of hillslope-scale rill erosion risk during early phases of slow-forming terrace development successfully underpinned and catalysed a community-led tree planting and grass seed sowing programme to mitigate soil erosion by water. This was grounded in an implicit community understanding of the need for effective governance mechanisms at both community and District levels, to enable community-led actions to be implemented effectively. The study demonstrates the wide-reaching impact of integrated and interdisciplinary ‘upslope-downslope’ thinking to tackle global soil erosion challenges.

The native and invasive species in the Yellow River Delta were examined for their spatiotemporal characteristics and succession pattern. First, the appropriate Sentinel-2 and Landsat-8 images from 2018 were selected according to phenological characteristics. A random forest algorithm was used to verify the image spectral band significance and separability using selected images to determine the native and invasive species. Then, the spatiotemporal variation of habitat structure of native and invasive species is discussed in depth from the perspective of landscape ecology. Finally, the expansion direction and expansion mode of S. alterniflora were further analyzed, and main results were obtained as follows. (1) At the medium-high resolution multi-spectral image level, the accuracy of different vegetation community extractions can be improved by taking into consideration both the vegetation phenology and the spectral features of remote sensing images. (2) Sentinel-2 images with red edge bands have obvious advantages in vegetation community extraction as compared to Landsat-8 images (Sentinel-2, OA=82.86%, Kappa coefficient=0.79; Landsat-8, OA=78.77%, Kappa coefficient=0.74). (3) The expansion pattern of the S. alterniflora community became spatially continuous, more regularized and aggregated overtime. (4) The expansion in the north shore mainly faces to the sea, and the south bank mainly faces to the land, and this phenomena is closely related to the sedimentation of the Yellow River Delta. Marginal and external expansion both occurred, but marginal expansion predominated. The results from this study have important theoretical and scientific value for the environmental protection and sustainable development of the entire Yellow River Delta.