Spatiotemporal Differentiation Characteristics of Land Ecological Quality and Its Obstacle Factors in the Typical Compound Area of Mine Agriculture Urban

Mining activity combines industrialization, urbanization, and urban-rural integration in the compound area of mine agriculture urban. The land ecological environment has become a major hidden problem, restricting the sustainable development and ecological security of the region. It is imminent to understand the spatiotemporal differentiation characteristics of land ecological quality and its obstacle factors to scientifically carry out land ecological restoration. Here, the Macun coal area in Jiaozuo City, Central China, was selected for the case study, and an evaluation index system including four criteria layers of ecological foundation, structure, benefit, and stress was established. The multiperiod evaluation index data were acquired by utilizing remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) technology. Based on the multi-objective comprehensive evaluation method, a comprehensive evaluation of land ecological quality was conducted, and the spatiotemporal differentiation characteristics of land ecological quality were explored. Moreover, an obstacle factor diagnosis model was constructed to confirm the spatiotemporal differentiation characteristics of obstacle factors affecting the change of the land ecological quality in the study zone. The results showed the following: (1) From 1980 to 2020, the land ecological quality index in the study zone showed a downward trend, and the proportion of the regional area with general and poor land ecological quality increased from 6.55% to 35.02%. (2) The areas with lower land ecological quality in each period of the study zone were mainly distributed in the mining areas with long mining history in the west and the areas with continuous urbanization and industrialization in the south. In contrast, the compound area of mine agriculture urban with short mining history in the east and southeast had higher land ecological quality. The aggregation of the land ecological quality index also showed similar spatial distribution characteristics. (3) The diagnosis results of obstacle factors showed that, due to the poor land ecological foundation and interference of mining activities, the land ecological quality of the mountain area in the north and west of the study area has been low. It is suggested that the land ecological quality of the area should be improved through measures such as terrain regulation, soil reconstruction, afforestation, and forest land conservation. Under the influence of mining activities and the continuous promotion of urbanization in the south of the study area, the regional ecological quality has been reduced. It is suggested that the regional land ecological quality should be improved by building ecological agriculture and ecological communities. The northeast of the study area is still in the mining area, and the ecological quality of the land tends to deteriorate. The ecological restoration in this area should be conducted by the combination of pre-mining planning, while-mining control, and post-mining restoration. The methodology of this study can provide reference for the identification and restoration of land ecological problems in the compound area of mine agriculture urban.