# Implications for Paleontological Heritage Conservation:
## 3 Results
### Some Potential Factors of the Distribution of Fossil Sites
#### 3.2.6 Disposable Personal Income  
Disposable personal income, also known as per capita disposable income, represents the purchasing power of residents and is the most important and commonly used statistical indicator for measuring residents' income level and living standard. In this study, urban residents' per capita disposable income is chosen as the data for disposable personal income. The above data about Shandong Province are from the China County Statistical Yearbook (County and City Volume) [29] and coupled and overlaid with the location of fossil sites in Shandong Province by QGIS 3.34 (Figure 10). The data on disposable personal income were divided into five groups using the natural breaks (Jenks) method in QGIS 3.34 (Table 10). \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c} \hline
**DPI/CNY \({}^{*}\)** & **Number of Administrative Units** & **Percentage/\%** & **Number of Fossil Sites** & **Percentage/\%** \\ \hline
[24,192–33,265) & 40 & 29.41 & 12 & 9.02 \\
[33,265–39,210) & 30 & 22.06 & 43 & 32.33 \\
[39,210–44,946) & 31 & 22.79 & 56 & 42.11 \\
[44,946–55,197) & 26 & 19.12 & 19 & 14.29 \\
[55,197–64,634] & 9 & 6.62 & 3 & 2.26 \\ \hline \end{tabular} \({}^{*}\) DPI stands for disposable personal income. CNY represents the official currency code for the Chinese yuan.  
\end{table} 
Table 10: Spatial relationship statistics of fossil sites and disposable personal income data in Shandong Province. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c} \hline
**Population Density \({}^{*}\)** & **Number of Administrative Units** & **Percentage/\%** & **Number of Fossil Sites** & **Percentage/\%** \\ \hline
[95–690) & 80 & 58.82 & 106 & 79.70 \\
[690–1255) & 40 & 29.41 & 23 & 17.29 \\
[1255–2443) & 8 & 5.88 & 3 & 2.26 \\
[2443–7346) & 6 & 4.41 & 1 & 0.75 \\
[7346–17,219] & 2 & 1.47 & 0 & 0.00 \\ \hline \end{tabular} \({}^{*}\) The unit of population density is people per square kilometer.  
\end{table} 
Table 9: Spatial relationship statistics of fossil sites and population density in Shandong Province. According to the statistical data, there are 40 county-level administrative units in Shandong Province with disposable personal income ranging from 24,192 to 33,265 Chinese yuan, 30 county-level administrative units with income ranging from 33,265 to 39,210 Chinese yuan, 31 county-level administrative units with income ranging from 39,210 to 44,946 Chinese yuan, 26 county-level administrative units with income ranging from 44,946 to 55,197 Chinese yuan, and nine counties with income ranging from 55,197 to 64,634 Chinese yuan, accounting for 29.41%, 22.06%, 22.79%, 19.12%, and 6.62% of the total, respectively. Of the 133 fossil sites in Shandong Province, 56 of them are located within administrative units with disposable personal income ranging from 39,210 to 44,946 Chinese yuan; 43 are situated in areas where the disposable personal income falls between 33,265 and 39,210 Chinese yuan; 19 are found in regions with a range of disposable personal income from 55,197 to 64,634 Chinese yuan; there are 12 sites located within administrative units with disposable personal income ranging from 24,192 to 33,265 Chinese yuan; and there are three sites within administrative units with disposable personal income ranging from 55,197 to 64,634 Chinese yuan. The 133 fossil sites in Shandong Province are concentrated in administrative units with low population density. Based on the above analysis, fossil sites in Shandong Province generally tend to be in administrative units with higher disposable personal income. This is because governments within these administrative units allocate more financial resources and personnel towards protecting and developing fossil resources. Additionally, higher disposable personal income indicates a better standard of living for the local residents, leading to a greater interest in history, culture, and natural beauty, as well as driving research, conservation, and development in the field of fossils. Figure 10: Association map of fossil sites and disposable personal income data in Shandong Province.