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Coupling urbanization and landscape ecological risk in the agricultural-dominant Liaohe River Basin


Abstract

As the main distribution area of cities, the rapid expansion of urbanization has profoundly altered landscape patterns in large and medium-sized river basins, triggering potential ecological risks. However, the dynamic relationship between urbanization and landscape ecological risks (LER) in agricultural-dominated river basins remains poorly understood, limiting effective environmental management. Focusing on the Mainstream of the Liaohe River Basin in northern China—a region characterized by intensive cropland and accelerating urbanization. Based on the landscape pattern indices and urbanization progress, this study employed a coupling coordination degree model to evaluate the spatiotemporal patterns and coupling relationship between urbanization and LER from 1990 to 2019. The results indicate that urbanization increased notably by 86.36%, primarily driven by infrastructure expansion. Meanwhile, the overall LER persisted at a moderate level, yet with substantial spatial heterogeneity. The dynamic coupling coordination degree (CCD) between urbanization and LER transitioned through three distinct phases: strengthening, weakening, and then strengthening again, yet it generally remained at a low level. Due to the wide distribution of cropland, the CCD is shown as urbanization lagging. These results not only revealed the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of LER under rapid urbanization but also underscored the implementing gradient management policies based on basin-specific urbanization-LER synchronization types. This study provides actionable insights for balancing socioeconomic growth and ecological security in agricultural basins undergoing rapid urbanization.

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Data availability

All data generated or analysed during this study are included in this published article and its supplementary information files.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Number 32301469); Educational Department of Liaoning Province (Grant Number JYTPT2024001); China Scholarship Council (202308210288); Shenyang Agricultural University (Grant NumbeX2021017)

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Conceptualization and methodology, Fei Song, Zihan Sun, and Haoyu Wu. Formal analysis, data curation and visualization, Zihan Sun, Haoyu Wu, Haifu Li, Chenchen Cao, and Deshen Xu. Writing-original draft, Fei Song, Zihan Sun, Haoyu Wu, and Haifu Li. Writing-review and editing, Fei Song, Zihan Sun, Haoyu Wu, Haifu Li, and Fangli Su. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Haifu Li or Fangli Su.

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Song, F., Sun, Z., Wu, H. et al. Coupling urbanization and landscape ecological risk in the agricultural-dominant Liaohe River Basin.
Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-46980-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-46980-2

Keywords

  • Urbanization
  • Landscape ecological risks
  • Coupling coordination
  • Synchronous development
  • Liaohe river basin
  • Agricultural basins


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