Spatiotemporal heterogeneity and driving forces of carbon storage in the Dongting Lake Basin

Based on remote sensing inversion method and model modification method, the spatiotemporal distribution characteristics of ecosystem carbon storage in the Dongting Lake Basin were dynamically analyzed from 1980 to 2020. And with the help of the carbon storage contribution rate and optimal parameters-based geographical detector model, the driving mechanisms of ecosystem interconversion and natural-social-policy environments on the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of carbon storage were quantitatively analyzed. Carbon storage in the Dongting Lake Basin and its sub-basins initially decreased and then increased in the past 40years, with an overall increase of 262.81Tg, showing a horseshoe pattern of decreasing from the east-south-west to the central and northern parts of the basin. The interconversion of ecosystems promoted the growth of carbon storage by 23.66Tg, of which the interconversion among farmland, forest and urban ecosystems dominated the change of carbon storage in the basin. The spatiotemporal heterogeneity of carbon storage in the Dongting Lake Basin and its sub-basins was primarily influenced by the synergistic effects of social and policy environments, with the habitat quality and population density being the dominant factors. The enhancement effect and differentiation characteristics make the two-factor interaction stronger. In order to improve the carbon sequestration capacity of ecosystem, the improvement of the Dongting Lake Basin' ecosystem structure should be accelerated and the positive interaction between ecology and society should be constructed according to local conditions. © 2024 Chinese Society for Environmental Sciences. All rights reserved.