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Peer-reviewedCC BYGeography and Sustainability

Moderate grazing enhances the connectivity and stability of social-ecological systems: Insights for zoned governance in the Yarlung Zangbo River Basin

  • Xiao Huang1
  • Yafeng Wang2
  • Shuai Wang3
  • Junhe Chen4
  • Xiaodan Wang5
  • Eryuan Liang4
  • Jian Sun4
  • Xiaofeng Wang6
6 affiliations
  1. 1State Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources (TPESER), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
  2. 2State Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources (TPESER), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Corresponding author.
  3. 3State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
  4. 4State Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources (TPESER), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
  5. 5Key Laboratory of Mountain Surface Processes and Ecological Regulation, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610299, China
  6. 6School of Land Engineering, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710054, China
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Abstract

Grazing sustains livelihoods but poses severe challenges to ecological security. Unraveling the impact of grazing intensity on integrated social-ecological systems (SESs) is imperative for reconciling this conflict. However, existing research primarily focuses on the ecological effects of grazing, lacking an integrated analysis from a coupled social-ecological perspective. Focusing on the Yarlung Zangbo River Basin (YZRB), this study applied network analysis to construct SESs and characterize their evolutionary trajectories under grazing pressure. Threshold regression models were employed to uncover the nonlinear responses and critical thresholds of the SESs to grazing intensity, ultimately leading to a threshold-based zoning governance scheme. Results showed that from 2000 to 2020, the SESs evolved toward greater connectivity and stability. However, increasing grazing intensity disrupted the structure of the SESs: density, links, average degree, and transitivity declined by 15.30 % on average, accompanied by an 18.06 % increase in vulnerability. Meanwhile, hub nodes shifted from vegetation to landscape structure factors, and modules gradually decoupled. Further analysis revealed that the responses of the SESs to grazing intensity were nonlinear: both low and high grazing intensities compromised the structure of the SESs, whereas moderate grazing enhanced their connectivity and stability. Based on response thresholds, the YZRB was divided into four subzones: ecological sensitivity zone (< 2.8 sheep unit per hectare (SU/ha)), adaptive transition zone (2.8–4.6 SU/ha), coordinated development zone (4.6–6.0 SU/ha), and risk prevention zone (> 6.0 SU/ha). This study provides adaptive management strategies for the YZRB and offers a methodological reference for the governance of coupled systems facing similar challenges worldwide.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{huang2026moderate,
  title = {{Moderate grazing enhances the connectivity and stability of social-ecological systems: Insights for zoned governance in the Yarlung Zangbo River Basin}},
  author = {Xiao Huang and Yafeng Wang and Shuai Wang and Junhe Chen and Xiaodan Wang and Eryuan Liang and Jian Sun and Xiaofeng Wang},
  journal = {Geography and Sustainability},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1016/j.geosus.2026.100496},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geosus.2026.100496},
  note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Moderate grazing enhances the connectivity and stability of social-ecological systems: Insights for zoned governance in the Yarlung Zangbo River Basin
AU  - Xiao Huang
AU  - Yafeng Wang
AU  - Shuai Wang
AU  - Junhe Chen
AU  - Xiaodan Wang
AU  - Eryuan Liang
AU  - Jian Sun
AU  - Xiaofeng Wang
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/31
JO  - Geography and Sustainability
DO  - 10.1016/j.geosus.2026.100496
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geosus.2026.100496
AB  - Grazing sustains livelihoods but poses severe challenges to ecological security. Unraveling the impact of grazing intensity on integrated social-ecological systems (SESs) is imperative for reconciling this conflict. However, existing research primarily focuses on the ecological effects of grazing, lacking an integrated analysis from a coupled social-ecological perspective. Focusing on the Yarlung Zangbo River Basin (YZRB), this study applied network analysis to construct SESs and characterize their evolutionary trajectories under grazing pressure. Threshold regression models were employed to uncover the nonlinear responses and critical thresholds of the SESs to grazing intensity, ultimately leading to a threshold-based zoning governance scheme. Results showed that from 2000 to 2020, the SESs evolved toward greater connectivity and stability. However, increasing grazing intensity disrupted the structure of the SESs: density, links, average degree, and transitivity declined by 15.30 % on average, accompanied by an 18.06 % increase in vulnerability. Meanwhile, hub nodes shifted from vegetation to landscape structure factors, and modules gradually decoupled. Further analysis revealed that the responses of the SESs to grazing intensity were nonlinear: both low and high grazing intensities compromised the structure of the SESs, whereas moderate grazing enhanced their connectivity and stability. Based on response thresholds, the YZRB was divided into four subzones: ecological sensitivity zone (< 2.8 sheep unit per hectare (SU/ha)), adaptive transition zone (2.8–4.6 SU/ha), coordinated development zone (4.6–6.0 SU/ha), and risk prevention zone (> 6.0 SU/ha). This study provides adaptive management strategies for the YZRB and offers a methodological reference for the governance of coupled systems facing similar challenges worldwide.
SN  - 2666-6839
SN  - 2096-7438
ER  -