Author(s)

Jingwei Yang ¹, Wenqing Lv ¹

Affiliation(s)

¹ School of Resources, Environment and Life Sciences, Ningxia Normal University, Guyuan, 756000, Ningxia, China

Corresponding Author

Jingwei Yang

ABSTRACT

This study analyzes water–ecosystem coupling in Yuanzhou District, Guyuan City, using Google Earth Engine (GEE) and long-term Landsat data. MNDWI and RSEI reveal significant water body expansion and ecological quality improvement from 2000 to 2025, with strong interannual fluctuations driven by precipitation variability. Spatially, wetlands evolved from discrete patches to continuous networks, while ecological quality shifted from fragmented low-quality backgrounds to a dual-core high-quality pattern. Water–ecology coupling shows threshold effects: coupling strength weakened after major ecological engineering, indicating a shift from water-driven to multi-factor synergistic improvement.

KEYWORDS

Modified Normalized Difference Water Index (MNDWI); Remote Sensing Ecological Index (RSEI); Water body dynamics; Ecological environment quality; Google Earth Engine

CITE THIS PAPER

Jingwei Yang, Wenqing Lv. Temporal Dynamics of Surface Water and Its Coupling with Ecological Quality in a Semi-arid Region Using Google Earth Engine: A Case Study of Yuanzhou District, Guyuan City. Environment, Resource and Ecology Journal (2026). Vol. 10, No.1, 39-47. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.23977/erej.2026.100106.

REFERENCES

[1] Chen Y, Li Z, Xu J, et al. Changes and protection suggestions in water resources and ecological environment in arid region of Northwest China[J]. Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version), 2023, 38(3): 385-393.
[2] Yuan Jiazu, Min Qingwen. Water is the foundation of ecosystem reconstruction in Northwest China[J]. JOURNAL OF NATURAL RESOURCES, 2001, 16(6): 511-515.
[3] Biggs J, Von Fumetti S, Kelly-Quinn M. The importance of small waterbodies for biodiversity and ecosystem services: implications for policy makers[J]. Hydrobiologia, 2017, 793(1): 3-39.
[4] Grizzetti B, Liquete C, Pistocchi A, et al. Relationship between ecological condition and ecosystem services in European rivers, lakes and coastal waters[J]. Science of the Total Environment, 2019, 671: 452-465.
[5] Chen S, Zhang Q, Chen Y, et al. Vegetation change and eco-environmental quality evaluation in the Loess Plateau of China from 2000 to 2020[J]. Remote Sensing, 2023, 15(2): 424.
[6] Sun W, Song X, Mu X, et al. Spatiotemporal vegetation cover variations associated with climate change and ecological restoration in the Loess Plateau[J]. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 2015, 209: 87-99.
[7] Xu H. Modification of normalised difference water index (NDWI) to enhance open water features in remotely sensed imagery[J]. International journal of remote sensing, 2006, 27(14): 3025-3033.
[8] Zhao Z, Li H, Song X, et al. Dynamic monitoring of surface water bodies and their influencing factors in the yellow river basin[J]. Remote sensing, 2023, 15(21): 5157.
[9] Ogilvie A, Belaud G, Massuel S, et al. Surface water monitoring in small water bodies: potential and limits of multi-sensor Landsat time series[J]. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 2018, 22(8): 4349-4380.
[10] Xu H, Wang Y, Guan H, et al. Detecting ecological changes with a remote sensing based ecological index (RSEI) produced time series and change vector analysis[J]. Remote Sensing, 2019, 11(20): 2345.
[11] Yue H, Liu Y, Li Y, et al. Eco-environmental quality assessment in China's 35 major cities based on remote sensing ecological index[J]. IEEE Access, 2019, 7: 51295-51311.
[12] Zhang Y, She J, Long X, et al. Spatio-temporal evolution and driving factors of eco-environmental quality based on RSEI in Chang-Zhu-Tan metropolitan circle, central China[J]. Ecological Indicators, 2022, 144: 109436.
[13] Zhou M, Li Z, Gao M, et al. Revealing the eco-environmental quality of the Yellow River Basin: Trends and drivers[J]. Remote Sensing, 2024, 16(11): 2018.

Sponsors, Associates, and Links

---

• International Journal of Geological Resources and Geological Engineering
  
  
• Big Geospatial Data and Data Science
  
  
• Solid Earth and Space Physics
  
  
• Environment and Climate Protection
  
  
• Journal of Cartography and Geographic Information Systems
  
  
• Offshore and Polar Engineering
  
  
• Physical and Human Geography
  
  
• Journal of Atmospheric Physics and Atmospheric Environment
  
  
• Trends in Meteorology
  
  
• Journal of Coastal Engineering Research
  
  
• Focus on Plant Protection
  
  
• Toxicology and Health of Environment
  
  
• Geoscience and Remote Sensing
  
  
• Advances in Physical Oceanography
  
  
• Biology, Chemistry, and Geology in Marine
  
  
• Water-Soil, Biological Environment and Energy
  
  
• Geodesy and Geophysics
  
  
• Journal of Structural and Quaternary Geology
  
  
• Journal of Sedimentary Geology
  
  
• International Journal of Polar Social Research and Review