Assessing the ecological risk and its driving forces on Islands using the Pressure-State-Response model.

Abstract

Islands are important sources of environmental resources, and assessing their ecological status is important to ensure their sustainable use, conservation, and management. We use the Pressure-State-Response model to identify 12 risk sources, 7 risk receptors, and 2 risk responses, in a system that factors in the probability of risk occurrence and ecosystem fragility. An ecological risk identification matrix for island ecosystems is established, which, in combination with risk value computations and grading criteria, enables the determination of the risk level of island ecosystems. We report risk values for terrestrial ecosystems on North Changshan Island and the intertidal and coastal waters of Miao Island to be moderate (0.50), signifying that certain risks exist and that precautionary measures should be taken to prevent potential ecological problems. For North Changshan Island, this value for the intertidal and coastal waters is 0.74, because this environment is more sensitive to risks from aquaculture. The lower risk value for terrestrial ecosystems on Miao Island (0.40) indicates a reduced possibility of ecological problems. These findings provide data and technical support for the protection of island plant species, preservation of island ecosystems, ecological restoration and optimization of damaged islands, and the spatial development of islands.