Identification of ecological restoration priority areas integrating ecological security and feasibility of restoration

Ecological restoration is the guarantee of regional ecological security. Accurate identification of restoration areas is crucial for planning ecological programs. However, the question of how to recognize the range of restoration areas at the pixel scale in order to improve restoration efficiency still requires further discussion. In this study, a framework that integrates ecological security and feasibility of restoration through multi-criteria decision analysis was developed to identify the ecological restoration priority areas (ERPAs) in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP). The results showed that areas with low ecological security accounted for 58.33 % of the QTP, primarily concentrated in the northwest. Areas that were feasible to be restored, represented 26.11 % of the QTP. The relatively high feasibility areas (F > 0.6) were mainly located in the northern and southwestern of the QTP, covering 23.88 % of the total feasible areas. This study ultimately identified 6.69 × 105 km2 of ERPAs, encompassing 26.05 % of the QTP. The high-priority areas were concentrated in the southwest and scattered in the northern part of the study area, accounting for 21.47 % of the ERPAs. The low-priority areas with the largest proportion (57.77 % of ERPAs) were widely distributed in the eastern part of the study area. Therefore, more attention should be paid to the southwestern region of the QTP in the subsequent ecological restoration efforts. The framework, which takes into consideration ecological security and restoration feasibility, can significantly enhance the spatial accuracy of ecological restoration area identification, providing a practical reference for further environmental optimization.