Assessing the Effects of Human Activities on Terrestrial Net Primary Productivity of Grasslands in Typical Ecologically Fragile Areas

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Human activities have been found to be the major factor driving the changes in terrestrial ecosystems. However, large uncertainties remain in assessing the impact of human activities on terrestrial ecosystems. In consequence, we established a quantitative indicator based on terrestrial potential and actual net primary productivity (NPP), as well as the forage harvest NPP, to better reveal the spatiotemporal changes of grassland ecosystems in response to human activities in eastern Inner Mongolia, and to further explore the relationship between human activities and grassland degradation in typical ecologically fragile areas. The quantitative indicator showed that NPP loss induced by human activities is weakening in the study area, and a positive relationship between human activities and grassland degradation was found. The results of this study will provide a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of the grassland degradation influenced by human activities, and a method reference for similar research. ABSTRACT: Global enhanced human activities have deeply influenced grassland ecosystems. Quantifying the impact of human activities on grasslands is crucial to understanding the grassland dynamic change mechanism, such as grassland degradation, and to establishing ecosystem protection measures. In this study, potential net primary productivity (PNPP), actual NPP (ANPP), and the forage harvest NPP (HNPP) were employed to establish the human activities index (HAI) to reveal the spatiotemporal changes of the effects of human activities on grassland ecosystems in eastern Inner Mongolia from 2000 to 2017, and to further explore the relationship between human activities and grassland degradation. The results showed that the total average PNPP, ANPP, and HNPP of grasslands in eastern Inner Mongolia were 187.2 Tg C yr(−1), 152.3 Tg C yr(−1), and 8.9 Tg C yr(−1), respectively, during the period of 2000 to 2017. The HAI exhibited a clear decreasing trend during the study period, with annual mean values ranging from 0.75 to 0.47, which indicates that the NPP loss induced by human activities is weakening, and this trend is dominated by the difference between potential NPP and actual NPP. About 42.4% of the study area was non-degraded grassland, and the declining grassland degradation index (GDI) indicated that the degradation grade in eastern Inner Mongolia improved from moderate to light degradation. A positive relationship was found between HAI and GDI. This relationship was more significant in Xilingol League, which is a typical ecologically fragile area, than that in Xing’an League and Hulunbuir City.