Prediction of Spatiotemporal Changes in Sloping Cropland in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River Region under Different Scenarios

With the rapid urban expansion and extensive occupation of cropland, sloping cropland has become an important cropland resource across China. How sloping cropland will change under different socioeconomic scenarios is poorly understood. Therefore, we modeled land-cover change using SSP-RCP multi-scenario simulations and analyzed the evolution and driving factors of sloping cropland change in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River Region (MRYRR). The results indicate the following: In the past twenty years, the cropland and sloping cropland areas in this region declined but the proportion of sloping cropland in total area has been increasing. The average slope of sloping cropland has increased from 7.95° to 8.28°. By 2035, the sloping cropland and total cropland areas will continue to decrease according to the current trend (SSP2-4.5). The average slope will increase maximally to 8.63° under the SSP4-3.4 scenario and minimally to 8.45° under the SSP4-6.0 scenario. Under SSP4-3.4, the extent of slope increase will exceed that in 2005–2010, when regional cropland slope showed the strongest increase in the past. Among 14 social, economic, and ecological factors, average annual precipitation and GDP contributed the most to the change in sloping cropland. This study provides support for decision-making in sustainable land resource allocation to balance urban expansion and cropland conservation.