A Multi-Objective Framework for Regional Ecological Planning: Restoration Prioritization Analysis

Ecosystem management initiatives remain far from achieving sustainable development targets, with degraded ecosystems significantly limiting the protection efficiency. This study proposes a multi-objective framework for ecological restoration that complements existing protected areas and identifies priority areas for restoration to enhance effectiveness and sustainability within resource constraints. Focusing on a representative ecologically fragile county on the Loess Plateau, this study assessed ecosystem services (ESs) and applied the Ordered Weighted Averaging (OWA) model to delineate targeted protection areas. Following this, restoration objectives were established based on regional conservation requirements, accompanied by the development of a multi-objective framework and corresponding scenarios. These scenarios aimed to maximize protection efficiency, improve ecological importance and landscape connectivity, while minimizing human activities impacts. Lastly, regional ecological security patterns were constructed to identify restoration sources, corridors, and barriers, as well as prioritize restoration areas into four levels. Key findings revealed that three scenarios offered the highest trade-off and protection efficiency, respectively, selected as targeted protection areas under the hypothetical objectives. Regions characterized by higher ESs and lower human activity, encompassing one-third of the total area, exhibited lower restoration costs. Restoration priorities covered 15.25%–26.83% of the study area, with 8–19 barriers identified in agricultural and construction zones, emphasizing the imperative for land-use conversion to forests or grasslands. These findings provide actionable strategies for harmonizing ecological conservation with socio-economic imperatives, highlighting the importance of tiered protection and targeted interventions to enhance restoration effectiveness.