District-Level RSEI Patterns and Ecological Heterogeneity in the Minsk Region, Belarus

Bochao Zhao; Sasa Song; Chen Jiang

doi:10.2205/2026es001144

VAK Russia 1.6.12 UDC 528.8 CSCSTI 37.01 Russian Classification of Professions by Education 05.00.00 Russian Library and Bibliographic Classification 26 Russian Trade and Bibliographic Classification 63 BISAC SCI081000 VAK Russia 1.6 UDC 504.05 UDC 55 UDC 550.34 UDC 550.383 CSCSTI 37.15 CSCSTI 37.25 CSCSTI 37.31 CSCSTI 38.01 CSCSTI 36.00 CSCSTI 37.00 CSCSTI 38.00 CSCSTI 39.00 CSCSTI 52.00 BISAC SCI

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DISTRICT-LEVEL RSEI PATTERNS AND ECOLOGICAL HETEROGENEITY IN THE MINSK REGION, BELARUS District-Level RSEI Patterns and Ecological Heterogeneity in the Minsk Region, Belarus

АА Аа

Published in Russian Journal of Earth Sciences · Volume 26, Issue 4 · ELocator: ES4006 · Rubric: ORIGINAL ARTICLES

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2205/2026es001144 · EDN: QDKTLQ

Received: 23.01.2026 Accepted: 21.06.2026 Published: 29.10.2026 Language of publication: ENG

Authors

Bochao Zhao

ORCID Scopus SPIN

Sasa Song

ORCID

Chen Jiang

ORCID

Bochao Zhao

Belarusian State University Department of Soil Science and Geoinformation Systems · Faculty of Geography and Geoinformatics · Belarus

ORCID Scopus SPIN

Sasa Song

Belarusian State University Belarus

ORCID

Chen Jiang

Belarusian State University Belarus

ORCID

ABSTRACT

Assessing ecological environment quality at the administrative-unit scale is important for understanding regional landscape differentiation and ecological dynamics in temperate regions. This study used the Remote Sensing Ecological Index (RSEI), derived from Landsat 8/9 growing-season imagery processed in Google Earth Engine, to examine district-level spatiotemporal patterns and ecological heterogeneity in the Minsk Region, Belarus, during 2016–2025. Annual RSEI maps were generated to characterize spatial patterns, intra-district variability, and temporal tendencies. Mean district-level RSEI values ranged from 0.539 to 0.682, showing clear spatial differentiation among districts. Higher values were generally associated with forest-dominated and semi-natural landscapes, whereas agriculturally transformed and urbanized districts showed lower values and greater internal heterogeneity. Temporal trends were predominantly negative but weak. The results indicate that average ecological conditions alone are insufficient for characterizing district-level ecological environment quality and confirm the usefulness of RSEI for detecting subtle ecological contrasts in temperate Eastern European landscapes.

KEYWORDS

ecological environment quality, spatial heterogeneity, spatiotemporal analysis, administrative units, landscape structure, remote sensing, RSEI, Minsk Region

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This work is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International

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Chief Editor

Alexei Gvishiani

rjes@wdcb.ru

Managing Editor

Ernest Kedrov

ernest.kedrov@ya.ru

Deputy Chief Editor

Boris Dzeboev

rjes@wdcb.ru

Responsible Secretary

Natalya Kareva

rjes@wdcb.ru

This work is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Creative Commons

GOST

Zhao B., Song S., Jiang C. District-Level RSEI Patterns and Ecological Heterogeneity in the Minsk Region, Belarus // Russian Journal of Earth Sciences. 2026. no. 4. ES4006. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2205/2026es001144. EDN: QDKTLQ. (Date of access 02.11.2026).

MLA

Bochao Zhao, Song S., Jiang C.. "District-Level RSEI Patterns and Ecological Heterogeneity in the Minsk Region, Belarus." Russian Journal of Earth Sciences 26.4 (2026): ES4006. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2205/2026es001144. EDN: QDKTLQ.

APA

Zhao B., Song S., Jiang C. (2026). District-Level RSEI Patterns and Ecological Heterogeneity in the Minsk Region, Belarus. Russian Journal of Earth Sciences, 26(4), ES4006. https://doi.org/10.2205/2026es001144 EDN: QDKTLQ.

Chicago

Bochao Zhao, Song S., Jiang C.. "District-Level RSEI Patterns and Ecological Heterogeneity in the Minsk Region, Belarus." Russian Journal of Earth Sciences 26, no. 4 (2026): ES4006. https://doi.org/10.2205/2026es001144. EDN: QDKTLQ.

WIKI

{{cite journal | author = Zhao B., Song S., Jiang C. | title = District-Level RSEI Patterns and Ecological Heterogeneity in the Minsk Region, Belarus | journal = Russian Journal of Earth Sciences | year = 2026 | volume = 26 | issue = 4 | pages = ES4006 | doi = 10.2205/2026es001144 }} EDN: QDKTLQ

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DISTRICT-LEVEL RSEI PATTERNS AND ECOLOGICAL HETEROGENEITY IN THE MINSK REGION, BELARUS District-Level RSEI Patterns and Ecological Heterogeneity in the Minsk Region, Belarus

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