ABSTRACT Analysing land‐use pattern changes and their associated carbon footprint is essential for achieving sustainable development. Based on the PLUS‐InVEST model, this study conducted a comprehensive analysis of land use change, land‐use structural conflicts and associated carbon storages (CSs) and carbon emissions (CEs) in the Longnan region of Gansu Province, China. The results show that over the past 20 years, cultivated land has continuously decreased, while built‐up land increased at the fastest rate. Land‐use structure conflicts were predominantly at the two lowest levels (> 90%). From 2020 to 2050, land‐use change trends will diverge significantly across multiple scenarios. CSs show a persistent declining trend, both historically and under all future scenarios. From 2000 to 2020, net CEs steadily increased, with significant spatial distribution differences, and the decoupling between land‐use structure and CEs showed initial improvement. This study provides an integrated perspective on CSs and CEs. It pioneers the analysis of decoupling land‐use structure from CEs, providing a solid research foundation and empirical reference for Longnan and analogous mountainous regions.
Zhang et al. (Thu,) studied this question.