Roadless areas as an effective strategy for protected area expansion: Evidence from China

The post-2020 global biodiversity framework aims to expand the global coverage of protected areas (and other effective area-based conservation measures) to 30% by 2030. Roadless areas are ecologically important and can play a role in achieving this target but lack explicit emphasis in conservation frameworks. Here, we identify roadless areas qualified for protected area expansion in China. It is estimated that 53% of China's territory remained roadless (78% unprotected) in 2018. Roadless areas encompass higher conservation values than existing protected areas. We propose 4 strategies based on different value propositions for selecting roadless areas to expand protected areas to 30% national coverage. These strategies will make protected areas perform better in reducing human disturbance, improving spatial imbalances, and increasing species representation. However, protecting roadless areas will generate social trade-offs between protection demand objectives and economic growth generated from roads, especially in the surroundings of major urban agglomerations.