Abstract: Evaluating the effectiveness of ecological and environmental protection of national parks is of great significance for promoting effective management and macro-decision-making. Focusing on the goals and orientations of national park construction, based on the protection of the authenticity and integrity of natural ecosystems, using quantitative methods with supporting of qualitative methods, we established an evaluation index system for ecological and environmental protection effectiveness of national parks. There were five types of indices, including ecosystem status, species diversity status, environmental quality status, biosafety status, and eco-environmental damage status, with 12 first-level indicators and 16 second-level indicators. We determined the index calculation methods and evaluation processes. Taking China’s first national park system pilot, Three-RiverSource National Park, as an example, we evaluated the ecological and environmental protection effectiveness since the pilot and discussed the applicability of the index system. The results showed that the area of natural ecosystems and the integrity of natural ecosystems were generally unchanged. In 2016 and 2019, the water conservation capacity index was 0.56 and 0.59, respectively, and the soil conservation capacity index was 0.11 in both years. In 2016, the diversity index of major biological groups was 0.32. As the key species in the park, the population of Tibetan antelope significantly increased. In 2016 and 2019, the protection effectiveness index (PEI) was 7.61 and 7.64, respectively, and the ΔPEI was 0.03. There were no ecological damage events and no biosafety risks. The comprehensive judgment showed that the national park’s ecological environmental protection effectiveness was at the normal level. The evaluation system reflects the dynamic changes of the ecological environment of the ThreeRiver-Source National Park, providing a reference for the establishment of the evaluation standard system of the national park’s ecological environmental protection effectiveness.

Key words: national park, protection effectiveness, evaluation index system, Three-River-Source National Park.