Evaluating the provision of ecosystem services to support phytoremediation measures for countering soil contamination. A case‐study of the Guadiamar Green Corridor (SW Spain)

Abstract

AbstractFrequently, the plants used for the management of contaminated soil are those native to the area of action and provide a range of ecosystem services (ES). However, in many cases the sustainability of the afforestation planning and the provision of ES are not evaluated under scenarios of climate change (CC). In the present research work, we propose a fast‐track methodology for evaluating the potential distribution of forest species and provisioning of carbon sequestration under soil contaminated by trace elements. Furthermore, the effect of CC on the potential distribution was evaluated through the calibration of the Sierra model from MicroLEIS‐DSS. Seven tree species were selected due to their tolerance of soil contaminated by trace elements during the afforestation planning using the vegetation cover maps (1998–2013) of the Guadiamar Green Corridor. Additionally, compilation, standardization, and cluster process of soil database were applied following INSPIRE, EU‐HYDI, and JRC recommendations. Finally, the carbon sequestration rate of vegetation cover has been calculated according to IPCC methodology. The results show the loss of forest aptitude (Eucalyptus, P. pinea, P. alba, Quercus) under scenario of CC and decreasing of the ES provided. The proposed methodology could support the decision making to determine forest species suited for the regulation of contaminated soils and the provision of ES at spatiotemporal scales.