Improving ecosystem services supply provides insights for sustainable landscape planning: A case study in Beijing, China

Abstract

Promoting land use planning through ecosystem service (ES) protection is a crucial approach for maintaining landscape sustainability. Identifying ES bundles to serve landscape functional zoning can provide a new perspective for sustainable land use planning. Taking the Beijing metropolitan region as a study area, we quantitatively assessed the spatiotemporal distributions of multiple ESs, from 1980 to 2017, based on land use changes. By combining ES patterns and comprehensive ecosystem service (CES), distinct ES bundles were identified through the clustering method. Based on the ES bundles, landscape functional zones were then established. We further developed improved land use scenarios to conserve ESs in selected towns of different functional zones by exploring dominant factors influencing ESs. Results showed that most of ESs decreased due to the expansion of developed lands. According to the classification of ES bundles, Beijing can be classified into three landscape functional zones at town level: the ecological conservation region (ECR), food production region (FPR), and urban development region (UDR). For each landscape functional zone, the town with the greatest decline in CES value was selected. Associated with the influencing factors of ESs, local land use patterns, and ecological protection policies, corresponding multi-step improved land use scenarios were designed. These scenarios were demonstrated to be effective in conserving ESs in the selected towns: (1) the agricultural expansion scenario, which enhanced food provision services in the ECR; (2) the forest conservation scenario, which enhanced habitat and recreational services in the FPR; and (3) the developed land optimization scenario, which enhanced a range of regulating services in the UDR. Overall, this study used landscape functional zoning as a nexus to connect ES patterns and land use management. The optimized land use strategies can provide references for conserving ESs and enhancing landscape sustainability in Beijing and other similar metropolitan areas worldwide.