Spatial Pattern of Ecosystem Services and the Mechanism of Eco-Industry Formation in South China Karst Nature Reserves

Abstract

Karst nature reserve (NR) ecosystems are vulnerable, and the development of regulatory and cultural services industries is still in its infancy. Realization of ecological product value (EPV) is a crucial way to promote the integration of eco-protection and industrial development in nature reserves (NRs). This study calculates EPV using a modified equivalent factor, analyzes the spatial pattern of EPV using the fishnet tool in Arc GIS, and constructs a model for realizing EPV. Finally, the driving factors for the formation of eco-industry are identified using the grey correlation analysis (GCA) method. The results show that (1) the regulatory service products in karst NRs play a decisive role in EPV, and forest ecosystems have significant EPV potential; (2) high-value grids are concentrated in the core and buffer zones of karst NRs and the spatial distribution of EPV in the experimental zone is highly heterogeneous, with high and low-value grids in mixed distribution; (3) the realization model of EPV in karst NRs follows the logic of “preservation, transformation, and appreciation”; (4) human resources (0.813), ecology (0.798), industry (0.693), policy (0.783), the market (0.778), and economy (0.715) are essential drivers for the formation of eco-industry in karst NRs. Overall, karst NRs can promote the realization of EPV through planning and regulation of land use, based on the interaction between internal and external factors, to promote the coordinated development of eco-industry in karst NRs. This study provides a reference for the scientific management of eco-resources and the sustainable development of eco-industry in karst NRs.