Tradeoffs and synergies between ecosystem services: A comparison of the karst and non-karst area

Abstract

Under the influence of various natural and human factors, the relationship between the ecosystem services provided for human beings by a karst ecosystem is becoming increasingly complex, profoundly limiting the effective and sustainable development of the social economy and ecosystem protection in karst areas. Taking Guizhou, China as an example, which includes both karst (including five different landforms) and non-karst area, the study explored and compared the tradeoff and synergy between ecosystem services in both terrain types. The results showed higher change rates of water yield and soil retention in karst areas than those in non-karst areas, with only small differences in the carbon storage and crop production change. The ecosystem service relationships in the karst area from 1995 to 2005 were consistent with the relationships in the non-karst area. However, differences were observed in most of these relationships from 2005 to 2015. The relationships between ecosystem services in different karst landforms from 1995 to 2005 remained the same, but there are differences found in the relationships of ecosystem services from 2005 to 2015. The trade-off and synergistic relationships between ecosystem services in the different landforms were closely related to the changes of climate and land use, particularly related to rainfall, rainfall erosivity, farmland, and forestland.