Trade-Offs and Synergies of Ecosystem Services in the Pearl River Delta Urban Agglomeration

Qiongrui Zhang,Xuechao Sun,Kebin Zhang,Zhenni Liao,Songjun Xu

doi:10.3390/su13169155

Qiongrui Zhang, Xuechao Sun + Show 3 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/su13169155

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Abstract

Since ecosystem services (ESs) have become effective tools for urban planning, spatiotemporal analysis of regional ESs and a deep understanding of the trade-offs among ESs are of great significance to regional governance. In this study, the spatial and temporal changes of four basic ESs were analyzed by combining statistical data with the InVEST model across the Pearl River Delta (PRD) urban agglomeration, China. The trade-offs among the related ESs were analyzed at the urban agglomeration scale and the city scale by correlation analysis. The results showed that: (1) Construction land increased by 6.78% from 2000 to 2018, while cultivated land and forest decreased. (2) Water yield showed an increasing trend, while carbon storage, food production, and habitat quality showed a downward trend from 2000 to 2018. (3) The four ecosystem services were significantly correlated, with synergies existing between water yield and food production, and between habitat quality and carbon storage, while other relationships are trade-offs. What is more, the scale has little influence on the direction of ES trade-off or synergy but influences the degree of the relationship. This empirical evidence on ES relationships in urban agglomerations can provide a reference for the sustainable development of ESs and efficient management of urban agglomerations.

Highlights

Manuel Pacheco-Romero and KoldoEcosystem services (ESs) make an important contribution to human well-being, directly or indirectly [1]
We provided a floor diagram of the research; the InVEST model and correlation analysis were used
During the past 18 years, the land use changed faster during 2000–2010 but slower in the later period, the construction land increased by 6.78%, while the amount of cultivated land and forest decreased by 3.79% and 1.80%, respectively

Summary

Introduction

Manuel Pacheco-Romero and KoldoEcosystem services (ESs) make an important contribution to human well-being, directly or indirectly [1]. The Millennium Ecosystem Services Assessment [2] divided ESs into four categories: supporting services, provision services, regulation services, and cultural services. This means that ecosystems can provide people with food and production materials and regulate the climate and carbon cycle, but can provide landscape and entertainment services that meet the needs of human spiritual life [2,3]. Trade-offs in ESs mean that one goes up while the other goes down, whereas synergies occur when two ESs either increase or decrease at the same time [5,6]. Certain policies often alter land use to meet social and economic development, resulting in an imbalance in ecosystem services [7]

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Discussion

Conclusion