Ecosystem Service Trade-offs Research Articles

Ecosystem service management and spatial prioritisation in a multifunctional landscape in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand

ABSTRACT Sustaining ecosystem services (ES) is a key interest in the management of land use in multifunctional landscapes (i.e. ES that support ecosystem function and sustain human livelihoods). In making land management decisions, it is important to understand the relationships and spatial distributions of multiple ES, and the synergies and trade-offs between them. We analysed nine ES in a catchment in the Bay of Plenty region, New Zealand, to identify areas in the catchment are high (hotspots) and low (coldspots) in supplying multiple ES, the relationships among ES, and where ES trade-offs and synergies occur. We found ES hotspots occurred mainly in indigenous forest. Synergies occurred among provisioning services (milk and meat) and dis-service nitrogen leaching as well as synergies with carbon sequestration and wood supply. Trade-offs occurred between regulating services and a supporting service. We identified ES bundles (services that occur repeatedly together) of provisioning services and those associated with exotic forest. Spatial concurrences and relationships of different ES provide a way to optimise the supply of multiple ES. These results may be used to guide landscape management whereby spatial prioritisation can be used to conserve areas of high ES supply or bundles of ES.

Quantifying Ecosystem Service Trade-Offs to Inform Spatial Identification of Forest Restoration

Specific forest restoration aims to maximum ecosystem services (ESs); however, the complex trade-offs among ecosystem services pose considerable challenges for fulfilling such goals. Based on forest restoration on Hainan Island, China, we integrated spatially explicit models of ecosystem services and spatial prioritization techniques based on the efficiency frontier between habitat quality and plantation revenue to analyze the impacts of decision-makers’ preferences on optimal configurations of forest restoration. We then investigated the effects of different optimal restoration schemes on water purification, soil retention, carbon sequestration, and coastal hazard mitigation. Based on our results, plantation revenue and habitat quality exhibited an obvious trade-off during the process of restoration. Forest restoration patterns also varied with the degree of preference for plantation yield or habitat quality, indicating that understanding ecosystem service tradeoffs can support the optimal selection of forest restoration schemes under different preferences. However, when the values of multiple ecosystem services associated with forest restoration were considered (e.g., water purification, soil retention, carbon sequestration, and coastal hazard mitigation), the optimal solution choice varied. Our results suggest the application of the efficiency frontier can deepen quantitative understanding of ecosystem service trade-offs, and the addition of multi-benefit evaluation based on optimal solutions can provide a more detailed and broader picture of forest restoration plans. Integrated efficiency frontier assessment with the valuation of ecosystem services associated with forest restoration provides a quantitative approach for optimal forest restoration, which can be applied in broad forest restoration programs.

Assessing Changes in Ecosystem Service Values in Response to Land Cover Dynamics in Jiangxi Province, China.

This paper examines the ecosystem service values of Jiangxi province, China using the benefit transfer approach. The land cover dynamics results show that cropland and forest are the main land cover types in Jiangxi province. Urban land drastically increased after 2000, expanding from 846.54 km2 in 2000 to 2317.48 km2 in 2015. Forest and water obviously decreased across the study periods. Consequently, the total ecosystem service values decreased from 37.91 × 1010 Yuan in 1995 to 35.27 × 1010 Yuan in 2015. The values showed a declining trend, especially during the 1995–2000 period. The largest declines in ecosystem service values were caused by decreases in forest and water cover. Regulating services experienced the largest declines in ecosystem services value. Moreover, water supply showed the largest decline in ecosystem service value between 1995 and 2015. Not surprisingly, food production increased in the whole period, especially in the 1995–2000 period. Forest and cropland played the most important roles in the total ecosystem service values of Jiangxi province. We then discussed the relationship among ecosystem services based on the ecosystem service trade-off degree. The results show that the dominant relationship among ecosystem services in Jiangxi province was synergy; thus synergy mostly occurred in all ecosystem services except for food production from 1995 to 2015. However, during the 1995–2000 period, trade-offs mainly existed in both food production and waste treatment. The proportion of synergy greatly increased in the 2000–2015 period, and the synergistic relationship between waste treatment and other ecosystem services increased. However, the trade-off relationship between food production and other ecosystem services still has not improved, which should be concerned in the future. Changes in the percentage share of cropland showed a declining trend; thus, the potential risk of cropland loss should be monitored.

Modeling the Supporting Ecosystem Services of Depressional Wetlands in Agricultural Landscapes

We explored how a geographic information system modeling approach could be used to quantify supporting ecosystem services related to the type, abundance, and distribution of landscape components. Specifically, we use the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs model to quantify habitats that support amphibians and birds, floral resources that support pollinators, native-plant communities that support regional biodiversity, and above- and below-ground carbon stores in the Des Moines Lobe ecoregion of the U.S. We quantified services under two scenarios, one that represented the 2012 Des Moines Lobe landscape, and one that simulated the conversion to crop production of wetlands and surrounding uplands conserved under the USDA Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP). While ACEP easements only covered 0.35% of the ecoregion, preserved wetlands and grasslands provided for 19,020 ha of amphibian habitat, 21,462 ha of grassland-bird habitat, 18,798 ha of high-quality native wetland plants, and 27,882 ha of floral resources for pollinators. Additionally, ACEP protected lands stored 257,722 t of carbon that, if released, would result in costs in excess of 45-million USD. An integrated approach using results from a GIS-based model in combination with process-based model quantifications will facilitate more informed decisions related to ecosystem service tradeoffs.

Governance of ecosystem services trade-offs in peri-urban landscapes

Peri-urban landscapes (PULs) are specific transitional forms of urban landscapes undergoing dynamic land-use changes. PULs’ transformations are driven by close and significant influence of an urban core, cross-administrative boundary character, and diversity of governance actors. PULs have significant potential to provide ES and respond to the urban and peri-urban demand for ES, but they are also particular contexts where significant and different ES trade-offs can occur. Majority of existing forms of governance are not able to deal and address such trade-offs, which thus call for more innovative and effective governance approaches and mechanisms, aimed at achieving ES synergies and reducing ES conflicts.This paper discusses the characteristics of PULs in the context of governance questions related to the management of ES trade-offs in the urban peripheries. The drivers of ES trade-offs are presented and different trade-off relationships between and within the main ES types are analyzed. The paper drafts a way forward from the current state-of-the-art related to governance of peri-urban ES trade-offs by providing recommendations for more effective governance that would address these trade-offs. Due to the very dynamic character of PULs, it is difficult to manage land-use changes and ES trade-offs. Hence, the governance approaches need to be adaptive and integrative at multiple levels, while engaging diverse actors to balance ES trade-offs that have mixed urban and rural character.

Construction and case analysis of an index for the sustainability of ecosystem services

Abstract Natural resources are finite, and a sustainable land use structure and layout are important for promoting the sustainable development of ecosystem services. In this study, we constructed a sustainability index for ecosystem services using three indicators—namely the value, vulnerability, and spatial trade-offs of ecosystem services. Additionally, we attempted to investigate the factors which influence the sustainability of ecosystem services (ESS), as well as the effect of different calculation methods on the calculated sustainability. The “Golden Triangle of Southern Fujian”—a marine–terrestrial zone urban agglomeration—was taken as a case study to investigate the ESS. Results showed that: (1) Factors of regional economic density, population density, and land use changes significantly influence the ESS, while the geographical location and urban infrastructure construction have little impact; (2) A method involving the multiplication and superposition of the positive and negative index was found to be reasonable for calculating the ESS; (3) In the research area, the ESS is generally high, with the sustainability indices of most counties reaching 0.3–0.5 (ordinary quality) and above. During the study periods (2005–2010 and 2010–2015), the sustainability indices of cultivated land, forest land, water area, and grassland decreased by 5.61, 5.90, 2.62, and 7.35%, respectively, while the sustainability indices of construction land and unused land increased by 4.85%, 32.10%, respectively. The number of counties whose ESS was classified as weak (0–0.1) or relatively weak (0.1–0.3) decreased to zero during the study periods. This research provides a method for the quantitative evaluation of the ESS and has theoretical and practical significance.

Tradeoffs and synergies of ecosystem services in western mountainous China: A case study of the Bailongjiang watershed in Gansu, China

The Bailongjiang watershed of Gansu is an important water conservation and ecological barrier area in the upper reaches of Yangtze River. It is necessary to reveal the tradeoffs and synergies of ecosystem services (ESs) for the "win-win" of watershed ecological system and social eco-nomy development. Based on the InVEST model, four typical ESs including soil conservation (SC), water conservation (WC), food supply (FS), and habitat quality (HQ) were assessed, and the multi-scale tradeoffs and synergies of ESs and its drivers were analyzed by correlation and root mean square deviation (RMSD). The results showed that there were significant synergies among SC, WC, and HQ, and a significant tradeoff between FS and HQ, SC, WC, respectively. The areas with high tradeoff intensity between the three pairs of synergistic services (SC-WC, SC-HQ, WC-HQ), and between FS and HQ were mainly concentrated in the steep forest area of middle-high mountain in Wenxian, Diebu and Zhouqu. The high intensity of tradeoffs between FS-SC, FS-WC were mainly concentrated in the gentle apricus farming and pastoral areas of middle-low mountain in Tanchang and Wudu. The spatial variation of land use/cover caused by human activities was an important factor affecting the degree of ES tradeoffs and its scale effect.

Recreational services in tourism dominated coastal ecosystems: Bringing the non-economic values into focus

Recreation-based ecosystem services can bring possibilities for protection and sustainable use of coastal ecosystems. This paper analyzes how recreational services influence coastal ecosystem management by studying the south-west part of the Sundarbans mangroves in Bangladesh. The paper argues that a single ecosystem service, recreation based on natural environments, is perceived differently by two different stakeholders; tourists and local resource users. Such variations emerge due to the dynamics of recreation seeking activities of the tourists and the livelihood-based activities of the local resource users. The paper takes a qualitative research framework with a narrative approach and analyzes these relationships through in-depth interviews and focus group discussions. The results reveal that perceptions of recreational services by local resource harvesters can give important and new opportunities for coastal biodiversity management and conservation. Management implicationsThis study has highlighted some key issues regarding future management of the Sundarbans mangroves in Bangladesh. These management implications can be grounded through four interlinked recommendations, which are:• Increasing awareness on the local culture and the associated local ecological knowledge pool that ensures sustainable resource harvesting.• Consideration of non-economic valuation of recreation related to lifestyles of indigenous and local people for a fuller appreciation of socio-ecological relations in tourism-dominated areas in the Sundarbans.• Better the understanding of ecosystem service trade-offs which tourism brings to minimize the recreational service guided conservation at the expense of other ecosystem services.• Combine local people's recreational values and tourism to experience full gamut of recreational ecosystem services available from the landscape.

Spatial Trade-Offs and Temporal Evolution of Multiple Ecosystem Services in a Marine-Terrestrial Urban-Agglomeration Zone.

It takes some time for changes to come in ecosystem services, and trade-offs occur in the process of changes. As opposed to a point in time, we use data spanning the years 2000–2005, 2005–2010, and 2010–2015 to study this research. After quantifying types of ecosystem services, this paper uses spatial correlation analysis and root-mean square deviation (RMSD) method to explore the relationships among ecosystem services and calculate the degree of spatial trade-offs (DT). Results show that the construction land increased substantially albeit at a declining rate of growth, and the degree of trade-offs (DT) increased with nontrivial differences in space. The hotspots for trade-offs are spatially aggregated in some areas but have varying patterns between ecosystem service pairs. The increasing area (IA) of construction land does not promote increased DT until the former reaches a certain threshold. With the exception of land use changes, type of industrial development is one of the key factors that influence the trade-offs of ecosystem services in the research region. We apply the models and methods used in this research to practice and discuss the practical value of our results for planners and decision makers vis-à-vis the design and instigation of appropriate development strategies.

Trade-offs and Synergies of Ecosystem Services in Karst Area of China Driven by Grain-for-Green Program

As an important means regulating the relationship between human and natural ecosystem, ecological restoration program plays a key role in restoring ecosystem functions. The Grain-for-Green Program (GFGP, One of the world’s most ambitious ecosystem conservation set-aside programs aims to transfer farmland on steep slopes to forestland or grassland to increase vegetation coverage) has been widely implemented from 1999 to 2015 and exerted significant influence on land use and ecosystem services (ESs). In this study, three ecological models (InVEST, RUSLE, and CASA) were used to accurately calculate the three key types of ESs, water yield (WY), soil conservation (SC), and net primary production (NPP) in Karst area of southwestern China from 1982 to 2015. The impact of GFGP on ESs and trade-offs was analyzed. It provides practical guidance in carrying out ecological regulation in Karst area of China under global climate change. Results showed that ESs and trade-offs had changed dramatically driven by GFGP. In detail, temporally, SC and NPP exhibited an increasing trend, while WY exhibited a decreasing trend. Spatially, SC basically decreased from west to east; NPP basically increased from north to south; WY basically increased from west to east; NPP and SC, SC and WY developed in the direction of trade-offs driven by the GFGP, while NPP and WY developed in the direction of synergy. Therefore, future ecosystem management and restoration policy-making should consider trade-offs of ESs so as to achieve sustainable provision of ESs.

Past and future ecosystem service trade-offs in Poyang Lake Basin under different land use policy scenarios

Poyang Lake is the largest freshwater lake in China and is an important wetland in the world. The scientific assessment of ecosystem service trade-offs in Poyang Lake Basin is of great significance for maintaining regional ecological balance and global biodiversity. This study uses land use as the main data source and the “equivalent factor method” to estimate the ecosystem service value of the Poyang Lake Basin from 1990 to 2015; the study also analyzes the trade-off synergy among ecosystem services. On this basis, land use information was simulated under three scenarios: planning scenario (government policy-oriented), development scenario (economic benefit-oriented), and protection scenario (ecological protection-oriented). The trade-offs and synergies among ecosystem services under different scenarios were evaluated. The results demonstrate that the ecosystem service value for the entire basin steadily increased from 1990 to 2015. The relationships among ecosystem services in the basin were mainly synergistic, and there were few trade-offs. Among the three simulation scenarios, the ecosystem service value was the highest and the trade-offs among ecosystem services were the lowest under the protection scenario, the ecosystem service value was the lowest and the trade-offs among ecosystem services were the highest under the development scenario, and the trade-offs under the planning scenario were between the values of the protection scenario and the development scenario. From the perspective of maximizing the value of ecosystem services and minimizing trade-offs in ecosystem services, the protection scenario is the optimal scenario among the three scenarios.

Research progress on the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem services

The relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem services is one of the hot topics in ecological research. The ways that the relationship is applied to the development of ecosystem management and policy have gradually gained attention after the Millennium Ecosystem Services Assessment in 2005. However, applying theoretical understanding of the relationship into practical management still faces challenges. Examining recent progresses may help to guide practices and po-licies. We summarized recent progress in researches on the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem services in terms of the impacts of biodiversity on single ecosystem service, ecosystem multifunctionality and trade-offs of ecosystem services, as well as how environmental changes affected these relationships. Moreover, we outlined the application of these relationships in nature reserve management, forest management, degraded ecosystem restoration, and agro-ecosystem improvement. We further analyzed the shortcomings in relationship studies and then emphasized that future research and practice trends are the interaction of different biodiversity components and multiple trophic levels on ecosystem services, the coupling effects of environmental changes on the relationships, and practical approaches to biodiversity for improving ecosystem services.

基于服务簇的东北地区生态系统服务权衡与协同

基于服务簇的东北地区生态系统服务权衡与协同

Representing future generations in the deliberative valuation of ecosystem services

Even though decisions taken today about managing ecosystem services are likely to have an effect on future generations’ well-being, decision making is based largely on current generations’ values, including altruistic concern for posterity. Deliberative forms of citizen engagement can provide a methodological framework for incorporating sustainability considerations in the valuation task and for understanding the reasoning behind peoples’ choices. This paper uses a deliberative form of citizen engagement to better understand the temporal dimensions of social values by incorporating into the valuation task two plausible future scenarios and assigning to the participants the role of trustees for future generations. In particular, we employed the deliberative multicriteria evaluation (DMCE) method with eleven groups in which a total of 67 participants assessed the relative importance of ten ecosystem services in the Upper Merrimack River watershed in New Hampshire. Our results suggest that a deliberative form of citizen engagement provides the appropriate space for incorporating intergenerational concerns into decision making. Participants set environmental targets by prioritizing the satisfaction of basic human needs, securing human and environmental health, and avoiding the loss of ecosystem services that cannot be substituted and may lead to irreversible future losses. This finding suggests that when preferences are socially constructed, then ethical values underpin valuations, making it possible to integrate ecosystem service tradeoffs into environmental decisions in a manner that respects the environmental rights of future generations.

Multi-criteria decision analysis in Bayesian networks - Diagnosing ecosystem service trade-offs in a hydropower regulated river

The paper demonstrates the use of Bayesian networks in multicriteria decision analysis (MCDA) of environmental design alternatives for environmental flows (eflows) and physical habitat remediation measures in the Mandalselva River in Norway. We demonstrate how MCDA using multi-attribute value functions can be implemented in a Bayesian network with decision and utility nodes. An object-oriented Bayesian network is used to integrate impacts computed in quantitative sub-models of hydropower revenues and Atlantic salmon smolt production and qualitative judgement models of mesohabitat fishability and riverscape aesthetics. We show how conditional probability tables are useful for modelling uncertainty in value scaling functions, and variance in criteria weights due to different stakeholder preferences. While the paper demonstrates the technical feasibility of MCDA in a BN, we also discuss the challenges of providing decision-support to a real-world habitat remediation process.

Social Perceptions of Forest Ecosystem Services in the Democratic Republic of Congo

The forests of the Albertine Rift are known for their high biodiversity and the important ecosystem services they provide to millions of inhabitants. However, their conservation and the maintenance of ecosystem service delivery is a challenge, particularly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Our research investigates how livelihood strategy and ethnicity affects local perceptions of forest ecosystem services. We collected data through 25 focus-group discussions in villages from distinct ethnic groups, including farmers (Tembo, Shi, and Nyindu) and hunter-gatherers (Twa). Twa identify more food-provisioning services and rank bush meat and honey as the most important. They also show stronger place attachment to the forest than the farmers, who value other ecosystem services, but all rank microclimate regulation as the most important. Our findings help assess ecosystem services trade-offs, highlight the important impacts of restricted access to forests resources for Twa, and point to the need for developing alternative livelihood strategies for these communities.

A green infrastructure spatial planning model for evaluating ecosystem service tradeoffs and synergies across three coastal megacities

A growing number of cities are investing in green infrastructure to foster urban resilience and sustainability. While these nature-based solutions are often promoted on the basis of their multifunctionality, in practice, most studies and plans focus on a single benefit, such as stormwater management. This represents a missed opportunity to strategically site green infrastructure to leverage social and ecological co-benefits. To address this gap, this paper builds on existing modeling approaches for green infrastructure planning to create a more generalizable tool for comparing spatial tradeoffs and synergistic ‘hotspots’ for multiple desired benefits. I apply the model to three diverse coastal megacities: New York City, Los Angeles (United States), and Manila (Philippines), enabling cross-city comparisons for the first time. Spatial multi-criteria evaluation is used to examine how strategic areas for green infrastructure development across the cities change depending on which benefit is prioritized. GIS layers corresponding to six planning priorities (managing stormwater, reducing social vulnerability, increasing access to green space, improving air quality, reducing the urban heat island effect, and increasing landscape connectivity) are mapped and spatial tradeoffs assessed. Criteria are also weighted to reflect local stakeholders’ desired outcomes as determined through surveys and stakeholder meetings and combined to identify high priority areas for green infrastructure development. To extend the model’s utility as a decision-support tool, an interactive web-based application is developed that allows any user to change the criteria weights and visualize the resulting hotspots in real time. The model empirically illustrates the complexities of planning green infrastructure in different urban contexts, while also demonstrating a flexible approach for more participatory, strategic, and multifunctional planning of green infrastructure in cities around the world.

Scenario simulation of ecosystem service trade-offs in bay cities: A case study in Quanzhou, Fujian Province, China

Bay cities have abundant land-sea resources and higher environmental carrying capacity. The high density of population and industry surrounding the bay makes bay cities a type of ecologically fragile areas. With Quanzhou, a typical bay city, as an example, we simulated the land use and landscape pattern change in 2030 based on multiple data sources (land use data, meteorological site data, topographic data and statistical data) using Logistic-CA-Markov coupling model to set natural scenarios, planning scenarios and protection scenarios. Four key ecosystem service (ES) including water retention, soil conservation, carbon sequestration (NPP), food supply and their trade-offs were calculated and predicted. Under the three scenarios, the area of cultivated land and construction land in Quanzhou City would increase in 2030. Forest land, grassland and water area would be reduced in varying degrees. The fragmentation of land use would be serious. In comparison with 2015, except for soil conservation service, water retention, carbon sequestrtion and food supply of Quanzhou City would decline to varying degrees in 2030. Ecosystem service function in natural scenario would be more decreased, with the decline under the protection scenario being lower than the planning scenario. In the protection and planning scenarios, the synergy between water conservation and soil conservation, water conservation and carbon sequestrtion, soil conservation and carbon sequestrtion in 2030 would be enhanced and the trade-offs would be weakened.

Whale sanctuaries – An analysis of their contribution to marine ecosystem-based management

Goal 14, ‘Life Below Water’, of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals sets a target for nations to increase the number of marine protected areas managed using ecosystem-based management, which requires interventions focused on fish stock conservation and enhancement, environmental sustainability and ecosystem services of benefit to human beings. Although not adhering to the International Union for Conservation of Nature's criteria for marine protected areas, whale sanctuaries are an increasingly common approach to conservation around the world. This paper is the first in the academic literature to use a case study approach to review the extent to which whale sanctuaries contribute to ecosystem-based management. A fifteen-criteria framework for marine ecosystem-based management is applied with reference to six whale sanctuary case studies, including the International Whaling Commission's two designations in the Indian Ocean and Southern Ocean. The review underscores the generally very limited contribution of whale sanctuaries to ecosystem-based management, unless they are explicit in stating conservation goals and embedding these within iterative management plans. The Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary is cited as an example of an approach that comes closest to fulfilling the objectives of ecosystem-based management, albeit its designation lacks consideration of ecosystem dynamics and the interrelationships between multiple economic actors operating within its boundaries. In order to meet the requirements of Goal 14, the case studies in this paper reveal advancements necessary for whale sanctuaries to transition towards ecosystem-based management: establishment of objectives broader than the conservation of whale stocks, assessment of the contribution of the sanctuary to human well-being and trade-offs in ecosystem services, accounting for ecological and socio-economic dynamics, and ensuring broad stakeholder consultation and participatory adaptive management.

Land use management based on multi-scenario allocation and trade-offs of ecosystem services in Wafangdian County, Liaoning Province, China.

Developing effective methods to coordinate the trade-offs among ecosystem services (ES) is important for achieving inclusive growth and sustainable development, and has been the focus of scholars and ecosystem managers globally. Using remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) data, our study examined Wafangdian County of Liaoning Province as a case study to reveal the spatiotemporal evolution of four ES (food supply [FS], net primary productivity [NPP], water yield [WY], and soil conservation [SC]) and changes among their interactions. Then, an ordered weighted averaging model was introduced to simulate the optimal scenario of ES allocation. Results showed that: (1) the spatial and temporal changes in ES were significant over 14 years. All ES presented an inverted U-shaped growth curve from 2000–2014. (2) Synergies were observed within provisioning services, and there were trade-offs between provisioning services and regulating services, as well as provisioning services and supporting services. (3) The optimal scenario for Wafangdian was scenario 5 (trade-off coefficient, 0.68). The allocation of FS, NPP, WY, and SC in scenario 5 were 0.187, 0.427, 0.131, and 0.063, respectively. Implementing each ES weight of optimal scenario in land use management contributed to achieving intercoordination of ES. We propose to coordinate land and sea management to restore natural habitats that were expanded into in the high ES area. It is our anticipation that this study could provide a scientific basis for optimizing the allocation of ES and improving land use structure of coastal zones in the future.