Water-related Ecosystem Research Articles

Multi-Scale Effects of Supply–Demand Changes in Water-Related Ecosystem Services Across Different Landscapes in River Basin

To promote sustainable hierarchical management, it is essential to understand the complex relationships within and underlying causes of supply–demand changes in water-related ecosystem services (WESs) across different spatial scales and landscape patterns. Consequently, the Optimal Parameters-based Geographical Detector (OPGD) and Multi-Scale Geographically Weighted Regression (MGWR) are used to analyze the factors influencing changes in WESs supply–demand. The findings indicate that (1) at the macroscale, population size, and economic activity are the main driving factors, while at the microscale, precipitation becomes the primary factor influencing fluctuations in WESs supply–demand. (2) Furthermore, over time, the influence of social factors becomes increasingly significant. (3) The explanatory power of a single factor typically increases as it interacts with other factors. (4) Abundant precipitation helps in the generation and maintenance of WESs, but intense human activities may have negative impacts on them. Therefore, we have made significant progress in identifying and analyzing the natural and human-induced driving forces affecting changes in WESs by deeply integrating long-term multi-source remote sensing data with the OPGD and MGWR models.

Assessment of Water-Related Ecosystem Services and Beneficiaries in the Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park

Tropical rainforests are of vital importance to the environment, as they contribute to weather patterns, biodiversity and even human wellbeing. Hence, in the face of tropical deforestation, it becomes exigent to quantify and assess the contribution of ecosystem services associated with tropical rainforests to the environment and especially to the people. This study adopted a nuanced approach, different from traditional economic valuations, to estimate the water-related ecosystem services (WRESs) received by the people from 2010 to 2020 in the Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park (HTRNP). The study focused on water yield, soil conservation, and water purification using InVEST, the SCS-CNGIS model, and spatial analysis. The results show (1) significant land cover changes within the HTRNP, as forest decreased by 4433 ha and water bodies increased by 4047 ha, indicating the active presence of human activities. However, land cover changes were more pronounced within the 5 km buffer area around the HTRNP, suggesting the effectiveness of the tropical rainforest conservation efforts in place. (2) The water yield of the HTRNP in the years studied decreased by 307.03 km3, based on the water yields in 2010 and 2020, which were 5625.7 km3 and 5318.7 km3, respectively. (3) Change detection showed that runoff mitigation in the rainforest has a negative mean (−0.21), indicating a slight overall decrease in soil conservation and runoff mitigation in the rainforest from 2010 to 2020; however, the higher curve number indicates areas susceptible to surface runoff. (4) The ecological effectiveness of water purification to absorb and reduce nitrogen load was better in 2020 (145,529 kg/year), as it was reduced from 506,739 kg/year in 2010, indicating improved water quality. (5) Population growth is more pronounced in areas with high water yields. Overall, the proposed framework has shown that the water yield potential of the HTRNP can meet the water consumption demands of people and industries situated within the buffer area. However, analysis of the study shows that it does not meet the crop water requirements. This study provides insights for decision makers in identifying potential beneficiaries and the essence of effective area-based conservation measures, and the proposed framework can be applied to any area of interest, offering a different approach in ecosystem services assessment.

Landscape metrics as predictors of water-related ecosystem services: Insights from hydrological modeling and data-based approaches applied on the Arno River Basin, Italy

The study addresses the challenge of integrating complex landscape-hydrological interactions into predictive models for improved water resource management. The aim is to investigate the effectiveness of landscape metrics—quantitative indices measuring landscape composition and configuration—as predictors of WES in the Arno River Basin, Italy. Utilizing two hydrological models alongside a random forest algorithm, we assessed spatial and temporal variations in water yield, runoff, and groundwater recharge. The findings indicate that landscape metrics derived from high-resolution land use data significantly impact WES outcomes. Specifically, the models demonstrated average landscape metric importances of 16.8 % for spatial and 17.8 % for temporal predictions concerning runoff. For water yield, these averages were 32.9 % spatially and 43.5 % temporally, while groundwater modeling showed importances of 14.09 % spatially and 33.8 % temporally. Key landscape metrics identified include the core area index for broad-leaved forests and the perimeter-to-area ratio for non-irrigated agricultural areas as critical spatial and temporal predictors of water yield and groundwater recharge. Thresholds were observed, indicating landscape configurations that minimize hydrological variability. For instance, runoff variation is minimal when the landscape exhibits high forest fragmentation (over 1000 coniferous patches), low aggregation (aggregation index <75), and reduced connectivity (cohesion index under 80). Similarly, groundwater variation is minimized with decreased boundary length of vegetation patches (perimeter-to-area ratio <0.8), agricultural lands (perimeter-to-area ratio under 1), and the presence of low core agricultural areas (core area index above 8). The identified thresholds could inform land-use policies, such as targeted afforestation or crop diversification strategies, to optimize WES provision.

Assessing the Relative and Combined Effect of Climate and Land Use on Water-Related Ecosystem Services in the Yangtze River Economic Belt, China

The ecosystem service (ES) is essential for residents’ health and well-being. The ecosystem service value (ESV) is one of the measures to scientifically quantify the wealth of ESs. However, climate and human activities intensely affect the sustainability of ESs. Therefore, knowing the relative and combined effects of climate and human activities on ESs and ESV can be crucial. This study selects the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) as the study area to detect how climate and human activities affected the ES and ESV changes during 2001–2020, including net primary productivity, water yield, soil retention, water purification, and integrated ESV. The results show that the southern YREB has relatively higher ESs than the northern YREB, except for the NDR-P, which is mainly located in the urban agglomeration area. The general ranking for the ESV of different provinces in the YREB is sequenced from higher to lower as Sichuan, Yunnan, Hunan, Jiangxi, Guizhou, Hubei, Zhejiang, Anhui, Jiangsu, Chongqing, and Shanghai. Specifically, the ESV of Sichuan is the highest at about 972 billion yuan (133.57 billion USD), while the lowest ESV has been discovered in Shanghai at approximately 0.25 billion yuan (0.03 billion USD). It can be noticed that the regions where climate is the major influencing factor for ESs are concentrated upstream of the YREB, and human activities mainly influence ESs in highly urbanized areas. Furthermore, climate and human activities account for the highest proportion (86%) of synergistic effects for ESV in Yunnan. In contrast, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai accounted for the lowest proportions, at 18%, 26%, and 31%, respectively. This study may provide crucial insights into how ESs and ESV in the YREB have changed during the study period to inform policymakers, drawing more attention to the inhibitory and synergistic effects arising from the interaction between climate and human activities, to make more reliable decisions on adapting to climate crises in the future.

Impact of Land Use Change on Water-Related Ecosystem Services under Multiple Ecological Restoration Scenarios in the Ganjiang River Basin, China

Ecological restoration programs (ERPs) can lead to dramatic land use change, thereby affecting ecosystem services and their interaction. Determining the optimal ERPs is a crucial issue for ecological restoration in ecologically fragile regions. This study analyzed the impacts of land use change on four water-related ecosystem services (WESs), namely water yield, soil retention, water purification, and food production in the Ganjiang River basin, China during the past two decades. Then, trade-off and synergy between WESs were detected based on correlation analysis. Finally, to quantify the effect of ERPs on WESs, we comprehensively considered the types and intensity of ERPs and designed four categories of scenarios: returning farmland to forest (RFF) scenarios; planting forest (PF) scenarios; riparian forestland buffer (RFB) scenarios; and riparian grassland buffer (RGB) scenarios. Each category contains five scenarios of different intensities. The results showed that water yield, soil retention, and food production increased while water purification decreased from 2000 to 2020. The deterioration of water quality was mainly due to transitions from forestland to farmland and built-up land. Trade-offs only occurred between regulating services and provisioning services. Among all ecological restoration scenarios, only the RFF scenarios can significantly improve soil retention and water purification at the same time, although food production will decrease. Considering food security, returning farmland with a slope greater than 10 degrees to forestland was the optimal scenario in the study area. This study highlighted that both the type and intensity of ERPs should be considered in ecological restoration. This study can contribute to ecological restoration in the Ganjiang River basin and other subtropical mountainous regions.

Dynamics in construction land patterns and its impact on water-related ecosystem services in Chengdu-Chongqing urban agglomeration, China: A multi-scale study

Water-related ecosystem services (WES) are paramount for the development of sustainable urban agglomerations. The impact of construction land pattern (CLP) changes on WES varies by spatial scale; however, a comprehensive multi-scale analysis of CLPs and their impact on WES in urban agglomerations is still lacking. Focusing on the Chengdu-Chongqing urban agglomeration (CCUA) within the Yangtze River Economic Belt, China, this study investigated the CLPs using multidimensional measures (intensity, complexity, and aggregation) at various scales: watershed, county, township, and grid. Using geographically weighted regression (GWR), the multi-scale impacts of the multidimensional CLP on WES (including water yield, soil retention, water purification, and habitat quality) were assessed and the scale effects and spatial heterogeneity were explored. The key findings include the following: (1) Significant changes in the CLPs within the main stream of the Qingyi and Minjiang watersheds have been observed over the past two decades. (2) The CCUA forms a network of construction land connecting all cities, with Chengdu and Chongqing as the main nodes. (3) Construction land complexity demonstrates a concentric distribution, with increasing complexity from the center outward and simplification toward unurbanized areas. (4) Substantial local and regional impacts of the CLPs on WES were found across multiple scales within the CCUA. (5) Increasing the complexity and aggregation of construction land facilitates the protection of WES in rapidly urbanizing areas (e.g., megacities), whereas the opposite is true in small cities and remote mountainous areas. This research enhances our understanding of construction land dynamics and their implications for WES, contributing vital insights into water-related ecological safeguarding and fostering sustainable regional development in urban agglomerations.

Temporal–Spatial Characteristics and Trade-off–Synergy Relationships of Water-Related Ecosystem Services in the Yangtze River Basin from 2001 to 2021

The Yangtze River Basin serves as an essential ecological shelter in China, yet it has encountered escalating aquatic ecological challenges. Exploring the spatial–temporal changes and the trade-off–synergy relationships of water-related ecosystem services (WESs) is necessary for formulating management and planning policies targeting the sustainable development of watersheds. In this study, the InVEST model is utilized to evaluate the spatial–temporal variations in water yield (WY), water purification (WP), and soil conservation (SC) in the Yangtze River Basin using remote-sensed data from 2001 to 2021. The spatial overlay method and a correlation analysis were adopted to reveal the trade-off–synergy relationship among the three WESs. Additionally, we performed a comparative analysis across the grid and sub-basin scales. The results showed that the multi-year average WY, WP, and SC were 536.10 mm, 1.32 kg/ha, and 250.08 t/ha, representing increasing rates of 4.74 mm/a, −0.001 kg/ha/a, and 1.88 t/ha/a, respectively. Moreover, the trade-off–synergy relationships of WESs exhibited spatial variability; specifically, the WY-WP, WP-SC, and WY-SC pairs demonstrated reduced synergy magnitude over time. The WES interactions were stable across the scales of interest, while synergy strength showed noticeable variability. The findings may contribute to the sustainable development of the Yangtze River Basin and enhance the comprehensive management of WESs.

Spatial Correlation between the Changes in Supply and Demand for Water-Related Ecosystem Services

Clarifying the spatiotemporal changes in the supply and demand of water-related ecosystem services (WESs) can provide comprehensive support information for ecological governance decisions. However, the spatial mismatch between the supply and demand of WESs is often overlooked, resulting in a lack of targeted decision-making. At the grid scale, while preserving both natural and social attributes, this study quantitatively analyzed the spatiotemporal changes in the supply and demand of WESs in the Southern River Basin from 2000 to 2020. Ecological zoning was performed based on the temporal changes in WESs supply and demand. The OPGD model was used to investigate the impacts of socio-economic and natural factors on different WESs supply factors and further explore the spatial correlation of WESs supply and demand changes in different zones. The results show that there is significant spatial heterogeneity in the changes in WESs supply and demand. Economic belts and megacities have experienced remarkable changes, with WESs supply decreasing and WESs demand increasing. WESs demand changes significantly affect WESs supply changes. The supply of WESs in all zones is influenced by WESs demand. In the high supply–low demand zone, WY has the highest explanatory power for WESs demand changes. From the high supply–middle demand zone to the low supply–middle demand zone and then to the high supply–high demand zone, the explanatory power of PE for WESs demand changes gradually increases. As WESs demand starts from the middle level, HAI gradually dominates WESs demand changes. The increase in land use changes may promote the impact of WESs demand changes on WESs supply changes. This study contributes to incorporating the supply and demand changes of WESs and their correlations into the ecological protection and restoration system, providing a new perspective and method for regional sustainable management.

Multiscale Analysis for Identifying the Impact of Human and Natural Factors on Water-Related Ecosystem Services

Accurately identifying and obtaining changes in ecosystem drivers and the spatial heterogeneity of their impacts on ecosystem services can provide comprehensive support information for ecological governance. In this study, we investigate the changes in the relationship between human and natural factors and water-related ecosystem services (WESs) in different sub-watersheds across various time periods, focusing on four aspects: single-factor effect, nonlinear effect, interactive effects, and spatial characteristics. Taking the southern basins, which have complex topographic, climatic, and economic characteristics, as a study area, the study area was divided into four sub-basins with different characteristics. WESs of water yield, soil conservation, and water purification were quantified using the InVEST model for five periods from 2000 to 2020, and the OPGD and MGWR models were integrated to assess the impacts of 15 factors on WESs and their spatial characteristics. The results show the following: (1) After comparing the data over multiple time periods, climate factors such as precipitation (0.4033) are the primary factors affecting WESs in the southern basins, and human factors such as construction area (0.0688) have a weaker influence. The direct impact of human factors on WESs is not significant in the short term but increases over time. (2) Different sub-watersheds have different impacts on WESs. For instance, human activity intensity (0.3518) is a key factor affecting WESs in the Inward Flowing Area, while precipitation is the primary factor influencing WESs in other sub-watersheds. (3) Influencing factors and WES changes are often nonlinearly correlated; however, once a certain threshold is exceeded, they may have adverse impacts on WESs. (4) When a single factor interacts with other factors, its explanatory power tends to increase. (5) Compared to traditional methods, the estimation accuracy of MGWR is higher. Intense human activities can adversely affect WESs, while abundant precipitation creates favorable conditions for the formation of WESs. Therefore, integrating long-time-series multi-remote sensing data with OPGD and MGWR models is suitable for identifying and analyzing the driving mechanisms of human and natural factors that influence changes in WESs. Against the backdrop of global change, elucidating the driving factors of ecosystem services can provide crucial insights for developing practical policies and land management applications.

Estimation of Water Yield and Soil Erosion in Samanalawewa Watershed in Sri Lanka using GIS-based InVEST Model

Ecosystem services (ES) are a group of tasks performed by the earth's ecosystems that are required to support life and offer benefits to humanity. Thus, this study explores two of the water-related ecosystem services, water yield, and soil retention that were distributed in the Samanalawewa Watershed (SW) and its eight sub-watersheds in Sri Lanka, over 20 years (2000-2020) with five- year time intervals. Soil and water conservation and water yield play an important role in ecosystem management. Hydrological balance is a crucial component of the hydrological ecosystem services. Assessing water yield and soil erosion are pivotal for watershed management. Thus, this study estimated and mapped the water yield and soil erosion, using the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST 3.9.2) Annual Water Yield (AWY) and Sediment Delivery Ratio (SDR) model respectively. According to the obtained results, in 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015 and 2020, the estimated mean annual water yield was 2.62x105, 2.6x105, 3.5x105, 3.58x105 and 2.75x105 m3 ha-1year-1, respectively. Furthermore, the estimated mean annual soil erosion rates for the above- mentioned years were 53.2, 52.9, 69.7, 87.7 and 70.2 t ha-1 year-1. The estimated soil loss values of the SW are 10 to 18 times greater than the soil erosion tolerance (5 t ha-1 year-1) in Sri Lanka. The results show that the years 2015 and 2005 have the highest and the lowest water yield and total soil loss values, respectively. The upper part of the watershed has relatively moderate water yield and soil loss values than the lower part. These findings would be beneficial in developing watershed management strategies and in the implementation of suitable soil and water conservation techniques within the watershed. &#x0D; Keywords: Ecosystem services, InVEST, Samanalawewa watershed, Soil erosion, Water yield

Natural/Small Water Retention Measures: Their Contribution to Ecosystem-Based Concepts

The increasing incidence of droughts and heavy rainfall events is exacerbating conflicts between human and environmental demands for water. However, through providing multiple water-related ecosystem services and benefits simultaneously, Natural/Small Water Retention Measures (NSWRM) can mitigate such competing claims. Thus, they also contribute to the achievement of various Sustainable Development Goals and environmental targets set out in water- and agriculture-related policies of the European Union. In particular, NSWRM provide for the sound management of watersheds, which can significantly contribute to improved water quality and availability—as well as improving the resilience of agriculture and society. This paper demonstrates how NSWRM fit into the framework of ecosystem-based concepts, including Natural Water Retention Measures (NWRM), Green Infrastructure (GI), Sustainable Land Management (SLM), Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA), and Nature-based Solutions (NbS). NSWRM, as a distinct concept, bring added value to the other concepts by focussing on easy-to-implement, modestly sized, localised technical solutions to problems associated with water management, sediment, and nutrient loss. Through experience under the EU Horizon 2020 project OPTAIN (“OPtimal strategies to retAIN and re-use water and nutrients in small agricultural catchments across different soil-climatic regions in Europe”), we show what NSWRM are, how they are linked to each of the ecosystem-based concepts, and how they can help add value to these concepts. Fourteen case studies are drawn upon from diverse countries across Europe. As a result of this analysis, we present the potential for the application of NSWRM in the context of these concepts, while helping to identify planning tools, the expertise required, and potential funding mechanisms.

Predicting water ecosystem services under prospective climate and land-use change scenarios in typical watersheds distributed across China

Water-related ecosystem services (WES) critical to anthropogenic-related water security are being severely degraded, primarily due to climate and land-use change. Clarifying future trends in WES (i.e., water yield and water purification services) will contribute to water resource sustainability. However, most existing studies are single case studies and rarely consider the combined impacts of climate change and land-use change on ecosystem services, resulting in patterns that cannot be adequately summarized. In this study, the “Annual Water Yield” module of the InVEST model was used to estimate water yield and the “Nutrient Delivery Ratio” module was used to analyze water purification services. In order to compare the impacts of different natural conditions and geographic locations on water ecosystem services, 17 typical watersheds throughout China were selected as study areas. Coupled scenarios were also considered when setting climate and land-use scenarios to predict prospective (2020–2100) evolutionary trends in WES. The response of WES under different scenarios was also assessed. Results show that climate change is more likely to affect water yield services than water purification services. The impact of land use on water purification services is more pronounced than its impact on water yield services. Climate change contributed > 90 % to water yields in 15 out of the 17 watersheds, contributed 79.4 % in the Hei River watershed, while only contributing 11.2 % in the Yarkant River watershed. The influence of climate change on total nitrogen (TN) output in eight of the watersheds was greater than that of land-use change, especially in the Min River and Mintuo River watersheds, for which the contribution was > 95 %. Furthermore, water purification services in nine of the watersheds were more affected by land-use change, especially in the Dongting Lake and Hei River watersheds, for which the contribution was > 95 %. The aim of this study is to assist in the planning of sound water resource measures while developing sustainable management strategies to help relevant water resource sectors cope with prospective risks and challenges.

Water-related ecosystem services interactions and their natural-human activity drivers: Implications for ecological protection and restoration

Sustainable development faces the crucial challenge of safeguarding water-related ecosystem services, particularly in arid regions. However, scale-dependent interactions and their influencing factors remain unclear. This study addresses this local gap on the regional level by focusing on ecologically vulnerable mountain areas, employing a comprehensive quantitative and spatial analysis approach, utilizing Spearman coefficient, trade-off/synergy index, and trade-off/synergy criterion, to examine water-related ecosystem services interactions across scales in arid area. Additionally, a Geographical detector was used to identify dominant natural and human activity factors. Finally, we determined ecologically optimal and worst areas and proposed spatial planning and management recommendations for ecological protection and restoration. Key results indicate that: (1) From 1995 to 2015, water yield and nutrient delivery ratio exhibited a declining trend, while soil retention showed an increasing trend, with the weakest nutrient delivery ratio function in the reserve. (2) At the grid scale, there were 2 trade-offs among water-related ecosystem services in 1995, which decreased to 1 trade-off in 2005 and 2015. The synergistic was most prominent near Qinghai Lake, while the trade-off was most obvious in the western mountainous areas. Conversely, the county scale demonstrated synergy. (3) NDVI, slope, and precipitation dominantly influence the spatial heterogeneity patterns of soil retention_water yield, soil retention_nutrient delivery ratio, and water yield_nutrient delivery ratio, respectively, with natural factors outweighing human activities in impacting water-related ecosystem services. This study contributes to the improvement and optimization of ecological environment management decisions.

Understanding the role of innovation systems in PES development: A survey of stakeholder perspectives

Water-related ecosystem services of forest land are essential for human well-being. Their provision is related to forest management practices that forest owners and managers apply. When these preferential management practices increase the operating costs, they should be paid/compensated by users of these services. The research focused on identifying the prerequisites of the innovation systems to support payments for ecosystem services (PES) in Slovakia. We analysed the structure, relationships, and functions of the innovation system as monetary and non-monetary incentives, cooperation support and risk mitigation. We collected data using a standardised questionnaire sent out to stakeholders from forestry, nature protection, water management and civil society. The data was processed with simple descriptive methods commonly used in social studies and survey data processing. The information about the potential supply and demand of water-related ecosystem services were obtained from forest owners and managers makes the PES development in the future more feasible. Results revealed that when developing PES schemes, the coordination of stakeholders should follow settled legislation rules at the national level, which still need to be included. Furthermore, the innovation system should provide mainly monetary incentives to providers of ecosystem services.

Determinants of Field‐Saturated Soil Hydraulic Conductivity Across Sub‐Saharan Africa: Texture and Beyond

AbstractSoil infiltration is critical for water security and related ecosystem services. This infiltration, the ability of soils to absorb water at their surface, is controlled by the soil hydraulic conductivity. Despite recent efforts in assembling measurements of soil hydraulic conductivity, global databases and derived pedotransfer functions lack coverage in the tropics. Here, we present soil infiltration measurements and other indicators of soil and land health collected systematically in 3,573 plots from 83 100 km2 sites across 19 countries in sub‐Saharan Africa. We use these data to (a) determine field‐saturated hydraulic conductivity (K fs) and (b) explore which variables best predict variation in K fs. Our results show that sand content, soil organic carbon (SOC), and woody cover had a positive relationship with K fs, whereas grazing intensity and soil pH had a negative relationship. Our findings highlight that, despite soil texture being important, structure also plays a critical role. These results indicate considerable potential to improve soil hydrological functioning through management and restoration practices that target soil structure. Enhancing SOC content, limiting animal stocking, promoting trees, shrubs, and other vegetation cover, and preventing soil erosion can increase K fs and improve water security. This data set can contribute to improving Earth system and land surface models for applications in Africa.

Impacts of Land Use and Climate Change on Water-Related Ecosystem Service Trade-offs in the Yangtze River Economic Belt

Land use/cover change (LUCC) and climate change have important influences on ecosystem services (ESs) and their interactions, particularly in regions with rapid socioeconomic development. However, little research has distinguished the impacts of these 2 factors on ES interactions. Therefore, the impacts of LUCC and climate change on water-related ecosystem service (WES) trade-offs in the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) were measured by combining spatial analysis with ES valuation. These results indicated that water yield, soil retention, and water purification presented varying degrees of increase from 1990 to 2020, with rates of 4.53%, 21.80% and 5.40%, respectively. The order of the mean WES trade-offs in the upstream, midstream, and downstream regions remained stable at the grid scale from 1990 to 2020, while there were important changes at the county scale. Climate change had a greater impact on WES trade-offs than LUCC, with climate change dominating 88.17% of the total area. The effect of climate change on WES trade-offs across areas was in the order of downstream &gt; midstream &gt; upstream, while the effect of LUCC was not obvious. The relative importance of drivers on WES trade-offs from 1990 to 2020 was dominated by climate dominance (71.50%), followed by LUCC to climate dominance (13.66%) and least by LUCC dominance (0.65%). This research emphasized the importance of LUCC and climate change on ES trade-offs in heavily disturbed areas, providing important guidance for multi-objective land management that sustainably provides ESs.

Construction of ecological security pattern of Jiangnan water town considering water-related ecosystem services: a case study of Yuecheng District, Shaoxing

The ecological security pattern (ESP) is considered an effective method to balance urban development and ecological protection. Integrating water-related ecosystem services (ESs) into the ESP construction process is essential for protecting urban water systems. In this study, Yuecheng District, a typical Jiangnan water town, was selected as the study area. We combined water-related ESs hotspots, landscape connectivity analysis and ecological resistance surfaces to identify areas that should be prioritized for restoration. The results indicated that (1) 25 ecological sources were identified, mainly distributed in the central canal water network area and the southern mountainous area; (2) we extracted 51 ecological corridors, with 44 of these being blue ecological corridors overlapping with rivers; (3) we developed a spatial optimization scheme known as “two belts, one circle and three zones” based on the ESP. This study offers valuable insights for sustainable planning and refined river and lake management in Jiangnan Water Town.

Assessment of water-related ecosystem services based on multi-scenario land use changes: focusing on the Poyang Lake Basin of southern China

A scientific understanding of the trends of water-related ecosystem services (WESs) under different scenarios is crucial to improving WESs and maintaining ecological security. However, there is a lack of high-resolution land use simulation and assessment of WESs under the SSP-RCP scenarios, and the impacts of different land-use change (LUC) on WESs are not clear. This study focused on the Poyang Lake Basin (PYLB), utilizing the SSP-RCP scenarios, the PLUS model and the InVEST model to explore the dynamic changes of land use and WESs historically and in the future, and to reveal the impacts of specific LUC on WESs from 2000 to 2020. The results demonstrated that: (1) The forest land increased under both SSP1-2.6 and SSP2-4.5 scenarios but increased first and then decreased under SSP5-8.5 scenarios; Cropland increased significantly under SSP5-8.5 scenarios, and the construction land showed an expansion trend under the three scenarios. (2) From 2000 to 2020, only the water purification capacity decreased, while the rest of the WESs increased. Under the SSP1-2.6 scenario, the overall benefits of the WESs in the PYLB were the highest. (3) Between 2000 and 2020, deforestation in the PYLB brought about the greatest increase in the water yield (+9.06 × 108 m3). The increase in the construction land brought about the most water conservation loss (−18.19 × 108 m3). Additionally, the forest expansion and cropland reduction brought about the largest increase in soil retention (+3.94 × 105 t and +4.79 × 105 t) and enhanced water purification, and the opposite was true for deforestation. The conclusions can provide an important basis for the ecological protection and high-quality development of the PYLB.

People, place, and planet: Global review of use-inspired research on water-related ecosystem services in urban wetlands

Abstract With climate change and urbanization, city planners and developers have increasing interest and practice in constructing, restoring, or incorporating wetlands as forms of green infrastructure to maintain water-related ecosystem services (WES). We reviewed studies that valued in functional or monetary units the water regulation and purification services of urban wetlands around the globe. We used the adaptive management cycle (AMC) as a heuristic to determine the step that a study would represent in the AMC, the connections between the cycle steps that were used or considered, and the stakeholders involved. Additionally, we identified the social, ecological, and/or technological dimension(s) of the environmental stressors and management strategies described by study authors. While use-inspired research on WES occurs throughout the globe, most studies serve to singularly assess problems or monitor urban wetlands, consider or use no connectors between steps, and involve no stakeholder groups. Both stressors and strategies were overwhelmingly multidimensional, with the social dimension represented in the majority of both. We highlight studies that successfully interfaced with cities across multiple steps, connectors, engaged stakeholder groups, and disseminated findings and skills to stakeholder groups. True use-inspired research should explicitly involve management systems that are used by city stakeholders and propose multidimensional solutions.

Influence of the Hydrological Variability on Water Quality and Benthic Macroinvertebrates in a Chilean Estuary During a Megadrought

The climate crisis has accelerated the frequency and intensity of droughts in the Mediterranean areas, impacting the hydrology and the ecology of their basins. Maule River is the largest watershed in the Chilean Mediterranean Zone. The growing anthropic and environmental pressure has led to changes in the structure and function of its terrestrial ecosystem. However, little is known about its influence on aquatic ecosystems. The effect of the recent extreme drought on the streamflow and its influence on water quality and the benthic macroinvertebrate community structure were evaluated in the Maule River’s lower section. Beyond temporal and spatial fluctuations, healthy and permanently well-oxygenated waters prevailed in the study area. However, during the megadrought period, evidenced by a significant decrease in both precipitation and river streamflow, a greater salt wedge influence was observed, at least, in the last 7 km of the river. Although with certain asynchrony, a change in the structure of the benthic macroinvertebrate community was observed in the upstream stations. This marinization reveals an increase in the domain of marine taxa associated with the Polychaeta group and a clear decrease in typical freshwater Oligochaeta individuals. This modification in the structure of the benthic community is expected to affect the function of this estuarine system. The results presented here highlight the importance of considering the variability associated with biological components for the management of water resources and related ecosystem services, considering that one of the main problems associated with changes in land use and the pressures caused by the climate crisis is the decrease in the quality and availability of water in this and other Mediterranean basins globally.