Wetland Area Research Articles

Spatio-temporal dynamics of agricultural and built-up areas in the Niaye area of Pikine urban wetland (Dakar, Senegal)

The Niaye area of Pikine, a wetland with favorable physical and climatic conditions, is a rich and varied ecosystem that guarantees a supply of water and fertile soil, conducive to market gardening. This plays an important socio-economic role in the Dakar region. However, this sensitive and fragile ecosystem is often affected by poor farming practices. The aim of the study was to analyze the spatial evolution of agricultural areas and built-up areas in order to identify related environmental problems. Interview guides, aerial photographs from 1966 and 1978 and Digital Globe Over view 2 satellite images from 2004 and 2022 were used. The interview guides were used to obtain data on the management of the market gardening activity, and also to identify the environmental problems it generates. Satellite data processing revealed, through cartographic analysis, a progressive market gardening dynamic of +5.07%. In addition, the built-up area around the lake has increased by over 200%, resulting in a 68.4% decline in upland vegetation and a migration of market gardeners to the lake. This situation leads to the destruction of market garden crops in the rainy season as the water rises. What's more, the intensification of market gardening in response to the population's growing demand for vegetables has not failed to encourage bad practices, including the use of pesticides and sewage, which is a public health problem and a threat to the future of this wetland.

Permanent areas and changes in forests, grasslands, and wetlands in the North European Plain since the eighteenth century—a case study of the Kościan Plain in Poland

This study investigates the intricate and enduring interplay of historical events, human activities, and natural processes shaping the landscape of North European Plain in western Poland over 230 years. Topographic maps serve as reliable historical data sources to quantify changes in forest, grassland, and wetland areas, scrutinizing their fragmentation and persistence. The primary objectives are to identify the permanent areas of the landscape and propose a universal cartographic visualization method for effectively mapping these changes. Using topographic maps and historical data, this research quantifies land cover changes, especially in forest, grassland, and wetland areas. With the help of retrogressive method we process raster historical data into vector-based information. Over time, wetlands experienced a substantial reduction, particularly in 1960–1982, attributed to both land reclamation and environmental factors. Grassland areas fluctuated, influenced by wetland and drier habitat dynamics. Fragmentation in grassland areas poses biodiversity and ecosystem health concerns, whereas forested areas showed limited fluctuations, with wetland forests nearly disappearing. These findings highlight wetland ecosystems’ sensitivity to human impacts and emphasize the need to balance conservation and sustainable development to preserve ecological integrity. This study advances landscape dynamics understanding, providing insights into historical, demographic, economic, and environmental transformations. It underscores the imperative for sustainable land management and conservation efforts to mitigate human impacts on ecosystems and biodiversity in the North European Plain.

Frost quakes in wetlands in northern Finland during extreme winter weather conditions and related hazard to urban infrastructure

Abstract. The paper reports the first results of an experiment in northern Finland during winter 2022–2023 that aimed at studying seismic events caused by seasonal freezing in the so-called critical zone (CZ) of the Earth. These events have attracted public attention recently, as multiple reports about them from local inhabitants in Arctic and sub-Arctic areas appeared on social networks. To make an instrumental study of such events, to reveal the relationship between their occurrence and winter weather conditions, and to evaluate the possible hazard, we installed two high-resolution seismic arrays with co-located soil temperature stations at two sites in Finland, one of them being in the city of Oulu in the sub-Arctic area (65.04° N, 25.61° E) and the other one above the polar circle in the municipality of Sodankylä (67.36° N, 26.63° E). The equipment recorded continuous seismic and soil temperature data during November 2022–April 2023. Based on reports from the inhabitants of Talvikangas (Oulu) about the ground shaking and unusual noises on 6 January 2023 and their observations of new fractures on the roads there, we selected the time interval for the identification of frost quakes that originated during that day from continuous seismic records in Talvikangas and in Sodankylä. During the selected time interval, the extremely rapid air temperature drops of about −1.4 °C h−1 in Talvikangas and −0.88 °C h−1 in Sodankylä were observed. We identified and located two types of seismic events – namely, frost quakes with frequencies of about 10–20 Hz, with waveforms like those of tectonic events, and irregularly shaped frost tremors with frequencies of about 120–180 Hz. The sources of frost quakes in Talvikangas are mainly located on irrigated wetland, while in Sodankylä, about 50 % of registered frost quakes were caused by ice fracturing on the Kitinen River. However, several relatively strong events, with their origin in the wetlands, were also recorded. A significant number of sources of frost tremors are confined to wetland areas cut by irrigation channels and to roads cleaned from snow during winter both in Talvikangas and in Sodankylä. We calculated ground accelerations and ground velocities for the strongest events from both groups and compared them to equivalent properties of other seismic signals, like distant local earthquakes in the area, mining production blasts, and cargo train vibration. Our study shows that high-frequency frost tremors corresponding to surface fracture opening in the uppermost frozen surface layer of a thickness of up to 5 cm can directly damage infrastructure objects like roads and basements of buildings. Surface waves, produced by frost quakes and propagating inside the shallow soil layer, have large enough ground accelerations at epicentral distances of hundreds of metres. Therefore, frost quakes should be considered a phenomenon that can potentially damage infrastructures, and they have to be taken into account in seismic hazard assessments. Our research is the first instrumental study of seismic events originating from wetland areas. These events occur as a result of the interaction between the uppermost layer of the solid Earth's CZ and atmosphere processes that deserves further study.

Vegetation discrimination based on chlorophyll prediction in Marshy wetland using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Abstract Wetlands are an integral part of our global ecosystems and play crucial roles in ecological functions such as carbon sequestration, flood mitigation, water purification, and recreational activities. The Ramsar Convention is the most significant wetland protection pact and is doing tremendous work in conserving wetlands worldwide. However, the wetlands area is still under threat due to anthropogenic activity. The current study utilized drone images, chlorophyll measurements and machine leaning to discriminate and map vegetation at marsh wetland area—the Ramsar site. The high‐resolution, multispectral imagery is acquired using a drone‐mounted MICAsense sensor. Eight spectral indices such as Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI), Two‐Band Algorithm (2BDA), Normalized Difference Chlorophyll Index (NDCI), Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) Enhanced Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (ENDVI), Green Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (GNDVI), and Normalised Difference RedEdge (NDRE) were calculated on the acquired imagery in order to discriminate the different vegetation covers such as floating aquatic vegetation (FAV), open water, and other vegetations types. These include the following: Eichhornia, Nymphea, Oleracea, Paspalam, and Oryza from agriculture land at the study site. Two models (viz., the Taylor plot and the Lek Profile methods) were employed to assess the sensitivity of the spectral indices for prediction of chlorophyll and vegetation discrimination. It is inferred from both methods that NDCI was most sensitive for chlorophyll prediction of vegetation followed by NGRDI/ ENDVI/ 2BDA and NDVI for chlorophyll prediction in wetland ecosystems. Further, three machine learning algorithms, support vector machine (SVM), random forest (RF), and gradient tree boost (GTB), were utilized for classification, and the performance accuracy of GTB was found to be the highest (0.893), followed by RF (0.851) and SVM (0.723). The GTB algorithm was applied over NDCI for vegetation discrimination. The study revealed that Eichhronia sp. is abundantly present at the study site; hence, strategic management plans should be carried out for the eradication of invasive species and proper management of wetland vegetation.

Testing effectiveness in nature reserve management using GIS-based tools: a 25 years monitoring of land use change in a Mediterranean coastal wetland

Land-cover change dynamics were investigated in a Mediterranean coastal wetland to evaluate the long-term effectiveness of nature reserve management. A multitemporal analysis of land cover maps was conducted, utilizing visual interpretation of aerial orthophotos from the summer seasons of 1996, 2008, 2015, and 2021. Landscape changes were evaluated by transition matrices and chord diagrams. Maps were classified in accordance with CORINE land cover types at a fourth level of detail. The multitemporal analyses provided a comprehensive overview of landscape changes within the reserve over the past 25 years. The most notable changes were the increase of wetland areas and the reduction of agricultural and artificial areas. Moreover, seminatural vegetation constantly extended over time. These changes reflected the continuous management activities within the nature reserve, encompassing agreements for water supply, restoration projects, and measures to counteract illegality. These operational actions induced fine-grained ecological changes (outcomes at ecosystem level). This study highlighted the importance of remote sensing and landscape analysis, matched with fine-grained management data, as tool for long-term monitoring. Such an approach provides valuable support in evaluating the effectiveness of strategies promoted in nature reserves hosting wet coastal ecosystems of high conservation concern.

Community empowerment for reducing the risk of peatland fires in the wetland area of South Kalimantan

Fires that continue to occur in the dry season, cause fire management to be carried out immediately. Community empowerment in fire suppression is essential to improve. This study analyzes community empowerment in fire management in fire-prone peatland areas in South Kalimantan, Indonesia. The number of samples in this study was 250 people directly involved in empowerment activities in fire-prone areas. There are 37 questions about physical capital, social capital, human capital, ability in empowerment, empowerment process and community empowerment—data analysis using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The results show that physical capital, social capital and empowerment capabilities have not formed communities that can make decisions and are independent in combating peatland fires. Community empowerment programs are limited to volunteer groups and do not cover all community groups.

Simulation of wetland carbon storage in coastal cities under the coupled framework of socio-economic and ecological sustainability: A case study of Dongying city

Wetlands are an important part of the global carbon cycle, and wetland protection is an important way to achieve carbon neutrality and synergistic benefits between humans and ecosystems in China. However, most of the previous studies lack the influencing factors and driving paths of wetland carbon storage (WCS) from the perspective of coupled systems. Based on the SD-PLUS-InVEST coupling model and the socio-economic and ecological sustainability (SEES) coupling framework, this paper reveals the driving-feedback mechanism of wetland areas (WAs) from 2005 to 2060, and realizes the dynamic monitoring of WAs and a detailed assessment of WCS in Dongying city. The results show the following: WAs have a positive feedback relationship with the water resources and ecosystem service (ES) subsystems but a negative feedback relationship with the population and economic subsystems. The business as usual (BAU) scenario led to a malignant transformation of natural wetlands (NWs)-artificial wetlands (AWs)-production land (PL), increasing WCS by expanding AWs. The coordinated sustainable development (CSD) scenario created a virtuous PL-AW-NW transformation, increasing 421,700 tons of WCS compared with BAU. This study holds great significance for the protection, restoration, and sustainable development of wetland resources in coastal cities.

Internal loading regulates the phosphorus concentration in a diversion input shallow lake in the semi-humid region of North China: Differentiated processes in littoral wetland and open water areas

Diversion input lakes usually have a low catchment area/lake area ratio and pulsing pollution input. Various pollutants might accumulate in the lake continuously owing to the concentration effect under high evaporation but low precipitation over the entire area, typically for sedimentary cyclic elements such as phosphorus (P). However, the detailed transportation, sedimentation, and internal release mechanisms of P in the diversion input lakes remain unclear. This study conducted a year-long investigation of the littoral wetlands and open water areas of the shallow Lake Hengshui in the semi-humid region of North China. Results revealed that the average total P concentrations in the water and surficial sediment reached as high as 0.202 mg L−1 and 878.21 mg kg−1 in summer. The high water P levels in the lake were mainly regulated by the high internal P loading during summer and autumn, with the internal P loading being approximately nine times the external P loading. The littoral wetland area serves as a higher sedimentation sink and release source of P than the open water area. The concentrated P was continuously transported to the littoral wetland area through detritus burial, coprecipitation, and deposition of suspended particles. The release of P was mainly controlled by the dissolution of redox-sensitive Fe-P and Org-P at high temperatures and organic matter mineralization in the sediment, accompanied by the potential release capacity of apatite P (Ca-P). Future management of eutrophication and P levels in similar diversion input lakes should pay more attention to the high internal P loading in the sediment and the differentiated sedimentation and release processes in the littoral wetland and open water areas.

Landscape ecological risk evaluation and prediction under a wetland conservation scenario in the Sanjiang Plain based on land use/cover change

Landscape ecological risk is the term used to describe potential negative effects of the relationship between environmental processes and landscape structure as a result of both natural and human interactions. The scientific assessment of past and prediction future ecological risks to landscapes is the basis for achieving sustainable regional development. In this study, we built an ecological risk measurement system characterized by variability in landscape composition to reflect the components of landscape ecological risk. In particular, the CA-Markov model was used to simulate the spatial pattern of land use in the Sanjiang Plain, China, under a wetland protection scenario. The evolution of the spatiotemporal land use trend in the study area was then analyzed for past (2011–2021) and future (2021–2036) periods. The results identified that construction land, farmland, water, and grassland areas exhibited an increasing trend from 2011 to 2021, while forest and wetland areas decreased each year. From 2021 to 2036, the grassland areas exhibited a downward trend, while the other land use types maintained the same previous trend, and all land use types experienced a slowdown in the degree of change. The major landscape ecological risk levels in the research region changed from medium-risk and low-risk levels (2011–2021) to low-risk and lower-risk levels (2021–2036). An evident decrease in risk is observed for farmland and construction land in the mid-region of the research district and forests in the south. In contrast, high-risk and higher-risk levels regions were smaller and distributed in the Songhua River basin in the northeast of the research region, wetland nature reserves, and the Xingkai Lake area, with an overall reduction of 59%. Based on the results, we propose several risk prevention and control management strategies. This research acts as a basis for determining Sanjiang Plain's future rational distribution of land resources and provides an example for the reduction of ecological risks in similar regions.

Research on the connectivity of urban river network-wetland and water quality simulation.

The connectivity of urban river networks plays an important role in cities in many aspects, such as urban water safety, water quality (WQ), and aquatic ecological balance. This study focuses on the river network and the Majiawan Wetland in the Chaoyang District of Beijing by establishing a two-dimensional hydrological WQ model employing various water allocation schemes between the river network and the wetland. Water circulation and WQ are the main indexes, and the effects of different scenarios on improving water circulation and WQ are simulated and compared. This study demonstrates that the addition of water replenishment at the intersection of river network and internal slow-water zones of the wetland (Scheme 2) has greater effectiveness in improving both hydrology and WQ compared to two other schemes. The water area of the Majiawan Wetland has expanded, and water velocity has increased. Using chemical oxygen demand, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus as the index values for determining the water class, the WQ of about 20% of the wetland area was reached Water Class II (domestic drinking water), with Water Class III (general industrial water) accounting for the other 80%. This study provides valuable evaluation and reference for similar areas of urban river network connectivity.

Deteriorating habitat suitability and connectivity of waterbirds in the Bohai Sea Rim: Consequences of land use transformation

Wetlands in the Bohai Sea Rim play an indispensable role in maintaining the stability of waterbird populations on the East Asian-Australian flyway. However, motivated by economic development and urban expansion, coastal wetlands in this region have been extensively reclaimed, leading to a decline in the area and degradation of natural wetlands over the past two decades. We analyzed the temporal and spatial changes of suitable habitats of different groups of waterbirds and quantified habitat connectivity changes and the importance of different patches by using the Probability of Connectivity. The results show that the suitable habitat area of all the different groups of waterbirds decreased sharply from 2000 to 2020. In addition, the utilization ratio by waterbirds of artificial habitats increased. Land use is the primary environmental variable determining the distribution of suitable habitats. Meanwhile, the connectivity of habitats of different groups of waterbirds has also been declining. However, the patches of Tianjin and Hebei in Bohai Bay still have high importance for waterbirds, particularly shorebirds. Expanding existing protection areas to cover the above-mentioned patches is recommended. We also advocate stricter protection measures and necessary ecological restoration activities on both the natural and artificial wetlands.

Prevalence of and factors associated with zero-dose and under-immunized children in selected areas of Bangladesh: Findings from Lot Quality Assurance Sampling Survey

BackgroundIn the era of Gavi’s 5.0 vision of “leaving no one behind with immunization”, childhood routine vaccination in missed communities is considered as a priority concern. Despite having a success story at the national level, low uptake of immunization is still persistent in selected pocket areas of Bangladesh. However, prevalence and the associated factors of zero-dose (ZD) and under-immunization (UI) are still unknown at those geo-pockets of Bangladesh. Thus, the study aims to report and identify the factors associated with ZD and UI in selected geographical locations. MethodsThis study used data from a Lot Quality Assurance Sampling (LQAS) survey where 504 households from 18 clusters of four hard to reach (HTR) and one urban slum were included. Caregivers of children aged 4.5 to 23 months were interviewed. Three outcome variables- ZD, UI and ZD/UI were considered and several related attributes were considered as independent variables. Data were analyzed through bivariate analysis, binary logistic regression and dominance analysis. ResultsOverall, 32% of the children were either ZD (8%) or UI (26%) in the selected areas. The adjusted odds of ZD/UI for urban slum and haor (wetlands) areas were 5.62 and 3.61 respectively considering coastal areas as reference. However, distance of nearest EPI center, availability of EPI card, age of caregivers, education and occupation of mother and number of earning members in household were influential factors for ZD/UI. According to dominance analysis, availability of EPI card can explain the most of the variation of ZD/UI in this study. ConclusionThe study findings highlight the high prevalence ZD/UI in certain geo-pockets of the country. It provided a powerful insight of current situation and associated factors in regards to ZD/UI in the country which will help policy-makers and programme managers in designing programmes to reduce missed communities in Bangladesh.

Dynamic monitoring and restorability evaluation of alpine wetland in the eastern edge of Qinghai–Tibet Plateau

Accurate monitoring of alpine wetland areas and scientific evaluation of alpine wetland restorability play important roles in revealing the changing mechanism of the ecological environment. However, because of the complexity and lack of spatial data, few studies on evaluation index system of restorability of alpine wetland considered wild animal habitat, such as habitat suitability index of black necked crane. Based on Landsat images of seven periods from 1990 to 2020, this study adopts the methods of spectral mixture analysis and change vector analysis to quantitatively demonstrate the variations and distribution patterns of alpine wetland ecosystem in the eastern edge of Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. The study focuses on determining the abundance of water, vegetation and soil, which the interannual variations represent as the shapes of ‘√’, mirror ‘N’ and normal ‘N’, respectively. In terms of natural ecological condition and human activity interference, we construct a comprehensive evaluation model of restorability of alpine wetland, separate the restorability district and construct the Bayesian network model to discuss the causal relationship between the restorability value and evaluation factor. Results show that the regions of alpine wetland in the study area changed most drastically from 1995 to 2000 and from 2000 to 2005. In addition, the total areas classified as suitable, relatively suitable and suitable for restoration account for 63.69 % of the study area, with a large potential for wetland restorability. Moreover, the prioritisation scheme of wetland restoration action includes the valley swamps of Heihe River in the middle, followed by the flat wetlands and grasslands in the south and lastly by uneven wetlands in the north.

Predicting the impact of climate change on the area of wetlands using remote sensing

Predicting the impact of climate change on the area of wetlands using remote sensing

Actual and reference evapotranspiration for a natural, temperate zone fen wetland – Upper Biebrza case study

Evapotranspiration is the key and predominant component of the water balance in wetlands. Direct evapotranspiration measurements are challenging in wetlands due to their remoteness and high surface water level. This article describes the actual (ETa and reference evapotranspiration (ET0) from a cultivated wet meadow located in the Biebrza National Park – the largest national park in north-east Poland, Central Europe. The data were sourced from a micrometeorological station equipped with an eddy covariance system to measure heat and vapour fluxes and such meteorological elements as radiation balance components, air temperature and humidity. The values of directly measured ETa were presented daily in the context of available energy and ET0. Daily sums of ETa ranged from below 0.2 mm in winter to 6.5 mm in summer. The share of daily sums of ETa in the ET0 usually ranged from 50 to 60%, with extreme values from 10 to 170%. Aside from giving more insight into Biebrza wetlands’ functioning, the actual data produced in this study may be used instead of indirect methods, which were used the most in modelling wetlands areas.

Ecological indicators and biological resources for hydrocarbon rhizoremediation in a protected area.

Spillage from oil refineries, pipelines, and service stations consistently leads to soil, food and groundwater contamination. Bacterial-assisted phytoremediation is a non-invasive and sustainable solution to eliminate or decrease the concentration of xenobiotic contaminants in the environment. In the present study, a protected area interested by a fuel discharge was considered to assess a bioremediation intervention. From the spill point, a plume of contamination flowed South-West into the aquifer, eventually reaching a wetland area. Soils, groundwaters and plants belonging to the species Scirpus sylvaticus (L.) were sampled. In the majority of the soil samples, concentrations of total petroleum hydrocarbons, both C ≤ 12 and C > 12, exceeded legal limits set forth in Directive 2000/60/EC. The analysis of diatom populations, used as ecological indicators, evidenced morphology alterations and the presence of Ulnaria ulna and Ulnaria biceps species, previously detected in hydrocarbon-polluted waters. Tests for phytotoxicity and phytodegradation, carried out in soil mesocosms, planted with Zea mays and Helianthus annuus, demonstrated that both species significantly contributed to the removal of total petroleum hydrocarbons. Removal of C ≤ 12 and C > 12 petroleum hydrocarbons was in the range of 80%-82% for Z. mays and 71%-72% for H. annuus. Microbial communities inhabiting high organic carbon and vegetated soils were more active in hydrocarbon degradation than those inhabiting subsoils, as evidenced by soil slurry experiments. The abundance of functional genes encoding toluene-benzene monooxygenase (tbmD) and alkane hydroxylase (alkB), quantified in environmental samples, confirmed that the plant rhizosphere recruited a microbial community with higher biodegradation capacity. Bacterial strains isolated from the sampling site were able to grow on model hydrocarbons (hexane, hexadecane and o-, m-, p-xylene) as sole carbon and energy sources, indicating that a natural bio-attenuation process was on-going at the site. The bacterial strains isolated from rhizosphere soil, rhizoplane and endosphere showed plant growth promoting traits according to in vitro and in vivo tests on Z. mays and Oryza sativa, allowing to forecast a possible application of bacterial assisted rhizoremediation to recover the protected area.

In Situ Utilization of Electron-Enhanced Degradation of Azo Dyes in a Constructed Wetland–Microbial Fuel Cell Coupling System

In this study, a constructed wetland was coupled with a microbial fuel cell to establish a coupled system known as the constructed wetland–microbial fuel cell (CW–MFC), utilized for the treatment of X-3B azo dye wastewater at varying concentrations. Experimental results indicated that the anodic region made the primary contributions to the discoloration of azo dyes and COD removal, with a contribution rate of 60.9–75.8% for COD removal and 57.8–83.0% for the effectiveness of discoloration. Additionally, the role of plants in the constructed wetland area could achieve the removal of small molecular substances and further discoloration. In comparison to open-circuit conditions, under closed-circuit conditions the CW–MFC effectively degraded X-3B azo dye wastewater. Under an external resistance of 2000 Ω, a maximum COD removal rate of 60.0% and a maximum discoloration rate of 85.8% were achieved for X-3B azo dye at a concentration of 100 mg/L. Improvements in the treatment efficiency of X-3B dye wastewater were achieved by altering the external resistance. Under an external resistance of 100 Ω and an influent concentration of X-3B of 800 mg/L, the COD removal rate reached 78.6%, and the decolorization rate reached 85.2%. At this point, the CW–MFC exhibited a maximum power density of 0.024 W/m3 and an internal resistance of 99.5 Ω. Spectral analysis and GC–MS results demonstrated the effective degradation of azo dyes within the system, indicating azo bond cleavage and the generation of numerous small molecular substances. Microbial analysis revealed the enrichment of electrogenic microorganisms under low external resistance conditions, where Geobacter and Trichococcus were dominant bacterial genera under an external resistance of 100 Ω, playing crucial roles in power generation and azo dye degradation within the system.

A Multi-Scenario Simulation and Dynamic Assessment of the Ecosystem Service Values in Key Ecological Functional Areas: A Case Study of the Sichuan Province, China

The ecosystem service value (ESV) is an important basis for measuring an ecological environment’s quality and the efficient management of ecosystems. It is particularly necessary to explore a proven methodology for assessing and predicting ESV dynamics coupled with policy-oriented scenarios that can provide a theoretical groundwork for macro decision, particularly in the context of implementing ecological protection and restoration projects. This study selected the land cover (LC) of Sichuan Province at five periods and the spatiotemporal dynamic equivalent factor method to assess the ESVs from 2000 to 2020. Additionally, the study coupled the Markov chain and GeoSOS-FLUS model, and predicted the future pattern of ESVs under four future development scenarios. The results show that (a) the areas of forests, shrubs, waters, wastelands, wetlands, and impervious areas showed a continuous increase from 2000 to 2020, with the most frequent interchanges occurring among croplands, forests, and grasslands. (b) The implementation of ecological protection and restoration projects led to a 13,083.32 × 108 yuan increase in ESV, and barycenter of the ESVs is located in the northeastern part of Ya’an and exhibits a tendency to move towards the northeast. (c) The ESV aggregation pattern of each city has remained unchanged, with Ganzi being the only city with a high aggregation. Overall, there are more conflict cities than coordination cities between economic development and the ecological environment. (d) The total ESV in 2025 will continue to increase under all development scenarios, reaching a maximum of 50,903.37 × 108 yuan under the EP scenario. This study can provide insights for ecological planning decisions and sustainable regional socio-economic development.

Centennial loss of lake wetlands in the Yangtze Plain, China: Impacts of land use changes accompanied by hydrological connectivity loss

Humans have played a fundamental role in altering lake wetland ecosystems, necessitating the use of diverse data types to accurately quantify long-term changes, identify potential drivers, and establish a baseline status. We complied high-resolution historical topographic maps and Landsat imagery to assess the dynamics of the lake wetlands in the Yangtze Plain over the past century, with special attention to land use and hydrological connectivity changes. Results showed an overall loss of 45.6 % (∼11,859.5 km2) of the lake wetlands over the past century. The number of lakes larger than 10 km2 decreased from 149 to 100 due to lake dispersion, vanishing, and shrinkage. The extent of lake wetland loss was 3.8 times larger during the 1930s–1970s than that in the 1970s–1990s. Thereafter, the lake wetland area remained relatively stable, and a net increase was observed during the 2010s–2020s in the Yangtze Plain. The significant loss of lake wetland was predominately driven by agricultural activities and urban land expansion, accounting for 81.1 % and 4.9 % of the total losses, respectively. In addition, the changes in longitudinal and lateral hydrological connectivity further exacerbated the lake wetland changes across the Yangtze Plain through isolation between lakes and the Yangtze River and within the lakes. A total of 130 lakes have been isolated from the Yangtze River due to the construction of sluices and dykes throughout the Yangtze Plain, resulting in the decrease in the proportion of floodplain marsh from 28.3 % in the 1930s to 8.0 % in the 2020s. Furthermore, over 260 sub-lakes larger than 1 km2 (with a total area of 1276.4 km2) are experiencing a loss of connectivity with their parent lakes currently. This study could provide an improved historical baseline of lake wetland changes to guide the conservation planning to wetland protection and prioritization area in the Yangtze Plain.

Spatial interactions between perceived biophilic values and neighborhood typologies in urban wetlands

Wetlands provide a wide range of ecosystem services; however, little is known about their perception value or use for improving urban planning and wetland management. This study explores the perception values towards the Los Batros Wetland in Chile, by inhabitants from different neighborhood typologies. A sample of 457 responses evaluated the wetland by applying the Kellert framework of 9 biophilic values using a Public Participation Geographic Information Systems (PPGIS) approach. A spatial autocorrelation analysis with hotspot revealed that the spatial distribution of biophilic values varies by neighborhood typology. Subsequent ANOVA and T-test suggest that such distribution is affected by perceived accessibility and visitation purposes, and is influenced by socio-demographic aspects that vary among neighborhood typology. Inhabitants of the garden city typology located next to the wetland area, whose residents have higher education and income levels and who have easy and moderate access to the wetland, agreed with a diverse type of biophilic values. In the garden city, the ecologistic-scientific value has the higher spatial concentration. In the condominium typology, with similar education and income levels and accessibility, but situated far from the wetland, there was less agreement with biophilic values, and these were more dispersed, i.e. biophilic values are less representative. In this case, the aesthetic value prevails over others. At the north area of the neighborhood unit, where residents had lower education and income levels along with moderate to difficult physical access to the wetland, but they developed horticultural activities alongside the wetland, inhabitants agree with various biophilic values, highlighting its symbolic value. Conversely, biophilic values of people in the favela were not in agreement nor disagreement, regardless they have similar physical access and distance to the wetland as residents in the condominium typology, but have the lowest income and education level. Findings suggest that effective wetlands management requires appreciation of the clusters of values assigned to wetland environments, which in this case relate to neighborhood typologies. These clusters should be considered when planning to restore, protect, and improve urban wetlands.