Socio-geographical evaluation of ecosystem services in an ecotourism destination: PGIS application in Tram Chim National Park, Vietnam

Utilizing supply-demand bundles in Nature-based Recreation offers insights into specific strategies for sustainable tourism management

Balancing supply and demand in Nature-based Recreation (NbR) has the potential to yield co-benefits across multiple Ecosystem Services (ES), helping to make tourism activities more sustainable. However, a comprehensive understanding of supply-demand mismatches in NbR is challenging due to the complex interaction among various social, economic and ecological factors. This paper investigates mismatches in NbR supply and demand to provide insights for informing spatial and regional planning to achieve sustainable tourism. To this end, the paper uses a wide range of indicators such as biophysical attributes, accessibility and social indicators to map and assess NbR supply and demand, followed by the application of spatial statistics to analyse supply-demand mismatches. Cluster analysis was performed based on the supply-demand relationship to identify a typology of NbR ES across the study area in the north of Iran. The paper proposes an innovative application of recreation ES bundles with potential implications for sustainable tourism in a region marked as a hot spot for tourism. The analysis generated a typology of five bundles of NbR ES with differing recreational opportunities. Bundles 1 and 2, characterized by a supply surplus and substantial ecological value, are suitable for NbR activities such as camping, hiking, climbing, and birdwatching. In contrast, bundle 4 and 5 associated with urban centres, experience a supply deficit, making them less suitable for NbR. Bundle 3, characterized by a mixture of natural and productive lands, plays an important role in maintaining a balanced supply-demand state. This region holds potential for diverse forms of tourism, including rural and agricultural recreation such as farm tours and farm life experiences. Based on findings, the paper provides valuable insights for spatial and regional planning by proposing targeted strategies to sustainably manage tourism activities.

Mapping ecosystem services in protected areas. A systematic review

Protected areas (PAs) supply ecosystem services (ES) essential for human wellbeing. Mapping is a critical exercise that allows an understanding of the spatial distribution of the different ES in PAs. This work aims to conduct a systematic literature review on mapping ES in PAs. In order to carry out this systematic review, the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses method was applied. The results showed an increase in the number of works between 2012 and 2023, and they were especially conducted in Europe and Asia and less in North America, South America, and Oceania. Most studies were developed in terrestrial areas, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature classified them into types II and IV. Most of the works followed the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment classification and were mainly focused on the supply dimension. Regulating and maintenance and cultural ES were the most mapped dimensions in PAs. The most frequent provisioning ES mapped in PAs were Animals reared for nutritional purposes and Cultivated terrestrial plants grown for nutritional purposes. In regulating and maintenance, Maintaining nursery populations and habitats and Regulation of the chemical composition of the atmosphere and oceans were the most analysed. For cultural ES, Characteristics of living systems that enable activities promoting health, recuperation, or enjoyment through active or immersive interactions and Characteristics of living systems that enable aesthetic experiences were the most mapped ES in PAs. Most works followed a quantitative approach, although the number of qualitative studies is high. Finally, most of the works needed to be validated, which may hamper the credibility of mapping ES in PAs. Overall, this systematic review contributed to a global picture of studies distribution, the areas where they are needed, and the most popular dimensions and sections as the methodologies were applied.

Tourists' valuation of nature in protected areas: A systematic review

In the face of biodiversity loss, it is crucial to broaden the arguments for conservation of protected areas by acknowledging diverse values of nature. We systematically reviewed empirical studies to investigate tourists' values of nature in protected areas over time and across regions. To do so, we explored (1) the main ecological and social characteristics of the case studies; (2) methodological approaches; and (3) value types. Based on the review of 152 articles, we found that economic valuation has received the most scientific attention, while socio-cultural valuation approaches have recently increased. Values were primarily elicited and analyzed quantitatively and in monetary metrics, although valuation methods and frameworks have diversified over the past two decades. However, considering the role of valuation methods and frameworks as value-articulating institutions, we suggest that future research on nature valuation also applies qualitative and non-monetary methods, elicits diverse values, and conducts plural valuation.

Evolutionary game of stakeholders' behavioral strategies in wetland ecosystems from the vulnerability perspective

Wetland ecosystems have been seriously degraded by human activities and natural factors, and its restoration and coordinated development depend on long-term effective cooperation between the government and investors and providers. From the perspective of vulnerability of wetland ecosystem construction, this paper takes the government and investors, providers as the research object and propose a wetland ecosystem cooperation network, the article considers the "Matthew effect" of network connection and relationship cost, and uses the method of the evolutionary game on complex networks to construct the cooperative game model of wetland ecosystems. This research finds that (1) the vulnerability of wetland ecosystem varies greatly in different development stages, especially when the government subsidy coefficient for providers is reduced to 0.3, the vulnerability index is instead smaller.(2) The cooperative strategy adopted by investors can produce synergistic effect, which plays a major role in the healthy function of wetland ecosystem. (3) When the government subsidy coefficient for investors reaches 0.8, wetland ecosystem vulnerability shows a significant downward trend; when the provider loss coefficient reaches 0.8, wetland ecosystem vulnerability is significantly reduced and system stability is significantly enhanced. Thus, when the government actively promotes cooperation by adopting appropriate subsidies and regulation for investors and providers, the willingness of investors and providers to cooperate rapidly converges to 1, wetland ecosystem in vulnerability is at the lowest level. Finally, the findings combined with the numerical simulation analysis indicates that the importance of investors cooperating with the government in taking cooperative strategies actively, showing that stakeholder behavioral strategies can improve wetland ecosystem vulnerability. This paper provides a theoretical basis for the cooperation of wetland ecosystem stakeholders and a new direction for effectively reducing the vulnerability of wetland ecosystems and building efficient and benign wetland ecosystems in practice, which is of far-reaching significance for promoting wetland conservation management and an important reference value for wetland conservation planning, governance and improving the level of wetland conservation management.

The Great 2011 Thailand flood disaster revisited: Could it have been mitigated by different dam operations based on better weather forecasts?

This paper revisits the 2011 Great Flood in central Thailand to answer one of the hotly debated questions at the time "Could the operation decisions of the flood control structures substantially mitigate the flood impacts in the downstream areas?". Using a numerical modeling approach, we develop a hypothesis such that the two upstream dam reservoirs: Bhumibol and Sirikit had more accurately forecasted the typhoon-triggered abnormal rainfall volumes and released more water earlier to save the storage capacity via 17 different scenarios or alternative operation schemes. We subsequently quantify the potential improvements, or reduced flood impacts in the downstream catchments, solely by changing the operation schemes of these two dam reservoirs, with all other conditions remaining unchanged. We observed that changing the operation schemes could have reduced only the flood depth while offering very limited improvements in terms of inundated areas for the lower Chao Phraya River Basin. Among 17 scenarios simulated, the inundated areas could have been reduced at most by 3.68%. This result justifies the limited role of these mega structures in the upstream during the disaster on one hand, while pointing to the necessity of handling local rainfall differently on the other. The paper expands the discussion into how the government of Thailand has drawn the lessons from the 2011 flood to better prepare themselves against the lurking flood risk in 2021, also triggered by tropical cyclones. The highlighted initiatives, both technical and institutional, could have provided important references for the large river catchment managers in Southeast Asia and with implications of our method beyond the present application region.

Spatial-social evaluations of ecosystem services of adaptive aquaculture models using SAR and multivariate analyses: a case in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta

The presented study is conducted to investigate the efficiency of two important aquaculture models of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD)'s Soc Trang province via quantifying and mapping the supporting ecosystem services (ES). The study targets the two most prevalent rearing practices, intensive and semi-intensive, covering four rural districts: My Xuyen, Tran De, Cu Lao Dung, and Vinh Chau. A mixed-method approach was applied, combining remote sensing, grass-root social survey, and multivariate statistical analyses. First, image analysis using Sentinel-1A time-series data was conducted to detect the aquaculture areas across the study area based on temporal changes of VV backscatter of different land use/land cover (LULC) types, in which aquaculture receives relatively low backscatter values compared to other LULC categories except river and deeper water surfaces. Our analysis yields an overall accuracy of 91% with a kappa coefficient of 0.82. Second, using semi-structured questionnaires, a total of 140 shrimp farming households across the four focused districts were interviewed for their rearing experience. Thereupon, the collected responses were analyzed using two multivariate analyses, including principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA). In general, the intensive model could have generated more economic values of ecosystem services than the artisanal/semi-intensive model. Our analyses also took note of the potential barriers hindering the semi-intensive farmers from achieving higher economic income. These include (i) geographical factors, i.e., locations; (ii) social factors, i.e., experience, farming calendar, education; (iii) financial factors, i.e., investments; and (iv) technical factors, i.e., farm areas, productivity, rearing concentration. Since semi-intensive food is more appropriate for small-scale farming households, it is recommendable that addressing these factors can enhance the efficiency of this model as a profitable livelihood option.

The worst 2020 saline water intrusion disaster of the past century in the Mekong Delta: Impacts, causes, and management implications

Vietnam Mekong Delta (VMD), the country's most important food basket, is constantly threatened by drought-infused salinity intrusion (SI). The SI disaster of 2020 is recognized as the worst in recent decades, hence inspiring this perspective article. The authors' viewpoints on the disaster's impacts and causes are presented. The arguments presented are mainly drawn from (i) up-to-date publications that report on the recent SI intensification in the VMD and (ii) the power spectral analysis results using water level data. We verified the intensifying SI in the VMD both in its frequency and magnitude and remarked on four of the key SI drivers: (i) upstream hydropower dams, (ii) land subsidence, (iii) the relative sea-level rise, and (iv) riverbed sand mining. Also, a non-exhaustive yet list of recommendable management implications to mitigate the negative effects of the SI is contributed. The mitigation measures must be realized at multiple scales, ranging from pursuing transboundary water diplomacy efforts to managing internal pressures via developing early warnings, restricting illegal sand mining activities, alleviating pressures on groundwater resources, and diversifying agriculture.

Towards a “City in Nature”: Evaluating the Cultural Ecosystem Services Approach Using Online Public Participation GIS to Support Urban Green Space Management

The concept of cultural ecosystem services has been increasingly influential in both environmental research and policy decision making, such as for urban green spaces. However, its popular definitions tend to conflate “services” with “benefits”, making it challenging for planners to employ them directly to manage urban green spaces. Thus, attempts have been made to redefine cultural ecosystem services as the function of cultural activities in environmental spaces which result in people’s enjoyment of cultural ecosystem benefits. The operability of such a redefinition needs to be evaluated, which this study seeks to achieve with Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park in Singapore presenting itself as a prime case study research area. Transdisciplinary mixed methods of a public participation geographic information system, which leverages on spatial data from public park users, and social media text mining analysis via Google reviews were used. A wealth of cultural ecosystem services and benefits were reported in the park, especially the recreational and aesthetic services and experiential benefits. Policy and methodological implications for future research and urban park developments were considered. Overall, this paper would recommend the employment of the redefined cultural ecosystem services approach to generate relational, data-driven and actionable insights to better support future urban green space management.

Ecosystem Service Modelling to Support Nature-Based Flood Water Management in the Vietnamese Mekong River Delta

Deltas are among the most productive and diverse global ecosystems. However, these regions are highly vulnerable to natural disasters and climate change. Nature-based solutions (Nbs) have been increasingly adopted in many deltas to improve their resilience. Among decision support tools, assessment of ecosystem services (ES) through spatially explicit modelling plays an important role in advocating for Nbs. This study explores the use of the Land Utilisation and Capability Indicator (LUCI) model, a high-resolution model originally developed in temperate hill country regions, to map changes in multiple ecosystem services (ES), along with their synergies and trade-offs, between 2010 and 2018 in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD). In so doing, this study contributes to the current knowledge in at least two aspects: high-resolution ES modelling in the VMD, and the combination of ES biophysical and economic values within the VMD to support Nbs implementation. To date, this is the highest resolution (5 by 5 m) ES modelling study ever conducted in the VMD, with ~1500 million elements generated per ES. In the process of trialling implementations of LUCI within the VMD’s unique environmental conditions and data contexts, we identify and suggest potential model enhancements to make the LUCI model more applicable to the VMD as well as other tropical deltaic regions. LUCI generated informative results in much of the VMD for the selected ES (flood mitigation, agriculture/aquaculture productivity, and climate regulation), but challenges arose around its application to a new agro-hydrological regime. To address these challenges, parameterising LUCI and reconceptualising some of the model’s mechanisms to specifically account for the productivity and flood mitigation capability of water-tolerant crops as well as flooding processes of deltaic regions will improve future ES modelling in tropical deltaic areas. The ES maps showed the spatial heterogeneity of ES across the VMD. Next, to at least somewhat account for the economic drivers which need to be considered alongside biophysical valuations for practical implementations of ES maps for nature-based solutions (Nbs) in the upstream VMD, economic values were assigned to different parcels using a benefit transfer approach. The spatially explicit ES economic value maps can inform the design of financing incentives for Nbs. The results and related work can be used to support the establishment of Nbs that ultimately contribute to the security of local farmers’ livelihoods and the sustainability of the VMD.

How the saline water intrusion has reshaped the agricultural landscape of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta, a review

Once a key factor behind Vietnam's successful Doi Moi (restoration) economic reforms, the rice-centered agriculture of the VMD is now confronted by the new pressure of climate change impacts, including the intensifying salinity intrusion (SI). The SI menace has partly triggered the delta-wide emergence of new adaptive livelihood models across the VMD, including the prawn rice rotational crop (PRRC) that is arguably the most prominent. Research on the SI-driving factors is rapidly increasing in numbers, yet little synthesis has been done. Likewise, several studies have investigated the economic benefits of PRRC; less emphasis has placed on environmental and societal aspects, hence the questionable sustainability. This study, therefore, contributes a composite literature review, targeting two SI-related aspects: (i) key factors driving the intensification of SI in recent years across the Mekong Delta, and (ii) current understanding of the sustainability of PRRC. Results from the first review assignment highlight the four key SI-driving factors: riverbed incision, land subsidence, upstream dams, and sea-level rise. Also remarked are the critical absence of studies addressing multiple drivers and the need for a decoupling model to quantify the relative importance of each factor to strategize the adaptive measures. For PRRC, we reveal that while economic benefits have been widely reported, potential negative impacts of this model related to environmental and social aspects are lacking. Therefore, while the lucrative prawn trade might financially benefit the farmers', the economic benefit is marred by the underlying negative environmental impacts and social inequalities, limiting overall sustainability. This study also provides a case study to notify the spatial-temporal trends of PRRC in the last three decades and evaluate the associated geographical and social factors. Kien Giang province was selected as the study site since it is the largest PRRCacross the VMD. The lessons from Kien Giang can also be applied to other transformative agricultural models in both Mekong Delta and other deltas worldwide.