Landscape Dynamics Improved Recreation Service of the Three Gorges Reservoir Area, China

Spatial analysis of cultural ecosystem services using data from social media: A guide to model selection for research and practice

Experiences gained through in person (in-situ) interactions with ecosystems provide cultural ecosystem services. These services are difficult to assess because they are non-material, vary spatially and have strong perceptual characteristics. Data obtained from social media can provide spatially-explicit information regarding some in-situ cultural ecosystem services by serving as a proxy for visitation. These data can identify environmental characteristics (natural, human and built capital) correlated with visitation and, therefore, the types of places used for in-situ environmental interactions. A range of spatial models can be applied in this way that vary in complexity and can provide information for ecosystem service assessments. We deployed four models (global regression, local regression, maximum entropy and the InVEST recreation model) to the same case-study area, County Galway, Ireland, to compare spatial models. A total of 6,752 photo-user-days (PUD) (a visitation metric) were obtained from Flickr. Data describing natural, human and built capital were collected from national databases. Results showed a blend of capital types correlated with PUD suggesting that local context, including biophysical traits and accessibility, are relevant for in-situ cultural ecosystem service flows. Average trends included distance to the coast and elevation as negatively correlated with PUD, while the presence of major roads and recreational sites, population density and habitat diversity were positively correlated. Evidence of local relationships, especially town distance, were detected using geographic weighted regression. Predicted hotspots for visitation included urban areas in the east of the region and rural, coastal areas with major roads in the west. We conclude by presenting a guide for researchers and practitioners developing cultural ecosystem service spatial models using data from social media that considers data coverage, landscape heterogeneity, computational resources, statistical expertise and environmental context.

Compound Optimization of Territorial Spatial Structure and Layout at the City Scale from "Production-Living-Ecological" Perspectives

Land-use optimization, as an important resource-allocation method, can be defined as the process of allocating various activities to different geographic units. How to manage and control land expansion has become an urgent issue, leading a series of problems such as environmental damage and a sharp decrease in cultivated land, leading to unfavorable phenomena such as excessive urban expansion, occupation of cultivated land and important ecological spaces, and overheating of real estate development. Based on the land-use data of Wuhan city in 2020, a coupling MOP (Multi-Objective Programming) and FLUS (Future Land-Use Simulation) model was used to examine the national spatial structure and the optimization of the spatial layout. Our results showed that (1) in terms of quantitative optimal allocation, the ecological space and urban space increased, while the agricultural space greatly decreased under the three development scenarios. (2) In the simulation of spatial layout, the urban space mainly expanded vertically in the north-south direction. In the ecological space scenario, the ecological space occupied part of the cultivated land in the northeast of the city, resulting in a high degree of landscape fragmentation, which is not conducive to large-scale agricultural management. However, under optimal comprehensive benefit, part of the fragmented ecological space in the western part of Wuhan was transformed into an agricultural space. (3) A combination of the MOP and FLUS models could effectively determine land-use structure and address spatial layout optimization problems and can project space in the future urban resource configuration mode. This finding can provide a reference for the optimization of the spatial structure and layout of similar cities.

The impact of ecotourism on ecosystem functioning along main rivers and tributaries: Implications for management and policy changes

Tourism along river basins benefits both tourists and the economy, but its management necessitates trade-offs between nature-based recreation and ecological functioning. Despite ecosystem services being helpful in managing environmental challenges, there are limited data on the impact of tourism activities on ecosystem functioning across different river types globally. This study investigates how people's recreational activities and values affect ecosystem functioning in high-order rivers. The original field data were collected from 308 transects along the main river and tributaries of the Three Gorges Dam Reservoir in China during 2019. Kruskal-Wallis tests (p < 0.01) revealed that the ecosystem functioning indices were significantly higher than the recreational activity and value indices around the rivers and that ecosystem functioning was highest around tributaries. The critical variables of ecotourism activities and ecosystem functioning identified by principal component analysis accounted for 66.49% of the total variance. The Pearson correlation coefficient strengths among tourism and ecosystem functioning parameters were correlated mildly to moderately, but they exhibited positive and negative connections with a range of r = -0.27 to 0.37 (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the distribution patterns of these parameters that were determined by hierarchical cluster analysis were diverse for both the main river and its tributaries. The findings suggest that the development and enforcement of zoning may be necessary for the long-term use of natural resources by all sectors of society. Therefore, it is imperative to raise public awareness and urge governments to adopt more progressive ecotourism policies.

Territorial Pattern Evolution and Its Comprehensive Carrying Capacity Evaluation in the Coastal Area of Beibu Gulf, China

Changes in the territorial pattern of the Beibu Gulf, an environmentally sensitive and ecologically fragile area in China, will directly or indirectly affect the regional ecological environment, while profoundly influencing economic development and human well-being. Therefore, it is significant to understand the ecological response in the process of territorial space changes in the Beibu Gulf to promote the coordination between sea and land and sustainable regional development. This paper used remote sensing image interpretation to generate land-use maps in 2000, 2010 and 2020, and then analyzed the spatial and temporal evolution of the territorial pattern of the Beibu Gulf from 2000 to 2020. Finally, this paper proposed a comprehensive carrying capacity evaluation system and explored the spatial functional zones of the coastal areas of the Beibu Gulf. The results showed that the demand for urban development and ecological protection between 2000 and 2020 increased built-up land and forestland by 386.71% and 25.56%, respectively, and reduced farmland by 28.33%. There was significant spatial heterogeneity in various land-use types. Where forestland is mainly distributed in the west, farmland is mainly distributed in the east, wetland is mainly distributed in the south, and orchards are spread throughout the whole area. The evaluation results of land resources, water resources and ecological conditions in the Beibu Gulf area showed that its comprehensive carrying capacity was high in the south and low in the north, and high in the west and low in the east. On this basis, this paper considered the actual situation of natural resources, ecological conditions, socio-economic development, protection and development in coastal areas; divided the study area into four categories: developed areas, priority development areas, ecological reserve areas and coastal reserve areas; and put forward corresponding control suggestions. The results of this paper could provide a scientific basis for regional development and territorial spatial planning in the coastal areas.

Influence of Rural Development of River Tourism Resources on Physical and Mental Health and Consumption Willingness in the Context of COVID-19

This study took the Three Gorges Dam as an example and discussed the influence of river regulation decisions on the sustainable development of surrounding villages. The study used mixed research methods, snowball sampling, and convenience sampling to obtain samples. The questionnaire samples were analyzed by basic statistical tests, t-test, and structural equation modeling (SEM). The respondents’ opinions were collected through semi-structured interviews and finally the results were discussed by multivariate analysis. The findings were that even though the villages were not well developed in terms of economy, environment, and natural ecology, as long as the community security could be stable, the living could be safe and convenient, people’s daily life patterns and leisure behaviors could be maintained, and people could stabilize their minds and emotions and maintain physical and mental health in order to meet their living needs and reduce the burden. There would be time and funds to invest in leisure, tourism activities, and consumption behavior. If the above consumption patterns are continued, people will gain positive perceptions, stimulating people’s willingness to invest in property purchases or to make travel plans again.

Spatial and Temporal Variations of Habitat Quality and Its Response of Landscape Dynamic in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area, China

Habitat quality is an important indicator for assessing biodiversity and is critical to ecosystem processes. With urban development and construction in developing countries, habitat quality is increasingly influenced by landscape pattern changes. This has made habitat conservation to be an increasingly urgent issue. Despite the growing interest in this issue, studies that reveal the role of land use change in habitat degradation at multiple scales are still lacking. Therefore, we analyzed the spatial and temporal variations of habitat quality of the Three Gorges Reservoir area by the InVEST habitat quality model and demonstrated the responses of habitat quality to various landscape dynamics by correspondence analysis. The result showed that the habitat quality score of this area increased from 0.685 in 2000 to 0.739 in 2015 and presented a significant spatial heterogeneity. Habitat quality was significantly higher in the northeastern and southwestern parts of the reservoir area than in other regions. Meanwhile, habitat quality improved with altitude and slope, and increased for all altitude and slope zones. The habitat quality of >1000 m and >25° zone exceeds 0.8, while the habitat quality of <500 m and <15° zone is less than 0.6. Habitat quality significantly varied among landscape dynamics and was extremely sensitive to vegetation recovery and urban expansion. The vegetation restoration model of returning farmland to forest is difficult to sustain, so we suggest changing the vegetation recovery model to constructing complex vegetation community. This study helps us to better understand the effects of landscape pattern changes on habitat quality and can provide a scientific basis for formulating regional ecological conservation policies and sustainable use of land resources.

Impacts of Human Activities on Ecosystem Service Value in Arid and Semi-Arid Ecological Regions of China

The quantitative and spatial–temporal variations in the characteristics of ecosystem value can be helpful to improve environmental protection and climate adaptation measures and adjust the balance between economic development and the ecological environment. The arid and semi-arid regions of China are undergoing the effects of climate change across the entire northern hemisphere. Their ecological environments are fragile and in conflict with anthropogenic activities, which significantly altered more ecosystems services in these regions. Therefore, estimating the effects of anthropogenic activities on ecosystem services is important for formulating ecological policy and regional environmental mitigation plans of these regions. This study employed the model of ecosystem service value (ESV) assessment and the bivariate spatial autocorrelation method to reveal the spatiotemporal variations in the characteristics of ecosystem value in the arid and semi-arid ecological regions of China and its interaction with human activities. Results showed that (1) the total value of ES of the study area increased from USD 487,807 billion in 2000 to USD 67,831,150 billion 2020; (2) the ES value provided by forest land first increased by 5.60% from 2000 to 2020; (3) the ESV provided by grassland showed an overall decline over the 20 years. Food and raw material production showed the lowest ES value, and climate regulation and soil conservation decreased from 2000 to 2020; (4) the index of human footprint patches decreased from 45.80% in 2000 to 17.63% in 2020, while the high and very high human footprint index areas increased significantly, mainly due to the rapid urbanization and improvement of railway networks in these areas. Spatially, the regions with high human footprint were mostly dispersed in the northeastern of China such as Shanxi and Gansu, whereas the regions with a low human footprint remained mainly located in the central and southwestern parts of China; (5) significant spatial dependencies between changes in ESV and the human footprint index were recorded. Our study could provide a scientific basis for ecosystem functions regulation and land development security in arid and semi-arid ecological regions.