Dynamics of Tradeoffs between Economic Benefits and Ecosystem Services due to Urban Expansion

Yingen Hu, Ye Zhang and Xinli Ke
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Yingen Hu: College of Public Administration, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
Ye Zhang: College of Public Administration, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
Xinli Ke: College of Public Administration, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China

Sustainability, 2018, vol. 10, issue 7, 1-13

Abstract: Urban expansion has been proved to spur significant changes in economic development worldwide, yet it degrades ecosystem services. Seldom attempts are made to explore the dynamic relationship between economic benefits and ecosystem services. As such, we simulated land use in Wuhan, the capital city of Hubei Province in China, by employing the LANDSCAPE model (LAND System Cellular Automata model for Potential Effects) in scenarios with datasets supported. This paper analyzes the amount of variation of urban growth between its corresponding implications for ecosystem services in Wuhan, and further reveals a meaningful dynamic linkage between economic benefits (EB) and ecosystem services value (ESV). The amount of urban expansion is a critical factor affecting tradeoffs of EB and ESV. A certain amount of urban expansion (the turning point) will worsen tradeoffs between EB and ESV, and when the amount of urban growth surpasses the turning point, a small increase of EB will pay a great amount of ESV. The better the amount of urban growth is controlled, the more harmonious the EB and ESV will be. Our research is helpful to find the turning point as well as the proper amount of urban growth at the aspect of tradeoffs between EB and ESV.

Keywords: land use change; urban expansion; ecosystem services; economic benefits (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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