Relationships between Ecosystem Services and Urbanization in Jiangsu Province, Eastern China

Cheng Li, Ranghui Wang, Fangmin Zhang, Yunjian Luo and Yong Huang
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Cheng Li: Department of Ecology, School of Horticulture and Plant Protection, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China
Ranghui Wang: Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Agricultural Meteorology, Collaborative Innovation Center on Forecast and Evaluation of Meteorological Disasters, Collaborative Innovation Center of Atmospheric Environment and Equipment Technology, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, China
Fangmin Zhang: Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Agricultural Meteorology, Collaborative Innovation Center on Forecast and Evaluation of Meteorological Disasters, Collaborative Innovation Center of Atmospheric Environment and Equipment Technology, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, China
Yunjian Luo: Department of Ecology, School of Horticulture and Plant Protection, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China
Yong Huang: Anhui Province Key Lab of Atmospheric Science and Satellite Remote Sensing, Shouxian National Climatological Observatory, Hefei 230031, China

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 7, 1-13

Abstract: Ecosystem services are comprehensive and quantitative indicators for describing ecosystem–human interactions. China has experienced rapid urbanization in the past 30 years, which has created a significant impact on regional ecosystem services. However, whether the impact is linear is not clear as yet. In this study, the Jiangsu province, a main body of the Chinese Yangtze River Delta city cluster, was chosen as a case study. Multi-source remotely-sensed geospatial data, including meteorological, land use, vegetation, and socio-economic data, were collected to estimate the total amount of ecosystem services (TESV) and urbanization levels. Subsequently, the relationships between TESV and urbanization indices (i.e., gross domestic product (GDP) per unit area, GPUA; population per unit area, PPUA; and built-up land proportion, BULP) were determined using the Pearson correlation analysis and piecewise linear regression. The primary findings of this study were as follows: (1) There was a distinct spatial pattern in TESV, which gradually increased from west to east with high-value areas located in eastern coastal areas of Jiangsu. Among different land use types, cropland and woodland contributed the most to TESV; (2) The three urbanization indices had spatial patterns, indicating higher urbanization in southern Jiangsu than in central or northern Jiangsu; and (3) Once GPUA and PPUA exceeded threshold values of 3719.55 × 10 4 yuan/km 2 and 744.37 person/km 2 , respectively, TESV sharply decreased with an increase in these indices. However, the BULP showed a linear and significantly negative relationship with TESV at all values, which indicated that the impacts of economic and population growth on TESV lagged behind that of built-up land expansion. These findings provide a potentially significant reference for decision-makers to rationally enhance regional ecosystem services during rapid urbanization processes.

Keywords: ecosystem services; urbanization; spatial patterns; Jiangsu (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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