An Assessment of Environmental Impacts on the Ecosystem Services: Study on the Bagmati Basin of Nepal

Shiksha Bastola, Sanghyup Lee, Yongchul Shin and Younghun Jung
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Shiksha Bastola: Department of Advanced Science and Technology Convergence, Kyungpook National University, 2559, Gyeongsangdaero, Sangju 37224, Korea
Sanghyup Lee: Department of Advanced Science and Technology Convergence, Kyungpook National University, 2559, Gyeongsangdaero, Sangju 37224, Korea
Yongchul Shin: School of Agricultural Civil & Bio-Industrial Engineering, Kyungpook National University, 80 Daehak-ro, Buk-gu, Daegu 41566, Korea
Younghun Jung: Department of Advanced Science and Technology Convergence, Kyungpook National University, 2559, Gyeongsangdaero, Sangju 37224, Korea

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 19, 1-22

Abstract: The upsurges in population, internal migration, and various development works have caused significant land use and land cover (LULC) changes in the Bagmati Basin of Nepal. The effects of climate change such as increased precipitation and temperature are affecting the provision of ecosystem services (ES). In this regard, this study particularly treated water yield (WY), soil loss, nitrogen export, and carbon fluctuation in the basin. Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST) tools were used to carry out a comparative analysis of ES based on LULC data for 2000 and 2010 and corresponding climate data. To analyze the future period (2010–2099), we have used climate data from the multi-model ensemble (MME) of statistically downscaled and bias-corrected 12 best global climate models (GCMs). A raw GCM analysis (based on historical observational data) from 29 GCMs was done first. The results shows with a subsequent degradation of ES providers like forests and an increment in agricultural and urban areas, ES are on a verge of degradation. Furthermore, a projection of future climate patterns depicts increased precipitation and temperature. Thus, urgent measures are required for the sustainable provision of ES. Outcomes of the study are expected to help in the incorporation of ES in development policies promoting low-impact development along with maintaining ecological and economic goals. The study closes by presenting a recommendation for model application and future study needs.

Keywords: ecosystem services; land use; climate change; GCMs; Bagmati Basin; Nepal (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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