scholarly journals Assessing Ecosystem Services from the Forestry-Based Reclamation of Surface Mined Areas in the North Fork of the Kentucky River Watershed

Forests ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 652 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kumari Gurung ◽  
Jian Yang ◽  
Lei Fang
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Carbon Storage ◽  
Surface Mining ◽  
Water Yield ◽  
Lulc Change ◽  
The North ◽  
Software Models ◽  
Kentucky River ◽  
North Fork

Surface mining is a major driver of land use land cover (LULC) change in many mountainous areas such as the Appalachian region. Typical reclamation practices often result in land cover dominated by grass and shrubs. Assessing ecosystem services that can be obtained from a forest landscape may help policy-makers and other stakeholders fully understand the benefits of forestry-based reclamation (FRA). The objectives of this study are to (1) identify how surface mining and reclamation changed the LULC of a watershed encompassing the north fork of the Kentucky River, (2) assess the biophysical value of four major ecosystem services under the contemporary LULC condition, and (3) assess the benefits of the FRA scenario in the provision of ecosystem services. Geographic Information System (GIS) was used to study the LULC change and InVEST software models for ecosystem services assessment. The results indicate that watershed’s forest area has decreased by 7751 hectares from 2001 to 2011 and mining/reclamation activities may have contributed 65% of the overall changes in LULC. Barren and grassland land covers provide less carbon storage, yield more water, and export more sediments and nutrients than forests. At the watershed level, the FRA scenario increased carbon storage (13%) and reduced water yield (5%), sediment export (40%), and nutrient export (7%). The provision of these ecosystem services varies at the subwatershed level, and such spatial heterogeneity is primarily driven by land cover composition, precipitation, and topography. This study provides critical information regarding the ecological benefits of restoring mined land to assist policy and decision making at landscape scales.

scholarly journals Quantifying the Spatial Association between Land Use Change and Ecosystem Services Value: A Case Study in Xi’an, China

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 4449
Author(s):  
Yajing Shao ◽  
Xuefeng Yuan ◽  
Chaoqun Ma ◽  
Ruifang Ma ◽  
Zhaoxia Ren
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Spatial Heterogeneity ◽  
Spatial Association ◽  
Lulc Change ◽  
Ecosystem Services Value ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Gwr Model ◽  
The Relationship

The impact of land use and land cover (LULC) change on ecosystem services value (ESV) varies in different spatial locations. Although many studies have focused on quantifying the effect of LULC change on ESV, few have considered the spatial heterogeneity of the relationship between LULC change and ESV. Therefore, this study examines the relationship between ESV and LULC change from a spatial perspective in Xi’an City. We divide the study area into 10,522 grid cells, based on land cover data from 2000 to 2018, and we identify the spatial-temporal dynamics of LULC change. Next, we employ the Benefits Transfer Method (BTM) to evaluate the ESV, and the ESV is corrected by the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). A geographically weighted regression (GWR) model and ordinary least squares (OLS) regression model are used to assess the spatial association of LULC change and ESV. The results show that the total ESV loss is 6.57 billion yuan (Chinese yuan), and the loss rate is 12.18%. The distribution of ESV shows an obvious spatial heterogeneity, and the low-value area of ESV expands eastward from the main urban area. More than 50% of total ESV is provided by woodland. From 2000 to 2018, the land use pattern in Xi’an underwent a significant change with the developed land increasing by 64.09%, whereas farmland decreased by 12.49%. Based on the GWR model, the relationship between LULC change and ESV in Xi’an showed a significant negative association and spatial heterogeneity. Our study results provide a new way to effectively identify the relationship between LULC change and ESV, and in turn, to fully understand the ecological trends at the regional scale, laying a foundation for regional sustainable development.

scholarly journals Quantifying the Landscape’s Ecological Benefits—An Analysis of the Effect of Land Cover Change on Ecosystem Services

Land ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 21
Author(s):  
J. Carl Ureta ◽  
Lucas Clay ◽  
Marzieh Motallebi ◽  
Joan Ureta
Keyword(s):  
South Carolina ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Land Cover Change ◽  
Cover Crops ◽  
Soil Nutrient ◽  
Yield Potential ◽  
Water Yield ◽  
Sediment Retention ◽  
Retention Capacity

The increasing pressure from land cover change exacerbates the negative effect on ecosystems and ecosystem services (ES). One approach to inform holistic and sustainable management is to quantify the ES provided by the landscape. Using the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST) model, this study quantified the sediment retention capacity and water yield potential of different land cover in the Santee River Basin Network in South Carolina, USA. Results showed that vegetated areas provided the highest sediment retention capacity and lowest water yield potential. Also, the simulations demonstrated that keeping the offseason crop areas vegetated by planting cover crops improves the monthly ES provision of the landscape. Retaining the soil within the land area prevents possible contamination and siltation of rivers and streams. On the other hand, low water yield potential translates to low occurrence of surface runoff, which indicates better soil erosion control, regulated soil nutrient absorption and gradual infiltration. The results of this study can be used for landscape sustainability management to assess the possible tradeoffs between ecological conservation and economic development. Furthermore, the generated map of ES can be used to pinpoint the areas where ES are best provided within the landscape.

scholarly journals Flood-inundation maps for the North Fork Kentucky River at Hazard, Kentucky

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justin A. Boldt ◽  
Jeremiah G. Lant ◽  
Nicholas E. Kolarik
Keyword(s):  
Flood Inundation ◽  
Inundation Maps ◽  
The North ◽  
Kentucky River ◽  
North Fork

scholarly journals A Land Use/Land Cover Based Green Development Study for Different Functional Regions in the Jiangsu Province, China

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (7) ◽  
pp. 1277
Author(s):  
Xiaomin Guo ◽  
Xiaowei Chuai ◽  
Xianjin Huang
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Carbon Storage ◽  
Jiangsu Province ◽  
Total Carbon ◽  
Land Use Land Cover ◽  
Lulc Change ◽  
Lulc Changes ◽  
Functional Regions ◽  
Green Development

Land use/land cover (LULC) change can strongly affect carbon storage in terrestrial ecosystems. The rapid development of China’s economy has formed different functional regions. These functional regions profoundly affect land use patterns. Thus, assessing the carbon storage induced by LULC changes is significant for green development. Selecting the typical region of the Jiangsu Province as the study area, this study first examines the research associated with the regional functional characteristics and various high accuracy data and methods have been used to greatly improve the research accuracy. The results showed that from 1995 to 2015, approximately 10.26% of the entire land area had LULC type changes. Additionally, decreases in the built-up land expansion and ecological land were the main LULC change characteristics, which are mainly affected by socioeconomic development. The total carbon storage of the Jiangsu Province decreased by 714.03 × 104 t and the four regions all presented decreasing carbon storage levels. The economically developed regions presented a more obvious loss of carbon. The region with small LULC changes had a lower carbon loss. The land transfer of cultivated land to built-up land is the main transfer type causing the carbon storage loss. This study investigates the human-environmental interactions from the new perspective of functional zoning and, thus, it enriches the comparative analysis of carbon storage in functional regions and provides references for the green development of a developing country’s developed areas.

scholarly journals Research Progress on Changes in Land Use and Land Cover in the Western Himalayas (India) and Effects on Ecosystem Services

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 4504 ◽  
Author(s):  
Partho Protim Mondal ◽  
Yili Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Western Himalaya ◽  
Himalayan Region ◽  
Research Progress ◽  
Western Himalayas ◽  
Lulc Change ◽  
Western Himalayan Region

Western Himalaya is an important region in terms of its enriched biodiversity and immense ecosystem services (ESS). However, its biodiversity and ESS are under tremendous pressure from rapid population growth, developmental activities, unplanned urbanization, agricultural expansion, climate change, and the associated changes in land use and land cover (LULC). This study provides a systematic review of the composition and pattern of LULC (from existing literature) and the effects of LULC change on various ESS provided by the western Himalayan ecosystems. Despite being such a significant area, data and studies concerning the impacts of LULC change on the spatial distribution of ESS, focused particularly on the western Himalayan region are inadequately reported. Most existing studies indicate a general decrease in forest cover and an increase in forest fragmentation along with generally increasing trends in built-up areas, croplands, and barren lands. These results imply ecosystem degradation and a reduction in the potential for the sustainable flow of ESS from this region. In this respect, this study suggests that quantification and spatial mapping of ESS in the western Himalayan region is conducted.

scholarly journals Temporary Salt Lakes: Ecosystem Services Shift in a Ramsar Site Over a 50-Year Period

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ioanna Ioannidou ◽  
Paraskevi Manolaki ◽  
Vassilis D. Litskas ◽  
Ioannis N. Vogiatzakis
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Carbon Storage ◽  
Salt Lake ◽  
Satellite Image ◽  
Landscape Aesthetics ◽  
Lulc Changes ◽  
Climate Regulation ◽  
Land Use Types

Changes in land use/land cover (LULC) are the key factors driving biodiversity and ecosystem services decline globally. This study examines spatiotemporal LULC changes in a Ramsar coastal temporary wetland (Larnaca Salt Lake) on the island of Cyprus between 1963 and 2015. LULC changes in the area are related to variations in the provision of ecosystem services (ES) namely food provision, climate regulation, avifauna support and landscape aesthetics. LULC mapping was performed based on the interpretation of aerial photos taken in 1963, while 2015 mapping was based on CORINE classification validated by satellite image analysis and fieldwork. We used the following indicators for the ES examined: (1) crops’ yield for the estimation of food supply, (2) carbon storage potential for climate regulation, (3) land cover potential to support avifauna richness and (4) naturalness as a proxy for landscape aesthetics. Quantifications were based on a mixed-methods approach with the use of statistical data, expert opinion and bibliography. Estimates for every service were assigned to CORINE land use classes (CLC) present in the area. Landscape structure was measured using a suite of commonly employed landscape metrics. The results showed that between 1963 and 2015 there has been a significant reduction in food provisioning service by 75%, a 37% reduction in carbon storage capacity, an 11% reduction in the capacity to support avifauna, and a 13% reduction in landscape aesthetics. Increased soil surface sealing, mainly with the construction of the international airport, which resulted in the conversion of natural or semi-natural to artificial surfaces, has been the main reason for the decrease in ES supply over the last fifty years in the study area. The character of the area in terms of land use types richness and diversity remains fairly stable but the dominant land use types have experienced fragmentation. The study sets the basis for a monitoring scheme to evaluate the state of the temporary wetlands with emphasis placed on spatial processes as a link to ES provision.

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