[Spatio-temporal dynamics of ecosystem service value in Wuhan Urban Agglomeration].

ABSTRACT

Based on the land use vector data of Wuhan Urban Agglomeration in the years 1990, 2000 and 2009, this paper used Costanza' s evaluation formula to estimate the ecosystem service value (ESV) of the study area according to "equivalent value per unit area of ecosystem services in China" and analyze its spatio-temporal characteristics. Then the correlation analysis was applied to explore the association between the ESV evolution and the land use changes. The results showed that due to the substantial growth of water area, the ESV of Wuhan Urban Agglomeration increased by 9.5% during the study period, which showed an overall rising trend. The ESV of water regulation and waste treatment increased obviously. Furthermore, the ESV changes showed obvious regional differences, which were most significant in Xiantao, Xinzhou and Yunmeng. The ESV was higher in the southeast and lower in the northwest. Over time, a Wuhan-centered "low-high-low" hierarchically distributed structure of ESV was formed in the eastern, western and northern parts. The ecologic dominance of the northern mountainous and hilly region was gradually abated, while a structural expansion with a high-ESV cluster had taken place in the southern part of the region in 2009. During the research period, the temporal change of ESV in Wuhan Urban Agglomeration was positively correlated with the area changes of forestland, water, grassland and cultivated land. However, the spatially balanced distribution of ESV was negatively correlated with the dispersion degrees of the cultivated land and unused land.