Urban expansion in the Atlantic Forest: applying the Nature Futures Framework to develop a conceptual model and future scenarios

Abstract: The Atlantic Forest is an important hotspot of biodiversity and ecosystem services that contributes to the well-being of its 125 million human inhabitants, about three quarters of the Brazilian population. In the coming decades, forecasts show that urban areas in the Atlantic Forest will grow at the expense of natural ecosystems, leading to increasing pressure on biodiversity and ecosystem services. We used the Nature Futures Framework (NFF) for envisioning positive scenarios for cities in the Atlantic Forest. First, we developed a conceptual model based on the Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) approach to describe consequences of urban growth for the three NFF perspectives: Nature for Society, Nature for Nature and Nature as Culture. Second, we proposed scenario storylines that encompass multiple social-ecological values of nature and could be used by policy makers to plan desirable futures for the Atlantic Forest. Then, we discussed the impact of distinct policies on these values, identifying the different ways in which the management of urban green and blue spaces, natural ecosystems, and urban densities can lead to different social-ecological outcomes. We further detail the complexity, trade-offs, and synergies regarding city development, nature conservation, and human well-being in this tropical hotspot. Applying NFF can contribute to the ongoing debate regarding urban sustainability, by providing an interdisciplinary and integrative approach that explicitly incorporates multiple values of nature and the visualization of positive futures.

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Assessment of the Spatial Dynamics and Interactions among Multiple Ecosystem Services to Promote Effective Policy Making across Mediterranean Island Landscapes

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su10093285 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (9) ◽

pp. 3285 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Roxanne Lorilla ◽

Konstantinos Poirazidis ◽

Stamatis Kalogirou ◽

Vassilis Detsis ◽

Aristotelis Martinis

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Spatial Dynamics ◽

Well Being ◽

Temporal Variations ◽

Spatial And Temporal Variation ◽

Natural Ecosystems ◽

Economic Resilience ◽

Central Mediterranean ◽

Ionian Islands ◽

Trade Offs

To manage multiple ecosystem services (ES) effectively, it is essential to understand how the dynamics of ES maintain healthy ecosystems to avoid potential negative impacts on human well-being in the context of sustainable development. In particular, the Ionian Islands in the central Mediterranean are characterized by high natural, ecological, and recreational value; however, the intensification of human activities over time has resulted in the loss of natural ecosystems, which might have negatively impacted ES. Here, we aimed to assess and understand the spatiotemporal dynamics of ES supply and how these components interact across the Ionian Islands to optimize future ES provision and mitigate current trade-offs. We quantified multiple ecosystem services and analyzed their interactions at a temporal scale across the four prefectures of the Ionian Islands. Seven ES were quantified covering all three ES sections (provisioning, regulating and maintenance, and cultural) of the Common International Classification of Ecosystem Services (CICES). ES interactions were investigated by analyzing ES relationships, identifying ES bundles (sets of ES that repeatedly occur together across space and time), and specifying ES occurrence within bundles. The three ES groups exhibited similar patterns on some islands, but differed on islands with areas of high recreation in parallel to low provisioning and regulating ES. Temporal variations showed both stability and changes to the supply of ES, as well as in the interactions among them. Different patterns among the islands were caused by the degree of mixing between natural vegetation and olive orchards. This study identified seven ES bundles that had distinct compositions and magnitudes, with both unique and common bundles being found among the islands. The olive grove bundle delivered the most ES, while the non-vegetated bundle delivered negligible amounts of ES. Spatial and temporal variation in ES appear to be determined by agriculture, land abandonment, and increasing tourism, as well as the occurrence of fires. Knowledge about the spatial dynamics and interactions among ES could provide information for stakeholders and decision-making processes to develop appropriate sustainable management of the ecosystems on the Ionian Islands to secure ecological, social, and economic resilience.

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Examining Linkages among Livelihood Strategies, Ecosystem Services, and Social Well-Being to Improve National Park Management

Land ◽

10.3390/land10080823 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (8) ◽

pp. 823

Author(s):

Siyuan He ◽

Louise Gallagher ◽

Qingwen Min

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Protected Areas ◽

Cultural Values ◽

National Park ◽

Well Being ◽

Livelihood Strategies ◽

Ecological System ◽

Sustainable Livelihood ◽

Social Ecological ◽

The Impact

This research examines perceptions of ecosystem services (ES) and social well-being in the Wuyishan National Park, China. This study analyses the importance of and linkages between them based on the impact of new designation of protected areas on this social-ecological system. Realisation of rural well-being is critical to park-people relations in populated protected areas, and effective resolution is needed to achieve positive conservation outcomes. We conducted 372 structured interviews with community members with different livelihood strategies. Key findings from the research include: (1) the importance of provisioning (e.g., tea, rice, timber) and cultural ES (e.g., local culture, eco-tourism) is related to both current livelihood necessity and future development pursuit. (2) The perceived material well-being is higher than spiritual well-being, and high social well-being is closely related to high-income groups and those that think highly of cultural services, i.e., those engaged in non-agricultural activities (e.g., tourism) and tea cultivation. (3) Cultural values are better preserved in tea and rice cultivation and tourism, but in general, they are not incorporated to improve social well-being. The results suggest that Protected area (PA) management of local communities must seek cultural valorisation for differentiated livelihood strategies for rural people’s sustainable livelihood and stability of the social-ecological system.

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The Grain for Green Program Intensifies Trade-Offs between Ecosystem Services in Midwestern Shanxi, China

Remote Sensing ◽

10.3390/rs13193966 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (19) ◽

pp. 3966

Author(s):

Baoan Hu ◽

Zhijie Zhang ◽

Hairong Han ◽

Zuzheng Li ◽

Xiaoqin Cheng ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Ecosystem Services ◽

Land Use Change ◽

Ecological Engineering ◽

Well Being ◽

Chinese Government ◽

Grain For Green ◽

Grain For Green Program ◽

Trade Offs ◽

The Impact

Ecological engineering is a widely used strategy to address environmental degradation and enhance human well-being. A quantitative assessment of the impacts of ecological engineering on ecosystem services (ESs) is a prerequisite for designing inclusive and sustainable engineering programs. In order to strengthen national ecological security, the Chinese government has implemented the world’s largest ecological project since 1999, the Grain for Green Program (GFGP). We used a professional model to evaluate the key ESs in Lvliang City. Scenario analysis was used to quantify the contribution of the GFGP to changes in ESs and the impacts of trade-offs/synergy. We used spatial regression to identify the main drivers of ES trade-offs. We found that: (1) From 2000 to 2018, the contribution rates of the GFGP to changes in carbon storage (CS), habitat quality (HQ), water yield (WY), and soil conservation (SC) were 140.92%, 155.59%, −454.48%, and 92.96%, respectively. GFGP compensated for the negative impacts of external environmental pressure on CS and HQ, and significantly improved CS, HQ, and SC, but at the expense of WY. (2) The GFGP promotes the synergistic development of CS, HQ, and SC, and also intensifies the trade-off relationships between WY and CS, WY and HQ, and WY and SC. (3) Land use change and urbanization are significantly positively correlated with the WY–CS, WY–HQ, and WY–SC trade-offs, while increases in NDVI helped alleviate these trade-offs. (4) Geographically weighted regression explained 90.8%, 94.2%, and 88.2% of the WY–CS, WY–HQ, and WY–SC trade-offs, respectively. We suggest that the ESs’ benefits from the GFGP can be maximized by controlling the intensity of land use change, optimizing the development of urbanization, and improving the effectiveness of afforestation. This general method of quantifying the impact of ecological engineering on ESs can act as a reference for future ecological restoration plans and decision-making in China and across the world.

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Impact of Urban Expansion On Carbon Storage Under Multi-Scenario Simulations In Wuhan, China

10.21203/rs.3.rs-1129892/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Zhuo Wang ◽

Jie Zeng ◽

Wanxu Chen

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Carbon Storage ◽

Anthropogenic Impacts ◽

Urban Expansion ◽

Well Being ◽

Total Carbon ◽

Baseline Scenario ◽

Carbon Loss ◽

Trade Offs ◽

The Impact

Abstract Carbon storage in terrestrial ecosystems, which is the basis of the global carbon cycle, reflects the changes in the environment due to anthropogenic impacts. Rapid and effective assessment of the impact of urban expansion on carbon reserves is vital for the sustainable development of urban ecosystems. Previous studies lack research regarding different scenarios during future city and comprehensive analysis on the driving factors from the socioeconomic point of view. Therefore, this study examined Wuhan, China and explored the latent effects of urban expansion on terrestrial carbon storage by combining the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs (InVEST) and Patch-generating Land Use Simulation (PLUS) model. Based on different socioeconomic strategies, we developed three future scenarios, including Baseline Scenario (BS), Cropland Protection Scenario (CP), and Ecological protection Scenario (EP), to predict the urban built-up land use change from 2015 to 2035 in Wuhan and discussed the carbon storage impacts of urban expansion. The result shows that: (1) Wuhan's urban built-up land area expanded 2.67 times between 1980 and 2015, which is approximately 685.17 km2 and is expected to continuously expand to 1,349–1,945.01 km2 by 2035. (2) Urban expansion in Wuhan has caused carbon storage loss by 5.12×106 t during 1980–2015 and will lead to carbon storage loss by 6.15×106 t, 4.7×106 t, and 4.05×106 t under BS, CP, and EP scenarios from 2015 to 2035, accounting for 85.42%, 81.74%, and 78.79% of the total carbon loss, respectively. (3) The occupation of cropland by urban expansion is closely related to the road system expansion, which is the main driver of carbon storage reduction from 2015 to 2035. (4) We expect that by 2035, the districts facing carbon loss caused by the growth of urban built-up land will expand outward around secondary roads, and the scale of outward expansion under various scenarios will be ranked as: BS >CP > EP. In combination, the InVEST and the PLUS model can assess the impact of urban expansion on carbon storage more efficiently and is conducive to carrying out urban planning and promoting a dynamic balance between urban economic development and human well-being.

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The impact of two decades of land-use changes in potential ecosystem services supply in a Portuguese municipality - Coimbra

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-1291 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Inês Amorim Leitão ◽

Carla Sofia Santos Ferreira ◽

António José Dinis Ferreira

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Ecosystem Services ◽

Urban Areas ◽

Agricultural Land ◽

Urban Expansion ◽

Land Use Changes ◽

Qualitative Evaluation ◽

Well Being ◽

Positive Potential ◽

The Impact

<p>Land-use changes affect the properties of ecosystems, and are typically associated with decreasing ability to supply services, which in turn causes a decrease in the social well-being. Urbanization is identified as one of the main causes of ecosystem degradation, once it is considered an artificial space that replaces natural areas.This study investigates the impact of land-use changes during 20 years (1995-2015) on the potential supply of ecosystem services in Coimbra municipality, central Portugal. The assessment was based on the evaluation performed by 31 experts familiar with the study area, through questionnaires. The experts ranked the potential supply of 31 ecosystem services, grouped in regulation, provisioning and cultural services, for the several land-uses existent. Experts performed a qualitative evaluation, considering &#8216;strong adverse potential&#8217;, &#8216;weak adverse potential&#8217;, &#8216;not relevant&#8217;, &#8216;low positive potential&#8217; and &#8216;strong positive potential&#8217;. The qualitative evaluation was converted into a quantitative classification (-2, -1, 0, 1, 2). Quantitative values were then used to develop an ecosystem services quantification matrix and to map the information in the study area, using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). An urban expansion from 14% to 18% was recorded over the last 20 years. Agricultural land decreased 8% due to conversion into forest (4% increase) and urban areas (4% increase). This has led to a decrease in the supply of provision (e.g. food) and regulation services (e.g. flood regulation). In fact, over the last years, recurrent floods have been increasingly noticed in Coimbra city. On the other hand, the growth of forest areas has led to an increase in general ESs supply. The adverse impacts of urbanization were partially compensated by enlarging the benefits provided by forest areas, which is the land-use with greatest ESs potential supply. In order to support urban planning and develop sustainable cities, it is essential to quantify the potential supply of ecosystem services considering local scale and characteristics.</p>

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People and water: Exploring the social-ecological condition of watersheds of the United States

Elem Sci Anth ◽

10.1525/elementa.189 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 5 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Murray W. Scown ◽

Joseph E. Flotemersch ◽

Trisha L. Spanbauer ◽

Tarsha Eason ◽

Ahjond Garmestani ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Large Scale ◽

Well Being ◽

Governance Structure ◽

The United States ◽

Ecological Condition ◽

Mississippi Valley ◽

Social Ecological ◽

Trade Offs ◽

The Social

A recent paradigm shift from purely biophysical towards social-ecological assessment of watersheds has been proposed to understand, monitor, and manipulate the myriad interactions between human well-being and the ecosystem services that watersheds provide. However, large-scale, quantitative studies in this endeavour remain limited. We utilised two newly developed ‘big-data’ sets—the Index of Watershed Integrity (IWI) and the Human Well-Being Index (HWBI)—to explore the social-ecological condition of watersheds throughout the conterminous U.S., and identified environmental and socio-economic influences on watershed integrity and human well-being. Mean county IWI was highly associated with ecoregion, industry-dependence, and state, in a spatially-explicit regression model (R2 = 0.77, P < 0.001), whereas HWBI was not (R2 = 0.31, P < 0.001). HWBI is likely influenced by factors not explored here, such as governance structure and formal and informal organisations and institutions. ‘Win-win’ situations in which both IWI and HWBI were above the 75th percentile were observed in much of Utah, Colorado, and New Hampshire, and lessons from governance that has resulted in desirable outcomes might be learnt from here. Eastern Kentucky and West Virginia, along with large parts of the desert southwest, had intact watersheds but low HWBI, representing areas worthy of further investigation of how ecosystem services might be utilised to improve well-being. The Temperate Prairies and Central USA Plains had widespread areas of low IWI but high HWBI, likely a result of historic exploitation of watershed resources to improve well-being, particularly in farming-dependent counties. The lower Mississippi Valley had low IWI and HWBI, which is likely related to historical (temporal) and upstream (spatial) impacts on both watershed integrity and well-being. The results emphasise the importance of considering spatial and temporal trade-offs when utilising the ecosystem services provided by watersheds to improve human well-being.

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The Value of Urban Nature in Terms of Providing Ecosystem Services Related to Health and Well-Being: An Empirical Comparative Pilot Study of Cities in Germany and the Czech Republic

Land ◽

10.3390/land10040341 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (4) ◽

pp. 341

Author(s):

Ralf-Uwe Syrbe ◽

Ina Neumann ◽

Karsten Grunewald ◽

Patrycia Brzoska ◽

Jiři Louda ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Ecosystem Services ◽

Green Space ◽

Well Being ◽

Urban Green Space ◽

Urban Nature ◽

Urban Green ◽

Green Areas ◽

The Impact ◽

Health And Well Being

The quality of life in our cities critically depends on the intelligent planning and shaping of urban living space, in particular urban nature. By providing a wide range of ecosystem services (ES), urban nature essentially contributes to the well-being of city dwellers and plays a major role in avoiding common diseases through its positive impact on physical and mental health. Health is one of the most important factors underlying human welfare and is, thus, vital to sustainable development. The ES of urban green space provide other social-cultural functions alongside public health, for example by fostering environmental justice and citizenship participation. Thus, they should always be considered when searching for solutions to urban problems. The aim of this research was to determine the impact of green areas in three selected cities on the health and well-being of people by self-reporting of green areas’ visitors. To this end, we posed the research question: which types and characteristics of urban green space are most appreciated by city dwellers? Based on our findings, we have drawn up recommendations for practices to promote better living conditions. We have also pinpointed obstacles to and opportunities for leisure time activities as well as ways of supporting the public health of citizens.

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Nexus between Indigenous Ecological Knowledge and Ecosystem Services: A Socio-Ecological Analysis for Sustainable Ecosystem Management

10.21203/rs.3.rs-519222/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Manob Das ◽

Arijit Das ◽

Selim Seikh ◽

Rajiv Pandey

Keyword(s):

Environmental Management ◽

Ecosystem Services ◽

Statistical Tests ◽

Belief Systems ◽

Well Being ◽

Ecological Knowledge ◽

Human Society ◽

Indigenous Ecological Knowledge ◽

Demographic Attributes ◽

The Impact

Abstract The well-being of the human society cannot be ensured and sustainable unless the flow of Ecosystem Services (ESs) would be matching with their consistent demand. The consistent flow of ESs required sustainable management of ecological resources of the ecosystem. The management of ecosystem can be ensured with variety of approaches. Integration of indigenous ecological knowledge (IEK) in management prescription with the view that IEK based extraction of ESs ensures removal of resources from the ecosystem within the limit thereby ensuring the sustainability of ecosystem. Present study is an evaluation to understand the nexus between ESs and IEK for sustainable environmental management. The focus of the study was a tribal dominated socio-ecological patch of Barind Region of Malda district, Eastern India. The assessment of ESs and IEK was based on the data collected from the randomly selected tribal households following the pre-tested questionnaire containing questions on ESs as per millennium ecosystem assessment. The data were analyzed following social preference approach, and statistical tests (Krushkal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney). General linear model (GLM) has also been used to examine the impact of socio-demographic attributes on the perceived valuation of ESs. The results revealed that the provisioning ESs (such as water, fuel wood, medical plants) was most preferred followed by cultural and regulating ESs by tribal. Differential importance of ESs was observed among tribal and accounted by gender, education as well as age of the tribe. A gap between the actual accessibility and evaluation of ESs by the tribal communities was also apparent. The socio-demographic attributes have an immense impact on the valuation of ecosystem services and also governed based on the IEK. Various types of indigenous ecological belief systems were closely linked with conservation of ecosystem and sustainable supply of ESs. Present study can contribute to understand socio-ecological nexus with the lens of IEK in tribal dominated ecological landscapes for improved ecosystem and environmental management besides ensuring sustainability of flow of ecosystem services.

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Geographical Analysis of Entertainment Services in the City of Daratu Using Geographical Information Systems (GIS)

Journal of Raparin University ◽

10.26750/vol(8).no(3).paper28 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (3) ◽

pp. 618-644

Author(s):

Hoshmand Jawhar Abbas ◽

Sanger Ahmed Hussein ◽

Fatimah Qader Mustafa

Keyword(s):

Geographical Information Systems ◽

Urban Expansion ◽

Well Being ◽

Geographical Information ◽

Population Increase ◽

Recreational Facilities ◽

Financial Gain ◽

Recreational Services ◽

The Impact ◽

The City

The impact of the recreational services that exist within the group of services that are practiced within the geographical framework of the city, is not limited to the lives of its residents and their activities, but also on the residents of the surrounding areas. Recreational services contribute to providing diversified investment opportunities for leisure time, so that they are appropriate and beneficial to the health, comfort and well-being of the population at the lowest possible cost, without the goal of their establishment being financial gain, as they lead to the creation of mental, psychological and physical balance on the level of one individual and on the basis of society in a way. In general, recreational services are an integral part of urban activities in most cities of the world. Rather, the concept of modernity and urbanization in contemporary urban centers is measured to some extent by the availability of recreational facilities for their inhabitants, and the study also showed the low level of efficiency of recreational services in terms of their spatial distribution and numbers. As it is concentrated in some neighborhoods of the city, while it is less or absent in other neighborhoods, as well as not taking into account the planning standards in its distribution and during its construction in line with the population increase, urban expansion and the residents' needs for these services. The success in providing these different types of recreational facilities depends on how they are distributed geographically. The balanced distribution of these activities determines the success of the adopted plans in achieving the required goals and policies.

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Social Learning for Facilitating Dialogue and Understanding of the Ecosystem Services Approach: Lessons from a Cross-Border Experience in the Alboran Marine Basin

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11195239 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (19) ◽

pp. 5239 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

María D. López-Rodríguez ◽

Javier Cabello ◽

Hermelindo Castro ◽

Jaime Rodríguez

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Social Learning ◽

Social Transformation ◽

Decision Makers ◽

Ecological System ◽

Social Ecological ◽

The Social ◽

Governance Practice ◽

The Impact ◽

Marine Basin

Social learning (SL) appears to have considerable potential to enhance the impact of the ecosystem services approach (ESA) discourse on policy and society. However, empirical research to better understand the processes that support SL, the effects it generates, and the conditions that enable such learning is limited. This study assesses the ability of SL to enhance dialogue and understanding of the ESA to support transformative social change in governance practice in the Alboran Marine Basin. To do so, we conducted a specifically designed SL process oriented towards the ESA as a governance approach in this marine region. The SL process was developed through three interlinked workshops involving scientists, decision-makers and local users from Spain and Morocco, the two countries that share the governance of this social-ecological system. The results revealed that the SL process progressively facilitated (i) a more inclusive and constructive ecosystem services dialogue, (ii) a better understanding of the social-ecological system in which the actors were embedded, (iii) an enhanced recognition of science-policy-society complementarities to address sustainability issues, and (iv) a gradual social transformation towards more sustainable and equitable governance. Via the SL process, a variety of factors were identified as contributing to the creation of four relevant conditions that facilitated its successful operationalisation. These conditions included (i) the generation of trust and shared understanding, (ii) the facilitation of knowledge exchanges between actor groups across frontiers, (iii) the promotion of more democratic participation, and (iv) the co-production of practical outcomes. These contextual insights provided empirical evidence of the prominent role SL can play to enhance dialogue and understanding of the ESA for supporting its adoption as governance practice. On this basis, it is argued that operationalising SL in those processes focused on making the ESA relevant to policy and society is pivotal to its implementation in governance practice.

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