Research on the change of alpine ecosystem service value and its sustainable development path

• Published in: Ecological indicators Vol. 146; p. 109893
• Main Authors: Yang, Haijiang, Gou, Xiaohua, Xue, Bing, Ma, Weijing, Kuang, Wennong, Tu, Zhenyu, Gao, Linlin, Yin, Dingcai, Zhang, Junzhou
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.02.2023; Elsevier
• Subjects: Alpine ecosystems; Driving factors; Ecosystem service value; Qilian Mountains; Sustainable development; Driving factors; Ecosystem service value; Qilian Mountains; Sustainable development; Alpine ecosystems
• ISSN: 1470-160X; 1872-7034
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolind.2023.109893

•The space-time patterns of alpine ecosystem services value (ESV) were evaluated.•Forest and grassland ecosystems have the greatest ESV potential.•The change of alpine ESV is more sensitive to short-term of high-intensity human activities.•The path model of alpine ecosystems sustainable development is constructed. Alpine ecosystems play an important role in maintaining carbon sequestration, water balance, ecological security, biodiversity and human well-being. However, climate change and high-intensity human activities lead to the continuous degradation of vulnerable alpine ecosystems. Based on this, we reveal trends in ecosystem change in the Qilian Mountains of China on a 40-year scale and identify the primary driving factors of change in alpine ecosystems from the perspective of ecosystem service value (ESV) change, providing a more comprehensive picture of the interactions between human society and natural ecosystem. The results showed that more than 55 % of ecosystem types changed from 1980 to 2018, with forests, grasslands, glaciers and bare land being the most vulnerable ecosystems to disturbance, and forest and grassland ecosystems having significant ESV potential (43.99 % and 29.57 %, respectively). However, significant land use and land cover (LULC) changes over the last decade have led to a reduction in ESV stability in alpine ecosystems, where human activities have a more significant impact on ESV of sparse woodland, shrubland and grassland ecosystem at 2800–4000 m. The temperature rise had a more noticeable impact on the ESV of glaciers, alpine meadows and bare land ecosystems at 4000–5500 m. In the long terms, climate change and population growth will threaten the restoration and management of alpine ecosystems. Different ecological development strategies need to be adopted along the altitude, and the establishment of cross regional horizontal ecological compensation mechanism should be accelerated to promote the sustainable development of ecology and people’s livelihood in mountainous areas. The results of this study will provide relevant theoretical basis and reference for decision makers, and provide a model for scientific management and sustainable development of alpine ecosystem resources worldwide.