Impact of Land Use Change on the Ecosystem Service Value in Sichuan Province

PurposeTo explore the land use and cover change (LUCC) and its impact on ecosystem service value (ESV) in Sichuan Province from 2000 to 2018, so as to provide reference for efficient land use, ecological environment protection and management in Sichuan Province.

MethodsLand use transfer matrix, equivalent factor method and spatial autocorrelation analysis were used to analyze the spatio-temporal change characteristics of land use types and their effects on ESV in Sichuan Province in the past 18 years.

Results(1) From 2000 to 2018, grassland, forest and cultivated land were the main land use types, accounting for 95% of the total area. During this period, the construction land increased substantially, the cultivated land and grassland continued to decrease, the forestland increased greatly, and the unused land and water area increased, but the increase was not obvious. (2) The net increment of ESV in Sichuan Province was 74.38 billion yuan, and individual ecosystem services such as soil conservation and biodiversity maintenance made the greatest contribution. The increase of forestland and water area played a key role in the increment of ESV. (3) The distribution of ESV in Sichuan Province had a positive spatial auto correlation, showing a distribution pattern of high in the west and low in the east, and the change of ESV in each city and state was obvious. The forest in the western part of Sichuan was lush, and it was a high-high gathering place for ESV. The basin area was dense in cities and is the main low-low concentration area.

ConclusionForestland and water area are the main supporters of ESV increment. It is necessary to carry out eco-tourism in the areas with high value of ESV in western Sichuan according to local conditions to further improve ecological benefits. At the same time, in the areas with low value of ESV in the basin, we should strengthen the protection of cultivated land, improve the utilization rate of urban space, and promote the development of land use structure in the direction of ESV increment and value preservation.