Evaluation of Ecological Service Function of Liquidambar formosana Plantations

Jingdong Wu; Mingxu Wang; Tingting Wang; Xinxi Fu

doi:10.3390/ijerph192215317

Evaluation of Ecological Service Function of Liquidambar formosana Plantations

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Nov 19;19(22):15317. doi: 10.3390/ijerph192215317.

Authors

Jingdong Wu¹, Mingxu Wang², Tingting Wang³, Xinxi Fu³

Affiliations

¹ College of Forestry, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China.
² The Forestry Department of Hunan Province, Changsha 410004, China.
³ College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China.

Abstract

A Liquidambar formosana plantation is a kind of fast-grown forest in the subtropical region, providing a variety of ecosystem services such as superior wood, carbon fixation and oxygen release, and biodiversity maintenance. However, the ecological service function value of Liquidambar formosana plantations is not clear. To gain insights into the characteristics and importance of its ecological and economic benefits, the Liquidambar formosana plantation in the Tianjiling Forest Farm of Changsha City was taken as the specific research object in this paper. The ecological service function evaluation index system for Liquidambar formosana plantations was established based on the relevant research worldwide and the actual situation. The market value method, shadow engineering method, carbon tax method, and other environmental economics methods were used to estimate the value of seven ecological service functions (including organic matter production, carbon fixation and oxygen release, water conservation, soil conservation, soil improvement, air purification, and biodiversity maintenance) of the forest of Liquidambar formosana. The results indicated that the total economic value of ecological service function provided by the Liquidambar formosana plantation of Changsha was 103,277.82 RMB/(hm²·a), and the indirect economic value was 8.47 times that of the direct economic value. Among the seven ecological service functions, the value of carbon fixation and oxygen release was the highest (36,703.33 RMB·hm^-2·a^-1), thus suggesting that the Liquidambar formosana plantation had strong photosynthesis and significant carbon fixation. This study directly reflects the value of forest ecological service function in the form of currency, which is beneficial to provide more insights into forest ecological service function so as to provide basic data and a scientific basis for the protection, construction, and promotion of the sustainable utilization and development of urban forest resources.

Keywords: Liquidambar formosana; ecosystem services; urban forest; value evaluation.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Conservation of Natural Resources
Ecosystem*
Liquidambar*
Oxygen
Soil

Substances

Soil
Oxygen

Grants and funding

This research was funded by Hunan University Innovation Platform open fund project (20K147) and the Leading plan for scientific and technical innovation of new and high-tech industries (2020SK2039).