Special Issue "Remote Sensing Based Monitoring of Terrestrial Ecosystem Service Bundles, Trade-Offs and Synergies"

A special issue of Remote Sensing (ISSN 2072-4292).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2021.

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Jeroen Meersmans
E-Mail Website1 Website2
Guest Editor
1. Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, Liège University, 4000 Liège, Belgium
2. Centre for Environment and Agricultural Informatics, Soil and Agrifood Institute, School of Water, Energy and Environment, Cranfield University, Bedford MK43 0AL, UK
Interests: soil science; ecosystem services; soil organic carbon; climate change; environmental informatics; sustainable land systems; landscape ecology
Dr. Toby Waine
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centre for Environment and Agricultural Informatics, Soil and Agrifood Institute, School of Water, Energy and Environment, Cranfield University, UK
Interests: water science and engineering; natural capital; instrumentation and sensors; soil resources; digital agriculture
Dr. Jian Peng
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
Interests: urbanization ecological effects; ecosystem services trade-offs; landscape multifunctionality; ecological security patterns

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, remote sensing has become the most successful methodology to monitor earth surface processes and assess ecosystem service supply across a wide range of terrestrial environments. In this Special Issue, we welcome contributions from studies focusing on the use of remote sensing technology to investigate two or more terrestrial ecosystem services. These studies may consider any technology that enables stand-off collection of data (from X-ray CT scanning to satellite imagery) in order to get an improved representation of either a soil property, plant characteristic or land surface process, with the objective to assess the delivery of multiple ecosystem services. Hence, the present Special Issue will host papers considering a wide range of terrestrial ecosystem services (e.g., food security, soil conservation, climate regulation, flood protection, drinking water quantity and quality) as well as spatial (soil pore–global) and temporal scales (minutes–decades). However, particular interest will be given to research that aims to assess ecosystem service bundles, trade-offs, and synergies and obtain insights into the associated environmental feedbacks, including climate change, land use change and agromanagement. We encourage the authors to highlight the socioeconomic and/or environmental impact potentials of their scientific outcomes as well as translate these into recommendations for policy making.

Dr. Jeroen Meersmans
Dr. Toby Waine
Dr. Jian Peng
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All papers will be peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Remote Sensing is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Ecosystem service bundles
  • Food security
  • Climate regulation
  • Water supply
  • Flood control
  • Soil conservation

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

Article
Coupling Analysis of Ecosystem Services Value and Economic Development in the Yangtze River Economic Belt: A Case Study in Hunan Province, China
Remote Sens. 2021, 13(8), 1552; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13081552 - 16 Apr 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 443
Abstract
Sound ecosystems are a precondition for the sustainable survival and development of human society. However, ecological deterioration caused by socioeconomic activities can result in increasing pressure on ecosystems. Exploration of the spatial interaction between ecosystem and economic development under the background of high-quality [...] Read more.
Sound ecosystems are a precondition for the sustainable survival and development of human society. However, ecological deterioration caused by socioeconomic activities can result in increasing pressure on ecosystems. Exploration of the spatial interaction between ecosystem and economic development under the background of high-quality and green development is, therefore, necessary. In this study, we analyzed the spatial interaction between the ecosystem services value (ESV) and economic development with the economic and ecological coupling index method based on high-resolution remote-sensing land-use data and socioeconomic statistical data in Hunan Province from 2000 to 2018. The results revealed that the ESV provided by the ecosystems in Hunan Province decreased by US$1256.166 million from 2000 to 2018. The areas with high ESV per unit area were distributed in the mountainous areas, while the areas with low ESV per unit area were distributed in the major cities and their surroundings. The bivariate spatial autocorrelation analysis showed that the ESV had significant spatial dependence on the economic development. In addition, the coupling analysis documented that the relationship between the ESV and economic density was mostly in the low conflict and potential crisis states. These results provide important guidance for the coordinated development of the regional economy and ecosystem conservation. Full article
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Article
Spatiotemporal Variation in Ecosystem Services and Their Drivers among Different Landscape Heterogeneity Units and Terrain Gradients in the Southern Hill and Mountain Belt, China
Remote Sens. 2021, 13(7), 1375; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13071375 - 02 Apr 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 594
Abstract
Understanding the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of ecosystem services (ESs) and their drivers in mountainous areas is important for sustainable ecosystem management. However, the effective construction of landscape heterogeneous units (LHUs) to reflect the spatial characteristics of ESs remains to be studied. The southern hill [...] Read more.
Understanding the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of ecosystem services (ESs) and their drivers in mountainous areas is important for sustainable ecosystem management. However, the effective construction of landscape heterogeneous units (LHUs) to reflect the spatial characteristics of ESs remains to be studied. The southern hill and mountain belt (SHMB) is a typical mountainous region in China, with undulating terrain and obvious spatial heterogeneity of ESs, and was selected as the study area. In this study, we used the fuzzy k-means (FKM) algorithm to establish LHUs. Three major ESs (water yield, net primary productivity (NPP), and soil conservation) in 2000 and 2015 were quantified using the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST) model and Carnegie Ames-Stanford approach (CASA) model. Then, we explored the spatial variation in ESs along terrain gradients and LHUs. Correlation analysis was used to analyze the driving factors of ESs in each terrain region and LHU. The results showed that altitude and terrain niche increased along LHUs. Water yield and soil conservation increased from 696.86 mm and 3920.19 t/km2 to 1061.12 mm and 5117.90 t/km2, respectively, while NPP decreased from 666.95 gC/m2 to 648.86 gC/m2. The ESs in different LHUs differed greatly. ESs increased first and then decreased along LHUs in 2000. In 2015, water yield decreased along LHUs, while NPP and soil conservation showed a fluctuating trend. Water yield was mainly affected by precipitation, temperature and NDVI were the main drivers of NPP, and soil conservation was greatly affected by precipitation and slope. The driving factors of the same ES were different in different terrain areas and LHUs. The variation and driving factors of ESs in LHUs were similar to some terrain gradients. To some extent, LHUs can represent multiple terrain features. This study can provide important support for mountain ecosystem zoning management and decision-making. Full article
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Article
Rural–Urban Migration and Conservation Drive the Ecosystem Services Improvement in China Karst: A Case Study of HuanJiang County, Guangxi
Remote Sens. 2021, 13(4), 566; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13040566 - 05 Feb 2021
Viewed by 957
Abstract
Under the transformation from over-cultivation to ecological protection in China’s karst, how human activities affect ecosystem services should be studied. This study combined satellite imagery and ecosystem models (Carnegie-Ames-Stanford Approach (CASA), Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) and Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services [...] Read more.
Under the transformation from over-cultivation to ecological protection in China’s karst, how human activities affect ecosystem services should be studied. This study combined satellite imagery and ecosystem models (Carnegie-Ames-Stanford Approach (CASA), Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) and Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs (InVEST)) to evaluate primary ecosystem services (net ecosystem productivity (NEP), soil conservation and water yield) in a typical karst region (Huanjiang County). The relationships between human activities and ecosystem services were also examined. NEP increased from 441.7 g C/m2/yr in 2005 to 582.19 g C/m2/yr in 2015. Soil conservation also increased from 4.7 ton/ha to 5.5 ton/ha. Vegetation recovery and the conversion of farmland to forest, driven largely by restoration programs, contributed to this change. A positive relationship between increases in NEP, soil conservation and rural-urban migration (r = 0.62 and 0.53, P < 0.01, respectively) indicated decreasing human dependence on land reclamation and naturally regenerated vegetation. However, declining water yield from 784.3 to 724.5 mm highlights the trade-off between carbon sequestration and water yield should be considered. Our study suggests that conservation is critical to vegetation recovery in this region and that easing human pressure on land will play an important role. Full article
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Article
Application of Ecosystem Service Bundles and Tour Experience in Land Use Management: A Case Study of Xiaohuangshan Mountain (China)
Remote Sens. 2021, 13(2), 242; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13020242 - 12 Jan 2021
Viewed by 603
Abstract
With the deterioration of human-terrestrial relations and the intensification of global warming, development in all countries is facing difficulties. Whether in highly urbanized countries or in rapidly urbanizing developing countries such as China, the research on ecosystem services (ES) and land use management [...] Read more.
With the deterioration of human-terrestrial relations and the intensification of global warming, development in all countries is facing difficulties. Whether in highly urbanized countries or in rapidly urbanizing developing countries such as China, the research on ecosystem services (ES) and land use management has attracted increasing attention. The general management of land use unilaterally pursues economic benefits and neglects ecological benefits, which aggravates the disparity between ecological development and the economic benefits of land resources. How to strike up a balance between ecologic protection and economic development remains a difficult problem during urbanization. It may be a better choice to formulate regional development strategies by combining natural conditions with humanistic and social tendencies. Identifying regional cultural ecosystem services (CES) and other important ES while performing zoning planning for regional land use can be a viable approach in land use management. Here, our study quantitatively evaluates the tourism experience of Xiaohuangshan Mountain (XHSM) and various ES, including recreation, biodiversity, history, aesthetics, soil conservation, surface water regulation, and soil nutrition. All ES were classified into four bundles for XHSM. Different ES bundles generated are suitable for different land use management methods and development forms according to their outstanding ES. The results show that quantifying and mapping regional ES bundles can provide the necessary information to support a win-win solution and provide decision support for land and spatial planning in areas with different social and ecological characteristics. Full article
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Article
Comparison of Sentinel-2 and High-Resolution Imagery for Mapping Land Abandonment in Fragmented Areas
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(12), 2062; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs12122062 - 26 Jun 2020
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1724
Abstract
Agricultural land abandonment is an important environmental issue in Europe. The proper management of agricultural areas has important implications for ecosystem services (food production, biodiversity, climate regulation and the landscape). In the coming years, an increase of abandoned areas is expected due to [...] Read more.
Agricultural land abandonment is an important environmental issue in Europe. The proper management of agricultural areas has important implications for ecosystem services (food production, biodiversity, climate regulation and the landscape). In the coming years, an increase of abandoned areas is expected due to socio-economic changes. The identification and quantification of abandoned agricultural plots is key for monitoring this process and for applying management measures. The Valencian Region (Spain) is an important fruit and vegetable producing area in Europe, and it has the most important citrus industry. However, this agricultural sector is highly threatened by diverse factors, which have accelerated land abandonment. Landsat and MODIS satellite images have been used to map land abandonment. However, these images do not give good results in areas with high spatial fragmentation and small-sized agricultural plots. Sentinel-2 and airborne imagery shows unexplored potential to overcome this thanks to higher spatial resolutions. In this work, three models were compared for mapping abandoned plots using Sentinel-2 with 10 m bands, Sentinel-2 with 10 m and 20 m bands, and airborne imagery with 1 m visible and near-infrared bands. A pixel-based classification approach was used, applying the Random Forests algorithm. The algorithm was trained with 144 plots and 100 decision trees. The results were validated using the hold-out method with 96 independent plots. The most accurate map was obtained using airborne images, the Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) and Thiam’s Transformed Vegetation Index (TTVI), with an overall accuracy of 88.5%. The map generated from Sentinel-2 images (10 m bands and the EVI and TTVI spectral indices) had an overall accuracy of 77.1%. Adding 20 m Sentinel-2 bands and the Normalized Difference Moisture Index (NDMI) did not improve the classification accuracy. According to the most accurate map, 4310 abandoned plots were detected in our study area, representing 32.5% of its agricultural surface. The proposed methodology proved to be useful for mapping citrus in highly fragmented areas, and it can be adapted to other crops. Full article
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Article
Do Protected Areas Improve Ecosystem Services? A Case Study of Hoh Xil Nature Reserve in Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(3), 471; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs12030471 - 02 Feb 2020
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1035
Abstract
Although there is a consensus that protected areas (PAs) can provide various ecosystem services, it is unclear whether protected areas effectively contribute to the preservation and enhancement of ecosystem services. We conducted a case study of the Hoh Xil Nature Reserve (HXNR) in [...] Read more.
Although there is a consensus that protected areas (PAs) can provide various ecosystem services, it is unclear whether protected areas effectively contribute to the preservation and enhancement of ecosystem services. We conducted a case study of the Hoh Xil Nature Reserve (HXNR) in Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, China, in order to examine the effectiveness of PA in the conservation of ecosystem services. First, the dynamics of land use/land cover (LULC) were analyzed based on remotely sensed data sets. Then, the ecosystem service value (ESV) in the PA and non-PA were evaluated using a modified benefit transfer method that had been adjusted using normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). Finally, hotspot analysis was implemented to reveal the ESV changes for the different districts of the PA. The results of the comparison experiment indicate that: (1) The ESV of the HXNR has considerably increased after it was designated as protected, which had been in decline in the previous stage. The ESVs in a near-by non-PA showed opposite results where the values initially increased but then dropped due to urban expansion and desertification. (2) The areas in HXNR with increased ESV significantly outnumbered the areas that had declining values from 1980 to 2018. For the non-PA, the areas that had increased ESV in 1980–1995 saw a decline in value in 1995–2008; moreover, new areas with decreasing ESV emerged in 2008–2018. (3) The HXNR was found to be more effective than non-PA in improving ecosystem services. (4) The core zone of the nature reserve demonstrated better effectiveness in ecosystem service preservation. Full article
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Article
The Evolution Response of Ecosystem Cultural Services under Different Scenarios Based on System Dynamics
Remote Sens. 2020, 12(3), 418; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs12030418 - 28 Jan 2020
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1007
Abstract
Cultural ecosystem services (CES) are a significant part of the ecosystem and are considered to be a core component of human welfare and ecosystem protection. CES have been historically difficult to quantitatively evaluate because of their subjectivity and intangibility. Additionally, their evolution over [...] Read more.
Cultural ecosystem services (CES) are a significant part of the ecosystem and are considered to be a core component of human welfare and ecosystem protection. CES have been historically difficult to quantitatively evaluate because of their subjectivity and intangibility. Additionally, their evolution over time has rarely been explored. Here, we quantitatively evaluated various CES and generated corresponding value index (VI) maps. We then further explored the evolution of CES characteristics over space and time. We selected Xi’an as the study area and applied the Social Values of Ecosystem Services (SolVES) model to evaluate CES and generate three specific VI maps. A system dynamics model based on socioeconomic and survey data of CES for each administrative division was established. Finally, we simulated four developmental scenarios in order to predict potential developmental changes of CES in 2030 under these different scenarios. This study provides a method for evaluating CES and explores the application of system dynamics to different fields. Additionally, our findings may provide guidance for the formulation of regional policies and support missions to improve civilizations within ecological systems, coordinate future economic growth with ecosystem services, and achieve sustainable development. Full article
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