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Wetland Ecosystem Services Evaluation and Conservation

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Sustainability and Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2024) | Viewed by 7601

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Changjiang Water Resources Protection Institute, Changjiang Water Resources Commission of the Ministry of Water Resources, Wuhan 430051, China
Interests: water resource engineering; ecosystem services; water conservation; wetland ecology; nature-protected areas

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Guest Editor
Guangzhou Institute of Geography, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510070, China
Interests: soil and water conservation; ecosystem services
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Wetlands provide valuable ecosystem services, but they have suffered the largest losses from cropland conversion, urbanization, rising water demands, and climate change. Policymakers want to use ecosystem service values to inform sustainable wetland use. In the past two decades, scientists worldwide have begun testing a variety of biophysical and economic valuation approaches to advance ecosystem service science for wetland conservation. However, substantive progress remains elusive due to lack of coordination, weak monitoring, and poor enforcement to effectively manage wetlands for a diversity of societal needs.

Therefore, we organized a Special Issue that is open to researchers who are interested in the field of wetland evaluation and conservation. In this Special Issue, original research and review articles are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

  • Biophysical and economic valuation methods to assess multiple wetland ecosystem services.
  • Wetland ecosystem service trends and their driving factors.
  • Wetland ecosystem service trade-offs across spatial–temporal scales.
  • Wetland ecosystem service flow mechanisms and beneficiary needs.
  • Effectiveness of management scenarios on wetland ecosystem services.
  • Sustainable use of wetland resources.
  • Management implications for wetland conservation.

Dr. Bo Jiang
Dr. Chong Jiang
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • wetlands
  • ecosystem services
  • sustainable wetland management
  • wetland conservation
  • driving factors
  • flow mechanisms
  • beneficiary concerns

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

23 pages, 19225 KiB  
Article
Spatiotemporal Variation in Water-Related Ecosystem Services during 2000–2020 and Ecological Management Zoning in the Xiangjiang River Basin, China
by Meirong Deng, Dehua Mao, Yeye Li, Ting Wang and Zui Hu
Sustainability 2023, 15(22), 16012; https://doi.org/10.3390/su152216012 - 16 Nov 2023
Viewed by 1234
Abstract
Exploring the spatiotemporal distribution and interrelationships among water-related ecosystem services (WESs) and conducting ecological management zoning are crucial for regional sustainable development. Taking the Xiangjiang River Basin (XJRB) as an example, this study first quantified three primary WESs, including water conservation, soil retention, [...] Read more.
Exploring the spatiotemporal distribution and interrelationships among water-related ecosystem services (WESs) and conducting ecological management zoning are crucial for regional sustainable development. Taking the Xiangjiang River Basin (XJRB) as an example, this study first quantified three primary WESs, including water conservation, soil retention, and water purification, from 2000 to 2020. Second, the spatiotemporal variation in the interrelationships among WESs were analyzed using global and local bivariate spatial autocorrelation. Third, a water ecological zoning rule was constructed to divide the watershed into three primary and eight secondary water ecological management zones. The results indicate a strong consistency in the changes in the three WESs throughout the period from 2000 to 2020 in the XJRB. Precipitation patterns and urban expansion were the primary factors affecting alterations in the WESs. Spatial heterogeneity and dependence were evident across these ecosystem services. Both trade-offs and synergies were observed among WESs, with synergies playing a dominant role. Positive synergies occurred primarily in woodlands and grasslands, while negative synergies were observed in cultivated land, water areas, and construction land. Three water ecological management zones, including core water ecological management zones, general management zones, and restoration management zones, were delineated at the grid and country scales according to the aggregation properties of the WESs. Ecological management strategies were proposed for different zones. These findings can offer valuable insights for policy makers in land use planning and water ecological management within the XJRB, and can facilitate similar management endeavors in other regions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wetland Ecosystem Services Evaluation and Conservation)
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16 pages, 2571 KiB  
Article
A Subsurface Horizontal Constructed Wetland Design Approach for Wastewater Treatment: Application in Ar Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
by Mohamed Elsayed Gabr, Mustafa El-Rawy, Nassir Al-Arifi, Wouter Zijl and Fathy Abdalla
Sustainability 2023, 15(22), 15927; https://doi.org/10.3390/su152215927 - 14 Nov 2023
Viewed by 2009
Abstract
In this study, a decentralized new sewage water treatment system is suggested and designed in Ar Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to safeguard the environment and reuse treated water for irrigation purposes. The system consists of a primary treatment (septic tank), a subsurface horizontal flow [...] Read more.
In this study, a decentralized new sewage water treatment system is suggested and designed in Ar Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to safeguard the environment and reuse treated water for irrigation purposes. The system consists of a primary treatment (septic tank), a subsurface horizontal flow constructed wetland (HSSF-CW), and a storage ground tank. The research methodology employed in this study is (i) to define the wastewater characteristics, where air temperature in winter is 18.6 °C, the wastewater flow per person (q) is 150 L/d, demonstrating an inlet design discharge of 300 m3/d, the influent pollutant concentrations for biological oxygen demand (BOD), total suspended solids (TSS), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), and fecal coliforms (FC) are 350, 1000, 700, 50, 12 mg/L, and 106 CFU/100 mL, respectively; (ii) to design the septic tank based on a retention time of two days and a surfacing load rate of 1.5 m/d; (iii) the P-k-C* model was used to determine the HSSF-CW surface area based on reed beds of Phragmites australis (common reed) and papyrus plants, where the removal rate was constant at 20 °C for BOD, TP, and FC in the effluent concentrations not exceeding 20 mg/L, 3.0 mg/L, and 2000 CFU/100 mL in order to satisfy Saudi Arabia’s wastewater reuse requirements; and (iv) to design the clean water tank for a hydraulic retention time of 10 h. The results demonstrate that the removing pollutants design area is 1872 m2 divided into nine cells, each of width 8 m and length 26 m, with a hydraulic loading rate (LR) of 0.16 m/d and a hydraulic resident time (RT) of 1.1 d. The effluent pollutant concentrations for the BOD, FC, TN, and TP were 245 mg/L, 103 CFU/100 mL, 35, and 8.5 mg/L, respectively. The wastewater treatment system total removal efficiencies for BOD, TN, TP, and FC were estimated to be 91.8, 70, 57, and 98.5%, respectively. Design curves were developed to ease the design steps. The HSSF-CW is a green wastewater treatment technology that offers greatly decreased investment costs, and service particularly for small-scale applications up to 6000 persons. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wetland Ecosystem Services Evaluation and Conservation)
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19 pages, 17841 KiB  
Article
Major Role of Natural Wetland Loss in the Decline of Wetland Habitat Quality—Spatio-Temporal Monitoring and Predictive Analysis
by Xianglong Xing, Yang Liu, Ri Jin, Peng Zhang, Shouzheng Tong and Weihong Zhu
Sustainability 2023, 15(16), 12415; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151612415 - 15 Aug 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1677
Abstract
Land use change significantly affects habitat quality, and the long time series exploration of dynamic variations in wetland habitat quality is of great significance to wetland conservation and management practices. Jingxin Wetland is located in the lower reaches of the Tumen River Basin, [...] Read more.
Land use change significantly affects habitat quality, and the long time series exploration of dynamic variations in wetland habitat quality is of great significance to wetland conservation and management practices. Jingxin Wetland is located in the lower reaches of the Tumen River Basin, an important ecological function area in China. In recent years, under the influence of human activities and climate change, Jingxin Wetland has faced the threat of degradation and reclamation. This study investigated the dynamic evolution of habitat quality in Jingxin Wetland based on the CA-Markov model and the InVEST model at a long time scale and analyzed the drivers of habitat quality changes. Furthermore, habitat statuses under different policy orientations were explored using a multi-scenario development model. The results show that the total area of Jingxin Wetland exhibited a shrinking trend from 1964 to 2019, the wetland landscape was more fragmented, and the loss of natural wetland (marsh wetland) was serious. Consequently, wetland habitat quality has declined. According to scenario analysis, the study area should firmly follow the ecological conservation route in the future, through which the encroachment of human activities on wetlands can be effectively reduced and habitat conditions can be effectively improved. Both natural and economic development scenarios would result in the shrinkage of wetlands, which will extend the trend of declining habitat quality. It is noteworthy that the loss of wetland can be effectively reduced by implementing ecological conservation policies, which would reduce the degradation of wetland habitat quality. The results of this study can provide valuable references for wetland ecological conservation and ecological management practices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wetland Ecosystem Services Evaluation and Conservation)
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16 pages, 2918 KiB  
Article
Visitors’ Perception Regarding Floating Treatment Wetlands in an Urban Green Space: Functionality and Emotional Values
by Ina Falfán, Maite Lascurain-Rangel, Gloria Sánchez-Galván, Eugenia J. Olguín, Arturo Hernández-Huerta and Melissa Covarrubias-Báez
Sustainability 2023, 15(3), 2000; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15032000 - 20 Jan 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1852
Abstract
Floating treatment wetlands (FTW) are artificial structures used for water quality improvement through the hydroponic growth of certain macrophytes and their rhizospheric bacteria, with the capacity for pollutant removal. Through the application of face-to-face questionnaires, our study aimed to analyze visitors’ perception of [...] Read more.
Floating treatment wetlands (FTW) are artificial structures used for water quality improvement through the hydroponic growth of certain macrophytes and their rhizospheric bacteria, with the capacity for pollutant removal. Through the application of face-to-face questionnaires, our study aimed to analyze visitors’ perception of the structure, functionality, and benefits of FTW installed in two ponds of one green space in Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico, and the emotional experience that these FTW could incite in those same visitors. Visitors identified the plant component of FTW as the most noticeable one, perceived filtering/cleaning water as their principal function, and reported positive and negative emotions in the same proportion. The visitors’ perceptions of FTW varied according to their age, school level, and occupation. Positive and negative perceptions regarding FTW were linked to their maintenance and that of the ponds. Visitors’ awareness of FTW composition and function was associated with the presence of informative signs. The understanding of perception about the FTW can be integrated into management programs for the successful and participative improvement and cleaning of water bodies in urban settings. Along with people’s participation, the municipality of the city must improve the maintenance of these important water bodies given its positive repercussions on visitors’ perception. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wetland Ecosystem Services Evaluation and Conservation)
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