Special Issue "Application of Wetlands as Nature Based Solutions for Ecological Service"

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2021.

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Sung Min Cha
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Team of Environmental Technology Demonstration, Jeollanamdo Environmental Industries Promotion Institute (JEIPI), Jeollanam-do 59205, Republic of Korea
Interests: green infrastructure design; application of constructed wetland; nonpoint source pollution management; development of climate change adaptation technology using green infrastructure technology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Wetlands are natural assets that humanity must preserve in order to secure sustainable water resources and maximize ecological value. Water circulation in urban areas has been distorted due to recent urbanization, and various rainfall events caused by climate change are accelerating the outflow of pollutants from the watershed. Wetlands are a part of nature capable of solving these environmental problems, providing an ecological resting place for humans living on Earth.

Despite these diverse ecological benefits, studies on the ecological value of wetlands are not yet sufficient. In particular, we need to consider, once more, the ecological services that wetlands provide to us at a time when various problems caused by urbanization are constantly becoming an issue with the growing number of people and extensive property damage caused by climate change.

Therefore, in this Special Issue, we will deal with the ecological solutions and ecological services of these wetlands. The nature-based solution of wetlands includes the scope of the function of wetlands, such as reducing environmental pollutants generated from the watershed, urban water circulation, and securing urban ecosystem diversity.

This Special Issue will involve research articles and critical comprehensive reviews focusing on the following topics:

  • Wetlands as a nature-based solution
  • Constructed wetlands for water quality management
  • Fate and transport of pollutants in a wetland
  • Ecosystem restoration
  • Ecological service as a bridge between urban development and natural conservation
  • Constructed wetland as a green infrastructure
  • Low-impact development and green infrastructure as a nature-based technology
  • Assessment of ecological benefit for a wetland

This Special Issue will focus on the ecological services of wetlands that have been relatively less well-covered in the existing wetland research. In addition, we will focus on research content that broadly interprets the ecological and environmental functions of wetlands linked with urban water circulation technology that can be connected to wetlands.

Dr. Sung Min Cha
Guest Editor

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. Sustainability 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 1900 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

  • Constructed wetland
  • Natural wetland
  • Nature-based solutions
  • Ecological service
  • Water circulation
  • Green infrastructure

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

Article
Evaluation of Water Circulation by Modeling: An Example of Nonpoint Source Management in the Yeongsan River Watershed
Sustainability 2021, 13(16), 8871; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13168871 - 09 Aug 2021
Viewed by 319
Abstract
Owing to urbanization, impervious areas within watersheds have continuously increased, distorting healthy water circulation systems by reducing soil infiltration and base flow; moreover, increases in surface runoff deteriorate water quality by increasing the inflow of nonpoint sources. In this study, we constructed a [...] Read more.
Owing to urbanization, impervious areas within watersheds have continuously increased, distorting healthy water circulation systems by reducing soil infiltration and base flow; moreover, increases in surface runoff deteriorate water quality by increasing the inflow of nonpoint sources. In this study, we constructed a Hydrological Simulation Program—Fortran (HSPF) watershed model that applies the impervious area and can set medium- and long-term water circulation management goals for watershed sub-areas. The model was tested using a case study from the Yeongsan River watershed, Korea. The results show that impervious land-cover accounts for 18.47% of the upstream reach in which Gwangju City is located; approximately twice the average for the whole watershed. Depending on the impervious area reduction scenario, direct runoff and nonpoint source load could be reduced by up to 56% and 35%, respectively; the water circulation rate could be improved by up to 16%. Selecting management goals requires the consideration of both policy objectives and budget. For urban areas with large impervious cover, the designation of nonpoint source management areas is required. For new cities, it is necessary to introduce water circulation systems (e.g., low impact development techniques) to improve rainwater penetration and recharge and activate preemptive water circulation. Full article
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Article
Determination of NPS Pollutant Unit Loads from Different Landuses
Sustainability 2021, 13(13), 7193; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13137193 - 26 Jun 2021
Viewed by 407
Abstract
This study aimed to estimate pollutant unit loads for different landuses and pollutants that reflected long-term runoff characteristics of nonpoint source (NPS) pollutants and recent environmental changes. During 2008–2014, 2026 rainfall events were monitored. The average values of antecedent dry days, total rainfall, [...] Read more.
This study aimed to estimate pollutant unit loads for different landuses and pollutants that reflected long-term runoff characteristics of nonpoint source (NPS) pollutants and recent environmental changes. During 2008–2014, 2026 rainfall events were monitored. The average values of antecedent dry days, total rainfall, rainfall intensity, rainfall duration, runoff duration, and runoff coefficient for each landuse were 3.8–5.9 d, 35.2–65.0 mm, 2.9–4.1 mm/h, 12.5–20.4 h, 12.4–27.9 h, and 0.24–0.45, respectively. Uplands (UL) exhibited high suspended solids (SS, 606.2 mg/L), total nitrogen (TN, 7.38 mg/L), and total phosphorous (TP, 2.27 mg/L) levels, whereas the runoff coefficient was high in the building sites (BS), with a high impervious surface ratio. The event mean concentration (EMC) for biological oxygen demand (BOD) was the highest in BS (8.0 mg/L), while the EMC was the highest in BS (in the rainfall range <10 mm) and UL and forest land (in the rainfall range >50 mm). The unit loads for BOD (1.49–17.76 kg/km2·d), TN (1.462–10.147 kg/km2·d), TP (0.094–1.435 kg/km2·d), and SS (15.20–327.70 kg/km2·d) were calculated. The findings can be used to manage NPS pollutants and watershed environments and implement relevant associated management systems. Full article
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Article
Conceptual Model of Ecosystem Service Flows from Carbon Dioxide to Blue Carbon in Coastal Wetlands: An Empirical Study Based on Yancheng, China
Sustainability 2021, 13(9), 4630; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13094630 - 21 Apr 2021
Viewed by 465
Abstract
Large amounts of blue carbon exist in the ecosystems of coastal wetlands. Accurate calculations of the stocks and economic value of blue carbon in various plant communities can facilitate vegetation rehabilitation. Based on this objective, first, a blue carbon estimation model was constructed [...] Read more.
Large amounts of blue carbon exist in the ecosystems of coastal wetlands. Accurate calculations of the stocks and economic value of blue carbon in various plant communities can facilitate vegetation rehabilitation. Based on this objective, first, a blue carbon estimation model was constructed by combining a Carnegie-Ames-Stanford Approach (CASA) model, and second, the distribution pattern of blue carbon and flow direction of ecosystem services (carbon sequestration) in a coastal wetland in China was analyzed utilizing a combination of field surveys, remote sensing data, and laboratory analysis techniques. Finally, the wetland carbon sequestration value and its income-expenditure status were measured using the carbon tax method. The results show that the aboveground net primary productivity of coastal wetland vegetation exhibits a non-zonal distribution in the south-north direction, whereas it presented a three-level gradient distribution, characterized as “low (200–300 g/m2∙y)–intermediate (300–400 g/m2∙y)–high (400–500 g/m2∙y)”, in the east-west direction. The accumulation of carbon gradually increased from the ground surface to the underground (litter < underground roots < soil) in Spartina alterniflora and Phragmites australis. On the type scale, Spartina alterniflora and Phragmites australis wetlands were of the “blue carbon” net outflow type (supply type), with mean annual outflow carbon sequestration values of 3272.3 $/ha and 40.9 $/ha, respectively. The Suaeda glauca wetland was of the “blue carbon” net inflow type (benefit type), with a mean annual inflow carbon sequestration value of 190.7 $/ha. Full article
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