Search Results (2,782)

Wool is often regarded as a low-value by-product of Alpine sheep farming, despite its potential to convey the ecosystem services (ESs) generated by these systems. This study examines how awareness and perception of these services are associated with consumer attitudes towards locally produced wool in the Lanzo Valleys in Northwestern Italy. A convenience sample of 400 adults familiar with the study area completed an online questionnaire. Principal Component Analysis identified two orientations towards wool products—Sustainability Orientation and Product-Value Orientation—which together explained 69.33% of the variance. A TwoStep Cluster Analysis based on the component scores identified four profiles within the study sample: Sustainability-sensitive (22%), Disinterested (14.25%), Eco-aesthetic (36%), and Aesthetically aware (27.75%). Sustainability-oriented respondents attributed greater importance to ES related to biodiversity, native-breed conservation and animal welfare, whereas aesthetic and experiential attributes represented an additional, distinct dimension of product evaluation. Residence status was not significantly associated with cluster membership. Given the non-probabilistic sampling design, these profiles should be interpreted as exploratory attitudinal patterns. The findings may inform differentiated communication and wool-valorisation strategies linking environmental, cultural, aesthetic and functional values. Full article

Fine-scale mapping of forest types is a prerequisite for accurately assessing forest biomass, biodiversity, ecosystem service values, and carbon budgets. Shihe County, located within an ecotone transitioning from subtropical to temperate monsoon climates in China, was selected as the case study area. By integrating Sentinel-1 SAR and Sentinel-2 multispectral imagery, along with derived vegetation indices, texture features, and backscattering coefficients, as well as statistical features extracted from the 2022 NDVI time-series, we employed a hierarchical classification framework and a random forest algorithm to generate the forest type map. The results indicated the following: (1) With a single-date multi-feature dataset, late winter (3 March) was determined to be the optimal period for forest type classification in Shihe County. (2) Shortwave infrared bands, red-edge bands, the modified vegetation index, the normalized difference red-edge index, mean texture features, and VH-polarization data were the most influential variables. (3) Incorporating yearly NDVI time-series statistical features into the single-date winter subset significantly improved classification performance, yielding an overall accuracy of 86.39% and a Kappa of 0.781, which represents a 10.83% improvement over the baseline. Persistent misclassification between bamboo forests and tea plantations remained a primary constraint on further accuracy enhancement, while the classification accuracy for evergreen broadleaf forest and deciduous coniferous forest exhibited considerable uncertainty, likely attributable to limited reference sample sizes. (4) Deciduous broadleaf forests constituted the dominant land cover type in Shihe County, whereas evergreen coniferous forests, bamboo, and tea plantations were also widely distributed, collectively reflecting the region’s transitional ecological characteristics. Full article

Cultural ecosystem service (CES) assessment is essential for comprehensively understanding and evaluating ecosystem services. Optimizing the spatial zoning of CESs can provide more targeted information for ecosystem management. By identifying the typical landscape characteristics of different CESs, rural landscape value can be more effectively recognized. This study constructed a set of rural landscape characteristics indicators, identified the typical characteristics of different CESs based on public preferences, mapped their spatial distributions using the Maxent model, and applied K-means clustering analysis to optimize the spatial zoning in rural Huzhou. The results show that the four CESs categories are associated with different rural landscape characteristics. The spatial distributions of the CESs showed substantial overlap and were mainly concentrated in southern Anji County, around the Moganshan Scenic Area, and along the shoreline of Lake Taihu. Five types of rural landscapes were identified based on spatial distribution of the CESs. This study provides a reference for identifying the landscape value of CESs in rural areas and supports the incorporation of CES assessment into rural landscape management decision-making. Full article

Sudden tailings dam breaches trigger large-scale heavy metal compound pollution in coupled surface water–groundwater systems, requiring systematic full-cycle ecological damage quantification tools applicable to diverse contamination types. This study constructs an integrated full-cycle ecological damage assessment framework for sudden water pollution accidents, integrating three core modules: multi-model pollutant migration prediction, multi-scale aquatic biological damage diagnosis, and three-dimensional ecological-economic loss accounting. The framework adopts a modular design that can potentially accommodate heavy metals (Cd, Cr, As, Pb) and organic pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), with standardized molecular, individual, and population-level biological endpoints and corresponding pollutant dose–response templates reserved as reference calculation modules. However, applicability beyond this case has not been validated and requires case-specific calibration. To verify the operability and accuracy of the proposed integrated system, a typical tailings dam leakage incident dominated by hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) and arsenic (As) pollution was selected as the practical validation case; all field monitoring, pollutant simulation, and final economic loss quantification in this case exclusively rely on on-site measured Cr(VI) and As data, while Cd and PAH-related biological response curves and remediation cost formulas retained in the manuscript only serve as illustrative universal template components of the framework rather than case-measured results. For the Cr(VI)/As pollution case, the advection–diffusion model simulation revealed that the Cr(VI) contamination plume horizontally spread 250 m within 48 h and extended to 560 m after seven days, and anaerobic groundwater environments drove the transformation of toxic mobile trivalent arsenic (As(III)) from primary pentavalent arsenic. The calibrated SWAT model achieved Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE) coefficients of 0.75 for dissolved Cr(VI) and 0.68 for particulate As. The graph theory-based rapid prediction model cut computation duration down to minutes; when validated against independent field monitoring data, it yielded an average relative error of 14.2%, and its consistency with the SWAT model reached 10.5% relative deviation, satisfying the accuracy requirement for emergency early warning. Field biological monitoring demonstrated substantial ecological impairment: metallothionein (MT) expression in fish tissues was markedly elevated (the reported 6.2-fold induction value derives from standard Cd exposure template tests within the framework, with analogous MT upregulation also observed for field Cr(VI)/As co-stress), and benthic community Shannon diversity declined by over 50% in polluted river reaches. The standardized Ecological Damage Index (EDI) of the case was calculated as 480.2, indicating severe aquatic ecosystem damage, with total comprehensive ecological and economic losses reaching 17.25 million CNY. This study innovatively couples high-precision physical transport models with fast emergency prediction algorithms and establishes a complete multi-tier biological indicator chain linking molecular biomarkers to community integrity metrics; the three-dimensional loss accounting system integrating ecosystem service impairment, restoration expenditure, and post-pollution recovery loss realizes closed-loop full-cycle damage evaluation. The proposed framework, demonstrated for Cr(VI) and As pollution, has a modular design that may potentially be extended to other pollutants such as Cd and PAHs by adjusting model parameters, providing a quantitative reference for emergency disposal, pollution remediation, and ecological compensation of water contamination accidents, although further validation across different pollutants and hydrological settings is required. Full article

AI-powered conversational agents are becoming part of the everyday Internet information ecosystem, reshaping how users seek, interpret, and act on health-related information outside clinical encounters. As large language model (LLM)-based chatbots are increasingly used as on-demand digital health information tools, understanding how users perceive their credibility, usefulness, and limitations is essential for the responsible design of future Internet-based health services. This mixed-method survey study examined how general adults evaluated healthcare-related question–answer pairs provided by physicians and generated by AI chatbots. A sample of U.S.-based adults recruited through Prolific (N = 62) rated each answer on clarity, usefulness, appropriateness of detail, trustworthiness, and perceived evidence, and provided open-ended explanations of their judgments. Primary mixed-effects analyses showed that both ChatGPT- and Claude-generated responses received higher overall participant ratings than physician-provided responses, although the estimated difference was substantially larger for Claude (ChatGPT–physician estimate = 0.250, 95% CI [0.135, 0.364]; Claude–physician estimate = 0.825, 95% CI [0.710, 0.939]). ChatGPT received higher ratings on four of the five dimensions but not on clarity, whereas Claude received higher ratings across all five dimensions. However, physician, ChatGPT, and Claude responses were always presented first, second, and third, respectively. Response source was therefore confounded with presentation position, and the observed differences cannot be attributed exclusively to source. The responses were also not matched for length or format. Qualitative findings showed that participants valued detailed, specific, and evidence-like explanations. Participants also expressed concerns about hallucination, privacy, over-reliance, and the need for clinician verification. These findings suggest that LLM-based chatbots may be perceived as useful supplemental information tools within future Internet health ecosystems, but their deployment should include safeguards that support transparency, verification, and appropriate reliance. Full article

Land-use transformation driven by large-scale water conservancy projects profoundly reshapes regional ecosystem structures and the supply capacity of ecosystem services, yet targeted quantitative assessments linking land-use evolution to ecosystem service values (ESV) in the Xiaolangdi Reservoir resettlement zone remain insufficient, restricting scientific ecological management and territorial spatial governance for reservoir-affected counties and districts. This study draws on the latest ecosystem service valuation theories proposed by domestic and international scholars and applies the value equivalence method to quantify variations in land-use pattern changes and ESV across nine resettlement counties and districts (including the Sanmenxia urban area) affected by the Xiaolangdi Reservoir relocation project. Data collected included historical records (1995–2020), digital elevation models (DEM, 30 m resolution), and land-use information. By applying value equivalence theory and analyzing land-use change impacts, the study calculated changes in ESV and conducted sensitivity analyses across different land types. The findings reveal significant impacts on surrounding counties following the reservoir’s completion. Data indicate that the expansion of water areas drove the total ESV to rise from US$3.3261 billion in 1995 to a peak of US$3.6557 billion in 2010, followed by a decline to US$3.6128 billion in 2020. The most pronounced changes occurred during the first five years post-reservoir filling (2000–2005), marked by elevated water sensitivity indices. This research clarifies the differentiated responses of ecosystem service functions to land-use changes across reservoir-affected counties, provides quantitative decision-making support for coordinated ecological restoration, cultivated land protection, and sustainable land management in the resettlement area of the Xiaolangdi Reservoir, and offers a replicable technical framework for ecosystem service valuation of large sediment-laden river reservoir regions worldwide. Full article

Mangrove ecosystems underpin the livelihoods of coastal and rural households across the tropics, yet how their ecosystem service (ES) values are associated with livelihood-strategy choices remains unevenly understood. Following a Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA)-guided protocol, this systematic review searched Web of Science and Scopus for studies published between 2016 and 2026 (database search was run on 27 May 2026); of the 353 records identified and 207 screened after removing 146 duplicates, 133 unique studies were retained; 95 of these contributed evidence to one or more of seven outcome themes, while 38 were retained as contextual or background evidence. The seven themes were graded using a hybrid Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE)/Confidence in the Evidence from Reviews of Qualitative Research (CERQual) approach (zero, high certainty; two, moderate certainty; five, low certainty). A structured assessment of meta-analytic feasibility across six candidate outcome domains found that no domain met the operational requirement of at least three independent studies reporting one outcome construct on a harmonisable metric with usable variance information; therefore, this review reports the direction, consistency, and certainty of associations rather than pooled-effect magnitudes. The corpus shows a pronounced value-epistemology asymmetry, with monetary valuation forming the largest single evidence theme (45 studies, approximately one-third of the corpus) and relational or indigenous framings remaining a smaller but substantive theme (20 studies, about 15%), meaning that household decision-making is incompletely captured. Evidence for mangrove–fishery production linkages and the coastal-protection/ecosystem-based disaster-risk-reduction function was the most consistent and was rated as moderate certainty. However, the fishery evidence provides the more direct connection to livelihood dependence, whereas most coastal-protection estimates are biophysical or aggregate and do not directly demonstrate household livelihood-strategy responses. The five remaining themes rest on low-certainty evidence, with welfare estimates spanning orders of magnitude and value-to-behaviour pathways weakly tested. Asian settings account for roughly half of the evidence (Southeast and South Asia together 45%, 60/133), while African, Latin American, and Pacific Island settings remain under-represented, limiting transferability. Evidence on bundled payments for ecosystem services, blue-carbon governance, and secure community tenure should therefore be treated as context-dependent options for prospective evaluation rather than as established prescriptions. The clearest research priority is quasi-experimental and longitudinal work linking elicited values to observed livelihood behaviour. Full article

Digital innovation platform ecosystems can scale rapidly without becoming durable because broad participation does not ensure sustained value circulation. Existing models homogenize complementors, obscuring horizontal coopetition among distinct groups and its interaction with vertical governance. We examine how vertical and horizontal relations shape value-flow architecture and sustainability. Drawing on ecological symbiosis theory, we distinguish a platform orchestrator, technology-extending complementors, and service-integrating complementors. We construct an extended three-actor Lotka–Volterra model and use the Global Value-Flow Symmetry (GV) index and the continuous directional indicator ${\delta }_c$ to assess symmetry and direction. Designed for theory building rather than empirical calibration or testing, the analysis uses no empirical data and compares 35 vertical–horizontal configurations through deterministic simulation and sensitivity analysis. Results show the following: (1) Greater symmetry is associated with higher aggregate maintained output, but vertical backflow direction shapes its distribution; $\mathrm{G}\mathrm{V}$ must therefore be interpreted with ${\delta }_c$. (2) Under complementor-favoring vertical parasitism, horizontal mutualism expands complementor output but intensifies negative vertical backflow, simultaneously increasing aggregate output and reducing platform equilibrium—a cooperation paradox. (3) The same horizontal mutualism yields three focal outcomes across the examined vertical structures: Negative complementor-to-platform effects produce the cooperation paradox, absent effects produce value decoupling, and mutually positive vertical exchange produces systemic resonance. Thus, horizontal cooperation does not necessarily enhance sustainability; its effect depends on whether complementor gains feed back to support platform capability. This study advances platform-ecosystem sustainability research and offers theoretical guidance for optimizing value backflow and cooperative governance. Full article

Urban green spaces provide essential ecosystem services, yet national-scale economic assessments remain scarce in rapidly urbanizing countries. Here, we quantify the ecosystem service value (ESV) of China’s urban green spaces from 1996 to 2024 using national statistical data and eight key indicators: water conservation, carbon sequestration, oxygen release, dust retention, biodiversity protection, nitrogen oxide absorption, cooling effects, and leisure recreation. Valuation follows Costanza et al. and the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. We apply the full permutation polygon graphic method (FPPGM) to derive a comprehensive service index and the Eco-Economic Harmony (EEH) index to assess ecological–economic coordination. Total ESV increased from 57.18 billion to 569.01 billion yuan, at an average annual rate of 8.55%. Cooling effects, biodiversity protection, and water conservation ranked as the top three services. The comprehensive service index improved continuously, with national sustainable development capacity progressing from Level 4 (Low) in 1996–2002 to Level 1 (High) in 2013–2024. The 2024 EEH index of 0.87 indicates moderate-to-high eco-economic coordination. Despite substantial ESV growth, urban economic expansion continues to outpace ecological gains. Strengthening legal protections for urban green spaces is critical. This study provides a transferable framework for assessing urban green infrastructure across developing countries. Full article

Subjected to high-intensity development, enclosed tropical islands frequently face severe spatial resource constraints and acute risks of ecological degradation. To seek a comprehensive solution to multidimensional spatial conflicts, this study selected Hainan Island—a region facing development pressure from the Free Trade Port construction—as the study area. By coupling the XGBoost-SHAP, NSGA-II, and PLUS models, we constructed an integrated modular spatial planning framework of “mechanism interpretation—macro optimization—micro reconstruction”. The main findings are as follows. (1) Over the past 15 years, the fragile ecosystem of the island has faced immense pressure. Lacking an external buffer hinterland, land-use transitions exhibited a distinct chain transmission characteristic of “built-up land occupying agricultural land, and agricultural land squeezing forest”. This internal spatial cascading substitution constituted the core mechanism of ESV decline. (2) The reconstruction of the spatial pattern is governed by dual thresholds of natural constraints and economic pulling. A rigid ecological defense baseline (NDVI ≥ 0.40) restricts disorderly urban sprawl, while spatial inflection points (8.46 km from the coastline and 271 m from roads) precisely delineate the coastal and traffic-oriented agglomeration boundaries for built-up land. (3) Among the predefined scenarios, the Sustainable Development (SD) scenario emerges as the optimal pathway. By proactively reducing inefficient agricultural land space at the macro level and strictly implementing identified threshold controls alongside “infill” urban agglomeration at the micro level, the SD scenario is expected to successfully achieve a Pareto-optimal synergy between socioeconomic growth and the restoration of regional ESV. This study not only establishes an objective benchmark for the refined multi-objective spatial governance of the Hainan Free Trade Port, but also provides a referential planning paradigm for vulnerable enclosed islands globally facing high-intensity anthropogenic stress. Full article

Urban parks provide recreation, cultural ecosystem services, microclimate regulation, and benefits for well-being, but their realized value may vary with air pollution and heat. This exploratory study linked 2947 Google Maps reviews posted in 2024–2025 to daily PM2.5, temperature, humidity, and precipitation and assessed a BERT-based workflow for classifying star-linked sentiment and dominant emotion text labels. Star-linked sentiment classifications were highly favorable (mean score of 4.86/5; 88.39% very positive). Independent weighting of the rounded air-quality and heat-stress subgroup summaries yielded consistent approximate overall shares for provisional joy (28.9%) and anger (32.5%), but the full seven-class distribution could not be reconstructed from the archive. All emotion-label analyses remain provisional. All 25 tested environmental correlations were negligible (absolute Spearman ρ ≤ 0.049), and none met the Bonferroni-corrected significance threshold (α = 0.002). Posting dates classified as heat-stress days showed descriptive differences in provisional anger and joy labels, but posting date is an uncertain proxy for the visit date. The findings do not establish individual-level exposure associations. They instead illustrate the methodological safeguards needed before user-generated park feedback and environmental monitoring can support climate-responsive management. Full article

Arid and semi-arid ecosystems are being reshaped by climate variability and human interventions, but increases in individual ecosystem indicators do not necessarily translate into coherent gains in ecosystem multifunctionality. Inner Mongolia is a representative region for examining this issue because it spans a sharp transition from humid forested mountains to arid grassland, desert, and plateau systems and serves as an important ecological security barrier in northern China. Using multi-source remote sensing, meteorological, ecological observation, land-use, and socioeconomic data, we assessed changes in net primary productivity, soil conservation, water conservation, habitat quality, and a comprehensive ecological benefit index from 2001 to 2020. We found that ecosystem service capacity did not follow a uniform recovery trajectory. High values were persistently concentrated in the northeastern forested mountains, whereas western arid regions remained the main low-value areas. Temporal changes also differed among indicators: soil conservation increased most clearly, water conservation fluctuated strongly between years, NPP varied unevenly among ecological regions, and habitat quality changed only slightly at the regional scale. The integrated index further revealed a contrast that single indicators could not fully capture: the Loess Plateau–Loess Hilly Subregion and the Yinshan Mountains showed the strongest gains in comprehensive ecological benefits, whereas the Greater Khingan Mountains, despite having the highest baseline value, showed a decline. Spatial explanatory-factor analysis indicated that vegetation water consumption and precipitation showed high conditional spatial explanatory power for NPP, water conservation, habitat quality, and CEBI, whereas soil conservation was more strongly associated with nonlinear enhancement among factors; these q-statistics represent spatial associations rather than independent causal effects. These findings support region-specific management: maintain the stability of high-value northeastern forests, match restoration density to water availability in western drylands, and evaluate grazing and erosion-control measures using multiple services rather than vegetation greenness alone. Full article

The Ifrane National Park (INP), situated in the Middle Atlas Mountains in Morocco, is renowned for its unique bioecological attributes and rich biodiversity. The park provides key ecosystem services, notably climate regulation, with its Atlas cedar forests serving as an important carbon reservoir. Despite its importance, the park faces challenges associated with Land Use Land Cover Changes (LULCCs). These dynamics, driven by population settlement in mountain areas, intensify pressure on forest resources and accelerate the conversion of rangelands into croplands. Our study aims to examine the carbon sequestration service (CSS) in INP and its changes in response to land use dynamics before and after the park’s creation. We first use Google Earth Engine platform to map Land Use Land Cover (LULC) over three decades (1992/2022). Then, we quantify and map CSS using the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST 3.10.2) model. Finally, we assess the economic value of this service over time using the social cost of carbon, adjusted by an appropriate discount rate. Our findings show that CSS declined by −217,738.4 tC/year (1992–2002) and −177,903.2 tC/year (2002–2012) prior to the park’s establishment, before rising to +61,786.8 tC/year during 2012–2022, following the park’s establishment and subsequent forest restoration, increasing its economic value from a net loss to +12,340,544 USD/year. By addressing a significant knowledge gap regarding CSS dynamics and economic value within a protected area, this study highlights the effectiveness of conservation measures and offers a practical tool for managers to inform decision makers, promote conservation and restoration investments, and engage local communities in sustainable development initiatives. Full article

Pines (genus Pinus) are a diverse group of conifers widely distributed across the Northern Hemisphere, comprising more than 110 species worldwide. In Europe, pines are a defining component of forests, occupying environments that range from dry Mediterranean lowlands to high-elevation alpine zones. They support a wide spectrum of ecosystem services, from timber and non-wood products to protection, biodiversity, and cultural values. In this review, we bring together ecological traits, silvicultural practices, and management considerations for ten European pine species. This review examines ten major European pine species, including Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris), maritime pine (P. pinaster), stone pine (P. pinea), Aleppo pine (P. halepensis), black pine (P. nigra), mountain pine (P. mugo), Swiss stone pine (P. cembra), Turkish pine (P. brutia), Bosnian pine (P. heldreichii), and Macedonian pine (P. peuce). Together, these species span a wide range of European environments, with Pinus sylvestris showing the broadest distribution. Despite the extensive literature on pine species, information on their ecological, silvicultural, and management attributes remains fragmented across disciplines. To bridge this gap, this review draws on an expert-curated core of scientific and technical literature complemented by a structured literature search adapted from the PRISMA framework, compiling within a single framework their main ecological and silvicultural characteristics, altitudinal range, growth patterns, stand diversity, and management practices and the principal goods and ecosystem services they provide. The comparative analysis highlighted distinct functional groups among European pines, illustrating contrasting adaptive strategies across environmental gradients, with altitudinal distributions ranging from sea level to 2400 m. Mediterranean species, such as P. halepensis, P. pinaster, and P. brutia, generally showed higher drought and fire adaptation, whereas mountain taxa such as P. cembra, P. mugo, and P. heldreichii displayed greater cold tolerance but increased vulnerability due to restricted climatic niches and slow regeneration. Broadly distributed species, such as P. sylvestris and P. nigra, exhibited intermediate ecological strategies, with responses strongly influenced by regional climatic conditions. By integrating evidence on distribution patterns, functional traits, growth patterns, and management practices, this review provides a comparative framework to support adaptive forest management and informed species selection, helping to safeguard forest functions and their associated benefits under ongoing climate change. Full article

Within the framework of the dual carbon strategy, investigating the spatiotemporal characteristics and driving factors of carbon sequestration in metropolitan areas through land use analysis is important for mitigating climate change and promoting regional ecological protection and sustainable development. On the basis of land use time points for five phases from the Jinan metropolitan area (JMA) covering the period from 2000 to 2024, the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST) model was coupled with the extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost)–Shapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) and multiscale geographically weighted regression (MGWR) models to explore the spatiotemporal variations in carbon storage and its driving factors. In the last 24 years, cropland has been the predominant land use category in the JMA, representing almost 62% of the overall area. Throughout the five periods, the transition from cropland to construction land predominated, resulting in an 11.78% reduction in farmland and a 49.73% expansion in construction land. Between 2000 and 2024, carbon storage in the JMA decreased overall, with a total reduction of 3.70 Tg. The occupation of farmland for construction purposes was the primary cause of the decrease in carbon storage. The spatial pattern of carbon storage was similar to that of land use in the JMA, characterized by a distribution pattern with elevated values in the southeast and reduced values in the northwest. The SHAP analysis results demonstrated that the contributions of driving factors such as elevation, vegetation coverage, human footprint, and population density were generally high, making them the main drivers affecting carbon storage, with a significantly greater contribution of natural factors than human activity factors. The MGWR model results revealed that the digital elevation model and fractional vegetation cover positively influenced carbon storage in the JMA, whereas the population density imposed a negative effect. These results could guide the judicious allocation and utilisation of resources in urban regions, the establishment of ecological conservation areas, and the advancement of regional sustainability. Full article