An ecosystem service valuation of land use change in Taiyuan City, China

Urban sprawl and a policy of converting farmland to woodland and grassland in the fragile ecological environments of the Loess Plateau of China can cause complex land use changes that significantly affect ecosystem services and functions. This study investigated changes in ecosystem services in response to land use changes caused primarily by human activities in Taiyuan City, the capital of Shanxi Province. Our aim was to provide guidance for sustainable urban development in fragile ecological environments undergoing rapid urbanization. We used remote sensing to evaluate land use changes, and applied a fast method for evaluating ecological service values at two points in time: 1990 and 2005. The ecosystem services value dropped from 743.53 × 106 yuan (1990) to 723.45 × 106 yuan (2005), mostly because farmland and grassland decreased. Over 95% of the total service value was attributable to woodland and farmland. Soil formation and protection, and water supply were the two largest service functions, contributing about 32% of the total service value. The results suggest that future land use planning should control the encroachment of urban areas on farmland, grassland, and woodland, and continue the policy of converting poor farmland to woodland and grassland.

► Total ecosystem service valuation in Taiyuan City decreased between 1990 and 2095.
► Compromise between economic development and ecological protection must be addressed.
► Construction land encroachment on farmland, grassland, and woodland should be controlled.
► Policy of creating woodland and grassland from former farmland should be continued.