Ecosystem services in different agro-climatic zones in eastern India: impact of land use and land cover change

What is the relationship between ecosystem services and farmers’ livelihoods? Based on measuring the contribution of ecosystem services to farmers’ livelihoods

The relationships between ecosystem services and farmers’ livelihoods are important for ecological and livelihood sustainability. In this paper, Chongqing was picked up as a case to elucidate the contribution of ecosystem services to farmers’ livelihoods. First, we constructed a DPSIR (driver, pressure, state, impact and response) framework of ecosystem services and farmers’ livelihoods through participatory farmers’ livelihoods surveys and empirical data from the literature. Then, a 48-node Bayesian network model were used to explore the explicit and implicit impacts of both ecosystem services and farmers’ livelihoods, and to determine the key factors. Finally, we analyzed the contribution of ecosystem services to different types of farmers’ livelihoods. The results showed that ecosystem services have a significant impact on the farmers’ livelihoods. The probabilities of high state for ecosystem services and livelihood outcomes were 17.6% and 30.7%, respectively. While the probabilities of medium state were 51.2% and 45.4%, respectively. Particularly for low-income farmers, the impact on them increased with the increasing of ecosystem services (such as esthetic landscapes and food production). For different types of farming households, the most important contributor of ecosystem services-related income were pure farming households, part-time farming households and nonfarming households, accounting for 77.3%, 36.3%, and 14.8% of the total average annual household income, respectively. Our findings suggested that in promoting sustainable management of ecosystems, the contribution of ecosystem services to farmers’ livelihoods and their impact on farm income and the ecosystem services value should be considered.

Advances in Ecosystem Services Valuation Studies in India: Learnings from a Systematic Review

Ecosystem services (ES) concept has gained global momentum as they hold immense importance for human well-being. On the other hand, direct and indirect drivers of biodiversity loss have led to deterioration of ecosystem health and their capacity to deliver ecosystem services. Worldwide, ES assessments have been increasingly used by administrators to formulate sustainable and environment centric policies. Similarly, there has been continuous expansion of ES related work in India to capture the material and non-material benefits derived from diverse ecosystems in the country. In the current paper, 105 research articles/reports have been reviewed to assess the growing trajectory of ES research and also to map their methodological approaches. The lacunae in the studies and literature have been critically examined. Analysis of the study shows that ES derived from forests have been captured widely while marine ecosystems have not received appropriate scholarly attention. Similarly, dearth of studies focusing on long- and short-term implications of climate change and other environmental challenges on the ES delivery was also evident. A strong need is felt to integrate interdisciplinary approaches for holistic ES assessment. Also, future ES assessments must assimilate traditional as well as indigenous knowledge systems within ES assessment framework to ensure formulation of tangible, sustainable policies.

Descriptive Spatial Analysis of Human-Elephant Conflict (HEC) Distribution and Mapping HEC Hotspots in Keonjhar Forest Division, India

Escalation of human-elephant conflict (HEC) in India threatens its Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) population and victimizes local communities. India supports 60% of the total Asian elephant population in the world. Understanding HEC spatial patterns will ensure targeted mitigation efforts and efficient resource allocation to high-risk regions. This study deals with the spatial aspects of HEC in Keonjhar forest division, where 345 people were killed and 5,145 hectares of croplands were destroyed by elephant attacks during 2001–2018. We classified the data into three temporal phases (HEC1: 2001–2006, HEC2: 2007–2012, and HEC3: 2013–2018), in order to (1) derive spatial patterns of HEC; (2) identify the hotspots of HEC and its different types along with the number of people living in the high-risk zones; and (3) assess the temporal change in the spatial risk of HEC. Significantly dense clusters of HEC were identified in Keonjhar and Ghatgaon forest ranges throughout the 18 years, whereas Champua forest range became a prominent hotspot since HEC2. The number of people under HEC risk escalated from 14,724 during HEC1 and 34,288 in HEC2, to 65,444 people during HEC3. Crop damage was the most frequent form of HEC in the study area followed by house damage and loss of human lives. Risk mapping of HEC types and high priority regions that are vulnerable to HEC, provides a contextual background for researchers, policy makers and managers.

Modeling ESV losses caused by urban expansion using cellular automata and geographically weighted regression

Driven by increasing urban demand, spatially-varying urban expansion has led to significant ecosystem degradation in China and elsewhere. Spatial nonstationarity affects the relationship between urban expansion and ecosystem service value (ESV) loss, but its significance has been under-emphasized. To study the spatially-heterogeneous ESV loss, we integrated cellular automata (CA) with geographically weighted regression (GWR) in a model that considers the relationships between urban expansion and its driving factors. We used ten GWR bandwidths to construct the CA_GWR models for reproducing rapid urban expansion at Chongqing from 2005 to 2010. We then used the CA_GWR model with the best bandwidth to predict future urban scenarios out to 2030. Our modeling shows that CA_GWR is strongly sensitive to bandwidth, and that the overall accuracy and Figure-of-Merit are maximized with a ~2 km² bandwidth (about 150 samples). We examined ESV losses in eleven ecosystem classes and found that climate regulation and water flow regulation are the dominant drivers of ESV loss. From 2010 to 2030, Chongqing's urban area will increase by about 87%, resulting in substantial encroachment on agricultural land, dryland and shrubs, causing significant ESV losses of about 38%. Our results constitute an early warning of ecosystem degradation caused by massive urban development. This study improves our understanding of spatially-varying urban expansion and related ESV losses in rapidly developing areas and should help improve urban planning regulation and regional policy for sustainable development to maintain environmentally-friendly cities.