RS/GIS-based integrated evaluation of the ecosystem services of the Three Gorges Reservoir area (Chongqing section)
三峡库区生态系统服务功能重要性评价

This paper selected four major ecosystem services, biodiversity conservation, soil conservation, water conservation and nutrients conservation, to evaluate the ecosystem services of the Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR) area using GIS and RS techniques. We investigated the importance and spatial distribution of these services in a quantitative way. The results indicate that: (1) The percentage of the area with extremely and strongly important biodiversity conservation service reaches 15% of the total TGR area. The areas with extremely important biodiversity conservation present patchy distributions in the northeastern, central and southeastern parts of the TGR area; (2) The percentage of the areas with extremely important soil conservation is 68.80%. These areas are mainly distribute in Wanzhou and the regions northeast to Wanzhou; (3) The areas dominated by the slightly important water conservation service are widely distributed in the study region and are followed by those with extremely important water conservation service. The areas with extremely important water conservation service are located along the main streams, and the areas with moderately important water conservation service are distributed along the two sides of the main streams; (4) The areas with slightly important nutrients conservation service occupy the largest areas of the TGR area and are followed by those with extremely important nutrients conservation. The areas with extremely important nutrients conversation service are mainly distributed in zonal distribution along two sides of the rivers and streams, and the ridges; (5) The percentage of the areas with extremely and moderately important ecosystem services is about 50%. The areas with extremely important ecosystem services are distributed along the first watershed of main rivers and streams, and the ridges in the paralleled ridge-valley region in the west of the study region. The areas with moderately important ecosystem services are mainly distributed along the two sides of the above-mentioned areas and scatteringly distributed along the main streams.