Analysis of wetland ecosystem service value change and its driving forces in Haikou, China

Abstract The development of society and changes of natural conditions have caused a serious loss of wetlands in Haikou. Evaluation of wetland ecosystem service value (ESV) and determining its drivers are important for sustainable development, which can provide a reference for the scientific basis of wetland protection and management. Based on the land use data of Haikou city from 1959 to 2018, the ESV of wetlands in Haikou were calculated by equivalent factor method, and the correlation analysis, principal component analysis and spatial autocorrelation analysis were used to identify the main factors affecting the ESV change of Haikou wetland and the spatial change of its ESV. The results indicated that: (1) From 1959 to 2018, the area of wetlands was reduced by 19,704.36 ha, with the loss rate of 21.86%. (2) The wetlands ESV decreased from 57.57 to 53.15×108 yuan, and the regulation services with the highest contribution of 60.18% to 61.53%. (3) Socio-economic development (land use degree, GDP, population, aquaculture output), with the contributing of 37.49%, is the main driving factor of wetland change in Haikou city. Followed by the climate factors (precipitation, water pressure and relative humidity) provide a contribution of 23.06%, and the contribution of agricultural factors (grain output, aquaculture area and farmland area) was 11.25%. (4) High-intensity development and utilization and population clusters in built-up areas and coastal areas are responsible for its worst loss of wetland ESV.