Scale Dependence Of Relationships Between Ecosystem Services

Ecosystem services are essential natural environmental conditions and effectiveness to human survival and development. Different ecosystem services correlate with each other, including two forms of the relationship:tradeoff and synergy. In recent years, more and more people pay attention to the relationships between different ecosystem services. Relationships between ecosystem services change over scales.In this study we chose Tabu River Basin as the research object and we quantitatively assessed seven kinds of ecosystem services:carbon storage, net primary productivity, water yield, crop production, grass production, habitat quality and landscape aesthetics, combining with the field data of 2014 and 2015, as well as many production datas. We described the spatial distribution patterns of ecosystem services. Based on these, we analyzed the relationships between seven kinds of ecosystem services along different scales, and we further analyzed scale dependence of the relationships between ecosystem services, combining correlation analysis, and GIS spatial analysis methods. The conclusions are as follows:(1)Through the spatial distribution and statistical results of seven kinds of ecosystem services, we can draw the conclusion that ecosystem services of different land use types vary in a certain degree, and grassland makes the greatest contribution to regional ecosystem services. (2) Within Tabu River Basin, the relationships of tradeoff and synergy between different ecosystem services exist at the same time. The relationships between two provisioning services are tradeoffs; the relationships between regulating services and cultural services are mainly tradeoffs; the relationships between two regulating services are mainly synergies; the relationships between supporting services and cultural services are synergies; the sets of tradeoffs and synergies are similar between regulating services and supporting services; the relationships between provisioning services and three other services depends on the types of provisioning services. (3) There are five categories of scale dependence between different ecosystem services within Tabu River Basin:relationships between ecosystem services are mainly synergies, and synergies increase with scales; relationships between ecosystem services are synergies, and synergies decrease with scales; relationships between ecosystem services are mainly tradeoffs, and tradeoffs increase with scales; relationships between ecosystem services are mainly tradeoffs, and tradeoffs decrease with scales; relationships between ecosystem services change from tradeoffs into synergies with the increase of scales. Through this study, we can provide theoretical basis for the protection, utilization, and management of ecosystem services. It is of great significance to the sustainable development of ecosystem services.