ASSESSMENT OF FOREST ECOSYSTEM SERVICES VALUE IN THE DONGTING LAKE AREA: A CASE STUDY OF CHANGDE CITY, CHINA

Forest ecosystem services are of immense value and crucial for human well-being. Assessing the value of these services is essential for forest ecosystem asset management, ecological compensation, and policy implementation regarding the compensated use of ecological services. This study develops a value assessment index system specific to the forest resources of China's Changde City and quantitatively evaluates their ecosystem service value. Key findings include: (1) The total value of Changde City's forest ecosystem services is estimated at 227.43 billion CNY, with the highest per-unit area values found in the northwest and southwest regions. (2) Supporting services hold the highest value at 69.52%, followed by regulating services at 29.92%, and cultural services at 0.56%. Broadleaf forests are the largest contributors, making up 58.9% of the total ecological service value, followed by coniferous forests (24.12%), mixed coniferous and broadleaf forests (12.56%), and bamboo forests (4.43%). (3) Shimen County contributes the most to the forest ecosystem service value of the city at 34.63%, followed by Hanshou County (5.32%), Jinshi County (2.47%), Anxiang County (0.39%), and Wuling District (0.34%). (4) The per capita value of forest ecosystem services in Changde City is 390,600 CNY, with a per capita GDP of 62,200 CNY. The ratio of per capita GDP to per capita forest ecosystem service value is nearly 1:6, highlighting the relative scarcity of forest ecosystem services in densely populated and economically active areas.