Ecosystem Disservice Research into Urban Problem Diagnosis

Abstract

With the acceleration of urbanization rate over 50%, the initiative of Ecological Restoration and Urban Regeneration tends to be the focus of future planning and design in China. However, how to identify where and what to be regenerated is challenging. This paper calls for the integration of ecosystem disservice (EDS) research into urban problem diagnosis. Ecosystem disservice is raised up in opposite to ecosystem services, referring to ecosystem’s uncomfortable or negative influences to humans. The investigation of EDS should distinguish causes (natural factors and human intervention), influenced status (actual disservices and latent disservices), and influenced level (relative disservices and absolute disservices). Using EDS as a diagnosing framework, cities could systematically analyze key issues and hotspots, summarize the checklist of disservices, and utilize varied strategies for solutions including enhancing services, mitigating disservices and tradeoff between services and disservices.

Keywords

Ecosystem Service / Ecosystem Disservice / Negative Impact / Disservice Checklist / Social Service of Ecosystem

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

2017 Higher Education Press