Page 60 - JCAU-5-3

Journal of Chinese
Architecture and Urbanism Ecosystem service evaluation on ecological restoration

purification of water sources, and control of pollutants, as facing the rivers in rural areas (Qian, 2022). At present,
well as esthetic value and recreational opportunities (Ge et al., the existing approach used to ecologically restore water
2023). In addition, water is the foundation of ecosystem network in the rural riverbank areas in China mainly relies
services and a fundamental factor affecting ecosystem on a single water body or land cover type, as the basis. In
evolution (Martin-Ortega, et al., 2015). However, rural the process from planning to design, there is less emphasis
areas are vulnerable to the impact of climate change and on the relationship between the riverbank boundary and
other environmental threats, for example, declining soil the adjacent land uses, making it difficult to carry out
and water quality, and decreasing biodiversity (European tailored ecological restoration work based on the diverse
Environment Agency, 2020). According to the research, needs of different land uses (Fu & Liu, 2019).
one of the main threats in rural areas is industrial livestock By presenting a case study, this paper proposes relevant
production, which leads to severe water pollution (Kupiec assessment indicators for ecosystem services through the
et al., 2022). A study investigated the chemical properties evaluation of the land use types and the supply-demand
of Orla River in Poland and found a positive correlation relationship of ES. A holistic and detailed understanding
between livestock building areas and chemical parameters of the restoration needs can be obtained through a
in the river (Kupiec et al., 2022). A study conducted in comprehensive evaluation of the ecological status and
Córrego da Olaria Basin in Brazil similarly indicated that functions of rural water ecosystems.
the water quality of the river was correlated with land use
(Simedo et al., 2018). Therefore, it is important to pay 2. Data and methods
attention to the fragile river ecosystem and to provide The river network in Shanghai is well-developed and
local-based ecological restoration approaches. In recent performs various functions, with different types of rivers
years, several studies have employed the ecosystem services providing different ecosystem services. This study focuses
approach to assess restoration in riparian areas (Castellano on Shanghai city in the Jiangnan region of China, where
et al., 2022). Furthermore, a pilot study on Shanghai’s the water environment holds immense significance for the
Baoshan District specifically analyzed the provision of ES rural landscapes. The ecological service capacity of rural
in the area. The findings indicated that the implementation rivers is important, not only for the green infrastructure
of an ecological network plan led to an overall increase in of the countryside, but also for the ecological space of the
the supply of ecosystem services (Zepp et al., 2021).
metropolitan area. In the rural landscape planning of Shuiku
Domestic research on rural characteristics in China Village in Shanghai, we started with a supply and demand
primarily focuses on the evaluation and development of trade-offs model of ecosystem services and provided a
rurality, utilizing both social and managerial perspectives reference for decision-making based on the wide extent
(Cui et al., 2021). The rural revitalization effort that began of participation. Through innovative mapping techniques,
in the 1980s, is still the largest-scale endeavor to promote we precisely formulated resilient landscape tasks under
rural governance and restore rural socio-economic vitality. the goals of water environment improvement, biodiversity
An important task in these efforts is the governance of the enhancement, and sociocultural reconstruction, providing
ecological environment. While efforts have been made a spatial and temporal interface for an integrated and
to enhance rural infrastructure and strive toward the collaborative ecological restoration workflow.
goal of creating a beautiful countryside, the ecological
protection of rural areas has often been overlooked in the 2.1. Shuiku village
implementation process. In the southern part of China, Shuiku Village, located in Caojing Town, Jinshan District,
the water environment in rural areas is currently facing Shanghai, is one of the typical representatives of Shanghai’s
several problems. The increasing population and economic water villages, as shown in Figure 1. The village was formed
activities have resulted in water pollution, habitat loss, by sediment carried by the Yangtze River, which was later
and deterioration of water quality. Industrial discharges, reclaimed by hand to create an island-like landscape.
agricultural runoff, and inadequate sewage treatment The village boasts 39 rivers, covering a total length of
systems have contributed to high levels of pollutants in the 28.91 km, with a water area ratio of about 40%. However,
water, affecting both aquatic ecosystems and public health the density of the river network is high, mostly in the form
(Qian, 2022). More than 80% of underground water is of cutoff hills, which hampers water system circulation
unsafe for drinking or bathing in China (Buckley & Paio, and leads to insufficient hydrodynamic power. Until 2019,
2016). In addition, excessive extraction of water resources Shuiku Village’s primary industry was agriculture and
and improper water management practices has led to farming. However, farmland surface source pollution and
water scarcity issues, particularly during the dry seasons. uncontrolled fish and shrimp farming resulted in water
Eutrophication and algae bloom are the main problems pollution and weak biodiversity as the processed water

Volume 5 Issue 3 (2023) 2 https://doi.org/10.36922/jcau.1055