Area Threshold Interval of Urban Forest Patches Required to Maintain the Synergy between Biodiversity Conservation and Recreational Services: Case Study in Beijing, China

Abstract

Promoting sustainable urban development is crucial in light of upcoming environmental change and population expansion. Urban forests play a key role in transporting ecosystem services to urban areas. They not only offer a crucial biological setting for preserving urban biodiversity, but they also give recreation dwellers access to a variety of urban opportunities and ensure their spiritual and cultural needs are met. Maintaining urban biodiversity and offering recreation services have trade-offs and synergies, and both were highly connected with the size of an urban forest patch. Six districts in Beijing’s central urban area were chosen for this study to serve as the research objective. First, the MSPA model was employed to conduct a thorough scientific analysis of the pattern and distribution characteristics of urban forests in Beijing’s central urban area. Second, the recreation services were quantified by merging many sources of big data, the urban forest biodiversity preservation services were assessed using the InVEST model, and the spatial heterogeneity of the two services was examined. In conclusion, the coupling coordination degree model was utilized to calculate the crucial threshold interval between urban biodiversity service and recreation service for urban forest patch area. The findings indicated that the ideal urban forest patch scale for achieving the synergy of the two types of services was an area between 0.5 and 1 hectare. The outcomes can serve as a scientific foundation for urban forest planning and management in the future, assist in realizing the synergistic growth of the two services, as well as support the improvement of ecosystem services and the ecological welfare of people.