Optimising land use allocation to balance ecosystem services and economic benefits - A case study in Wuhan, China

Abstract The optimisation of land use allocation plays an important role in sustainable land use planning. It is crucial to realise the synergy between economic development and ecosystem conservation by optimising land use allocation. In this study, we developed a method to optimise land use allocation to balance ecosystem services and economic benefits based on the spatial difference of both ecosystem services value (ESV) and land use efficiency, based on the LAND System Cellular Automata model for Potential Effect (LANDSCAPE). In the optimisation model, spatial difference of ESV was represented by the parameter of resistance, while spatial difference of land use efficiency was expressed as the parameter of asynchronous rate of transition. Subsequently, land use allocation was optimised based on spatial difference of resistances and asynchronous rates. Taking Wuhan as the study area, the proposed optimisation model was used to conduct the optimisation of land use allocation during 2010–2020. Results showed that: economic benefits would increase by 444.77 million US$, while losses of ESV would decrease by 142.55 million US$ by optimisation of land use allocation. This indicated that the optimal allocation of land use based on spatial difference of ESV and land use efficiency can increase economic benefits at lower cost of ESV. In conclusion, it is feasible to allocate land resources to balance ecosystem services and economic benefits based on the differences of ESV and land use efficiency. This study highlights that taking the spatial difference of both ESV and land use efficiency into consideration is helpful for a sustainable land use planning.