Quantifying Landscape and Social Amenities as Ecosystem Services in Rapidly Changing Peri-Urban Landscape
Asad Aziz,
Muhammad Mushahid Anwar,
Muhammad Majeed,
Sammer Fatima,
Syed Shajee Mehdi,
Wali Muhammad Mangrio,
Amine Elbouzidi,
Muhammad Abdullah,
Shadab Shaukat,
Nafeesa Zahid,
Eman A. Mahmoud,
Ryan Casini,
Kowiyou Yessoufou,
Hosam O. Elansary
Affiliations
Asad Aziz
Department of Geography, University of Gujrat, Hafiz Hayat Campus, Gujrat 50700, Pakistan
Muhammad Mushahid Anwar
Department of Geography, University of Gujrat, Hafiz Hayat Campus, Gujrat 50700, Pakistan
Muhammad Majeed
Department of Botany, University of Gujrat, Hafiz Hayat Campus, Gujrat 50700, Pakistan
Sammer Fatima
Department of Botany, University of Gujrat, Hafiz Hayat Campus, Gujrat 50700, Pakistan
Syed Shajee Mehdi
Department of Geography, University of Gujrat, Hafiz Hayat Campus, Gujrat 50700, Pakistan
Wali Muhammad Mangrio
Department of Zoology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Shah Abdul Latif University, Khairpur 66111, Pakistan
Amine Elbouzidi
Laboratoire d’Amélioration des Productions Agricoles, Biotechnologie et Environnement (LAPABE), Faculté des Sciences, Université Mohammed Premier, Oujda 60000, Morocco
Muhammad Abdullah
Cholistan Institute of Desert Studies, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur 63100, Pakistan
Shadab Shaukat
Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, Lasbela University of Agriculture Water and Marine Sciences, Uthal 90150, Pakistan
Nafeesa Zahid
Department of Botany, Mirpur University of Science and Technology (MUST), Mirpur 10250, Pakistan
Eman A. Mahmoud
Department of Food Industries, Faculty of Agriculture, Damietta University, Damietta 34511, Egypt
Ryan Casini
School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, 2121 Berkeley Way, Berkeley, CA 94704, USA
Kowiyou Yessoufou
Department of Geography, Environmental Management, and Energy Studies, University of Johannesburg, APK Campus, Johannesburg 2006, South Africa
Hosam O. Elansary
Department of Plant Production, College of Food & Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2460, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
The peri-urban landscape is a highly dynamic area between the urban zone and the rural belt. The heterogeneous natural landscape around the cities provides several ecosystem services, but progressive urbanization affects it and results in the loss of biodiversity, greenery, and related benefits. This study attempts to quantify the social amenities associated with ecosystem services in the peri-urban landscape of the Gujrat district, in Pakistan, by using the Contingent Valuation Method (CVM) The results show that the peri-urban landscape provides amenities for the well-being of the community. Such amenities and the related recreational opportunities represent ecosystem services that are highly regarded by the residents, so much so that a significant willingness to pay can be associated with them. Therefore, this study highlights that natural areas and green areas’ landscapes must be taken into account when facing the social and economic necessity to provide for city expansion in developing countries, especially when aiming to achieve development in alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals. The ecosystem services and their evaluation are confirmed as indispensable tools for conservation and fortification of landscape development.
