Assessment of forest ecosystem services in China: A methodology

The methods of forest ecosystem services assessment vary between countries of the world. According to China’s characteristics and forestry situation, a systematic methodology of forest ecological benefits assessment was put forward by people who are concerned and devoted themselves into forest research in China. Indicator system was established according to forest multi-functionality, and assessment units were divided by different factors such as geography, forest types and age groups. Ultimately, there were 7020 relative homogenising units were used as accounting for calculating forest ecosystem services. Two kinds of assess method i.e. quantity of quality and value were adopted in the view of social and economic parameters. The methodology presented here should be helpful to scientists who want to know the real benefits offered by forest.