Land Use and Land Cover Changes and Ecosystem Services in the Yangtze River Economic Belt

(1) Land Use and Land Cover Changes (LUCCs) in the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) between 2010 and 2030 are primarily driven by an increase in artificial surface land and a decrease in cropland, forestland, and grassland.

Modification Reason: Polished the sentence to improve clarity and concision.

(2) A spatial mismatch is observed between the supply and demand of the four ecosystem services (ESs), with significant disparities in the developed eastern coastal regions, while the central and western areas exhibit relatively stable patterns.

Modification Reason: Improved clarity and readability by rephrasing the sentence.

(3) We detected synergistic effects in the relationships between carbon sequestration, water conservation, and food production. However, there is a trade-off effect between soil retention and other ESs, such as water conservation, grain production, and carbon sequestration.

Modification Reason: Rewritten to improve clarity and conciseness.

(4) The sensitivity of the supply-demand ratio for the four ESs varies with LUCCs. Specifically, changes in cropland and bareland have the most significant impact at the provincial level, while forestland and artificial surface land exhibit an inverse relationship. The supply-demand ratio for soil retention is most sensitive to changes in waterbody area at the urban and county scales, while the other ESs are most sensitive to changes in cropland and forestland.

Modification Reason: Clarified the sentence structure and improved readability.

(5) We found positive correlations between ecosystem services (ESs) and the proportion of forestland and grassland, whereas the artificial surface area shows a negative correlation. We suggest that provinces collaborate to establish large-scale nature reserves to safeguard and enhance ecosystem services at the provincial level. Additionally, urban development boundaries should be reasonably delineated at the municipal level, and population distribution should be coordinated to promote a balance of supply and demand at the county level.

Modification Reason: Rephrased the sentence for better readability and clarity. Added a suggestion for action based on the findings of the study.