Evaluation of Ecological Environment Quality of Typical Forest Parks

Dongmei ZHANG, Shuzhen PENG Weijun ZHAO Mengyuan GAO Junqing HAN

Abstract Forest tourist areas have an excellent ecological environment, which is conducive to peoples physical and mental health. In this study, Fuzhou National Forest Park and Wuying National Forest Park were selected as typical representatives of the southern and northern forest parks, respectively, which were compared by qualitative and quantitative research methods from such five aspects as air quality, climate quality, water environment quality, acoustic environment quality and biological population in some forest areas. The results showed that Fuzhou National Forest Park has a concentration of negative oxygen ions much higher than Wuying National Forest Park, and is thus more conducive to peoples health; and it has the characteristics of warm and comfortable climate throughout the year and high biodiversity, but the noise is 4.35 db higher than Wuying National Forest Park, and the water quality is slightly poorer than that of Wuying National Forest Park. And its DO value is about 3.89 smaller in autumn than in summer. In Wuying National Forest Park, the concentration of negative oxygen ions is 53.6% lower than Fuzhou National Forest Park, but it is also above the national standard. The climate is only comfortable in June-August, and is colder or cooler in other months. The water quality is better than that of Fuzhou National Forest Park. In particular, the PH value is about 0.38 lower than that of Fuzhou National Forest Park. It has its own unique biological characteristics. The number of tourists in summer is higher, resulting in higher noise in summer than in autumn. The two forest parks in the north and the south are both good places for people to relax and enjoy.

Key words Forest tourism; Environmental quality; Quality evaluation; Ecological environment

Forest ecosystem plays an important role in the global ecological environment change. As one of the carriers of forest ecosystem, forest parks determine the development trend of forest tourism. In the research on the evaluation of forest tourism ecological environment quality, the research on ecological environment evaluation has become more and more in-depth in recent years, and many  evaluation methods such as analytic hierarchy process (AHP)［1］and multi-level fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method［2］have been proposed, and many evaluation models and indicator systems have been established［3］. Scholars at abroad such as Li et al.［3］used RS and GIS techniques and Delphi and AHP methods to evaluate the ecological environment of typical red soil hilly areas in Changsha, Hunan Province, China. Chinese scholars also have their own understanding on the evaluation of forest tourism environment quality. According to the current situation of ecotourism resources in Wuyishan scenic area, Hong et al.［1］applied AHP to the fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method and established a multi-factor and multi-factor mathematical model of fuzzy comprehensive evaluation, and effectively and reasonably evaluated the eco-tourism environmental quality of Wuyishan scenic area. Guided by the theory of tourism environment quality and its regional combining form, Feng［2］screened 27 indicators from tourism landscape environment, tourism natural ecological environment, tourism service environment, tourism social culture environment and tourism information environment and constructed a tourism environmental quality evaluation index system, by AHP, Delphi method and multi-level fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method, and then analyzed and evaluated the tourism environment quality of Chihuashan Forest Park in Zhuhai City. Yu［4］screened the key indicators with strong pertinence in ecotourism development of nature reserves by frequency statistics method, iterative filtering and generation methods and expert evaluation method, repeatedly adjusted the indicators by expert consultation method, structured interview, semi-structured interview, questionnaire survey, field visit and other methods, and grouped them in accordance with social, economic, environmental aspects. Through the comprehensive application of above methods, a set of evaluation indicators was constructed. The ecotourism sustainability evaluation indexes of nature reserves were finally determined through the correlation analysis and principal component analysis of the indicators; and an ecotourism sustainability evaluation index system was constructed by the hierarchical decomposition method and the combination of quantitative and qualitative methods through scientific and rational decomposition, induction and summarization.

In this paper, through the evaluation and analysis of such five indicators as climate quality, air environment quality, water environment quality, acoustic environment quality and biological advantages, the tourism environment quality of Fuzhou Forest Park and Wuying National Forest Park were comprehensively analyzed from various factors, providing a scientific basis for the construction and protection of ecological environment and the promotion of the sustainable development of forest tourism.

Data Sources and Research Methods

Data source

In this paper, by reviewing the data of previous studies, combined with China Weather Network, the data of each regional environmental protection bureau were compiled and analyzed.

Research methods

In the evaluation of air environmental quality, the concept of negative air ion coefficient pproposed (P) by Shi et al.［6］was used as the negative ion ratio in air ions, i.e.,: p=n-/(n-+n+). The forest air ion evaluation model was FCI=(n-/1 000)p, wherein FCI is the forest air ion evaluation index; p is the negative air ion coefficient; n is the negative ion concentration; and 1 000 is the lowest negative ion concentration of human biological effect. According to the air ion concentration grading standards (Table 1), the negative ion concentrations and the forest air ion evaluation index levels of the forest tourism parks (Table 2) were analyzed［5, 7-10］.

In the evaluation of climatic environment quality, the climate physiological indicators, namely the temperature-humidity index THI and the wind effect index K［11］that are more recognized by the academic community, are usually calculated by following  formulas:

THI=（1.8t+32）-0.55（1-f）（1.8t-26）

K=-(10v1/2+10.45-v)(33-t)+8.55s

Wherein t is Celsius temperature; f is relative humidity; v is wind speed; and s is light hours.

In the evaluation of water environment quality, the floating objects, olfactory quality, color, water temperature, pH value, DO value and BOD5 value of the major river sections of Fuzhou National Forest Park and Wuying National Forest Park were mainly compared in summer and autumn.

In the evaluation of acoustic environment, the acoustic environment quality of forest tourism areas was evaluated mainly by reference to "Environmental quality standard for noise" (GB 3096-2008) (Table 4).

The areas that meet the standards of Class 1 or above are suitable for tourism.

When evaluating the biological advantages of forest tourism, the biological richness and aesthetics of the forest tourist area were mainly analyzed.

Evaluation of Ecological Environment Quality of Typical Forest Parks in North and South China

Air environment quality

According to the forest air ion grading standards (Table 1) and the forest air ion evaluation index grading standards (Table 2), it can be seen that the minimum negative ion concentration in the forest tourist area is set to be 400 ions/cm3, and the concentration of negative ions of IV level is 1 000 ions/cm3. Air that reaches a negative ion level above level IV is beneficial to human health and falls within the range of health concentrations. The V-level air has neither harm nor much benefit to human body, and falls within the allowable concentration range. The higher the level, the higher the air cleanliness and the better the air quality. The following table shows the summer air ion contents of Fuzhou National Forest Park and Wuying National Forest.

It can be seen from the above two tables that the negative ion concentration of Fuzhou National Forest Park is relatively high, and the FCI value is above the first level standard. The negative ion concentration of the Wuying National Forest Park can also reach 2 000-3 000 ions/cm3. The P value and the FCI value are also above the standard. However, the average negative oxygen ion concentrations in Fuzhou National Forest Park and Wuying National Forest Park are 6 733 and 2 032 ions/cm3, respectively, with a difference of about 53.6%, and the FCI value of Fuzhou National Forest Park (3.07) is higher than the FCI value of Wuying National Forest Park (1.40), indicating that the forest air ion evaluation index of Fuzhou National Forest Park is higher than that of Wuying National Forest Park. For those who want to travel and recuperate, these two places are both good places. The high negative oxygen ion concentration of Fuzhou National Forest Park is more beneficial to peoples health.

Climate environment quality

The forest tourist areas are generally located in mountainous areas at elevations below 2 000 m. In this area, there is plenty of sunshine, the temperature is right, the air is clean, and the summer is cool and pleasant. Tourists who come here for leisure and vacation, can deepen their breathing, and experience increased lung capacity, promoted blood circulation in body and increased oxygen content in the blood. In forest parks, due to forest cover, forests have the forest climate advantages such as weak and less sunshine, low temperature, small temperature difference, large relative humidity, large static wind frequency, small average wind speed and rich meteorological diversity scenery compared with the areas outside forests［11］. Table 7 below compares the climate between Fuzhou National Forest Park and Wuying National Forest Park.

Data in the table is quoted from Wang Lei, Study on the influence of tourism development on the ecological environment of Fuzhou National Forest Park and its countermeasures［D］2004.6.

Data in the table is quoted from Kong Fanlei, Study on tourism environment quality evaluation and development of Yichun Main Forest Park［D］2003.6.13.

Fuzhou National Forest Park itself is located in the subtropical zone, and the climatic conditions are relatively humid. It can be seen from the table that the K value is comfortable and warm for at least 6 months of the year, and the THI value is warm and cool for at least 10 months. The weather is only hot in July and August, while the unique climatic conditions in the forest will make people feel a little cool. Therefore, it is very suitable for people to rest and visit here all year round. However, Wuying National Forest Park is located in the northeastern part of China, where the spring and summer seasons are short. It can be seen from the table that the K value is warm only from June to August, and the THI value is comfortable. The weather is cold at least 8 months in the year, when it is not suitable for people to bathe in the forest bath. The summer months from June to August are very suitable for  people to enjoy the cool.

Water environment quality

In forest tourist areas, due to forestsown filtration system, the water quality is relatively pure. Taking Fuzhou National Forest Park and Wuying National Forest Park as examples, Table 8 shows the environmental comparison results between Fuzhou National Forest Park and Wuying National Forest Park.

From the above table, Wuying Tianci Lake in Wuying National Forest Park has almost no floating objects, and its PH, DO and BOD5 are lower than other areas. The overall water temperature of Wuying National Forest Park is lower than that of Fuzhou National Forest Park, and other indicators such as floating objects, PH value, DO and BOD5 are all lower than Fuzhou National Forest Park. It can be seen that the water quality of Wuying National Forest Park is better than that of Fuzhou National Forest Park. However, the water quality of the two forest scenic areas can reach the highest standards of national landscape and entertainment water and surface water, and the water quality is better. It can be seen that the protection of the two forest parks is very good, and people have a strong awareness of the protection of forest parks.

Acoustic environment quality

According to the data survey, the environmental sound level of Fuzhou National Forest Park averaged 53.1 db, which reached the Class 1 standard, indicating that the acoustic environment quality in the forest park is relatively high and the noise is low, which is suitable for the development of tourism activities. The sound level of the surrounding areas of the forest park is about  65.5 db, which is 12.4 db higher than the forest park. This is related to the noisy urban environment and less greening. Therefore, the forest park is very suitable for people to rest, recuperate and relax. Wuying National Forest Park has an average sound level of 48.75, which is very suitable for tourism, recuperation and health care activities. The surrounding areas of the forest park such as Yichun showed a sound level of about 60.6 db, which is at the national level 3 standard and is about 12 db higher than the forest park. According to relevant data, the environmental sound level of Wuying National Forest Park is 48.7 db in summer, and is 42.8 db in autumn. The acoustic environment in autumn is better than that in summer, which is mainly because summer has the best suitability for tourism, and more tourists choose summer to come here for a tour.

Biotic environment quality

According to the research results of demographers, medical scientists, biologists and environmental ecologists, ecotourism experts have come up with a new theory: the health status of human beings and the length of life are positively correlated with the number of species in the habitat［14］. Taking Fuzhou National Forest Park and Wuying National Forest Park as examples, both forest parks have different biological species.

Fuzhou National Forest Park is located in the subtropical region, and the hot and humid climatic conditions provide excellent conditions for the growth of various organisms. There are many kinds of organisms here. Most of the vegetation is distributed in the flat areas on the hills and valleys. There are two types of forests (i.e., plantations and natural secondary forests) and some natural shrubs. There are many national first class protected rare plants such as "living fossils"——Metasequoia glyptostroboides Hu & W. C. Cheng and "Chinese pigeon trees"——Davidia involucrata Baill., a small number of "forest giants"——Parashorea chinensis Wang Hsie., as well as the"queen of tea" discovered in 1960——Camellia chrysantha, Alsophila spinulosa (Wall. ex Hook.) R. M. Tryon, the worlds oldest living fossil, known as the remains of ancient forests, and Taiwania flousiana Gaussen, one of the world-famous giant trees, known as the "king of trees". There are also a variety of national second class protected rare plants in the park, such as Ginkgo biloba L., Cercidiphyllum japonicum Sieb. Et Zucc., Carpinus putoensis Cheng, Eucommia ulmoides Oliver, Bretschneidera sinensis HemsL, Sinocalycanthus chinensis, C. grijsii Hance, C. reticulata Lindl., Caryota urens, Cephalotaxus hainanensis Li, Litchi chinensis Sonn., etc.

The Wuying National Forest Park has a total area of 14 141 hm2 and a forest coverage rate of 82.2%. It has the largest and best preserved Pinus koraiensis forest belt in China. There are more than 250 species of wild animals and seven or eight hundred plants in the park. The main plants are Picea asperata Mast., Abies fabri (Mast.) Craib, Phellodendron amurense Rupr., Juglans mandshurica, Vitis amurensis Rupr., Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill., Matteuccia struthiopteris (L.) Todaro, Panax ginseng C. A. Mey, Acanthopanax senticosus (Rupr. Maxim.) Harms, Auricularia auricula (L. ex Hook.) Underw, Hericium erinaceus (Rull ex F.) Pers., etc.; and the animals mainly include bears, wild boars, roe deers, tigers, red deer, sables, Lepus capensis, squirrels, yellow weasels, etc.

It can be seen from the comparison that the forest ecological environment quality of Fuzhou National Forest Park and Wuying National Forest Park have reached the national standards. Fuzhou National Forest Park has better ecological environment quality, comfortable and warm climate all year round, and is suitable for coming all year round for tourism and recuperation. Wuying National Forest Park is only comfortable and warm in June and August, and the time for bathing in the forest bath is relatively short, but the two forest parks both have advantages in negative air ion concentration, water quality, acoustic environment quality and biodiversity. It can be seen that whether it is a national forest park in the south or the north, the quality of the forest ecological environment is first-class.

Conclusions

The concentration of negative oxygen ions in forests is high, especially in summer and autumn, when the air quality is the freshest. The climate is superior and is suitable, and the comfortable degree of human body is higher; the water quality is good, free of pollution; there is no noise pollution, and the environment is quiet, very suitable for relaxation; and the forest tourism scenic areas have many kinds of creatures and rich species.

The tourism activities in forests will have many adverse effects on the ecological environment of forest scenic spots. For example, human tourism activities will interfere with the survival of wild animals. If the garbage discarded by tourists is eaten by animals, it may seriously threaten the lives of animals. The random trampling of plants, the pollution of water resources and air and the noise pollution caused by human activities will seriously damage the forest ecosystem and achieve irreparable damage. Therefore, in the development and utilization of forest scenic spots, we must adhere to protection first, development second, and the harmonious coexistence between man and nature, improve the quality of tourists to jointly protect nature and take the road of sustainable development.

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