The coastal areas of southeast China have typical high-density urbanization characteristics, and urban mountain parks are important green spaces in these urban green space systems. Our study was conducted in five typical urban mountain parks in Fuzhou, China. The bird survey was carried out in 25 transects of different vegetation habitats for 10 months, and the vegetation survey was conducted in 25 habitats to investigate the characteristics of bird communities in different vegetation habitats and the causes of their differences. The results showed: (1) From 1 October 2021 to 15 July 2022, we recorded a total of 90 bird species in 8 orders, 37 families, and 64 genera, with 1879 individuals in five vegetation habitats in the urban mountain parks. (2) Abundance and diversity of trees are vegetation variables affecting bird diversity (bird species richness, abundance, and Shannon diversity) in urban mountain parks, and the average branch height under trees has a significant effect on bird evenness. (3) We found more bird species and higher bird diversity in both sparse and dense forest habitats, but fewer bird species in waterfront, shrub, and grassland habitats; (4) Average tree height (AVE_HEIt) was only present in the best model of bird abundance and evenness. However, none of the best models found a significant effect of the number of tourists and predators on bird diversity. Our results could provide a theoretical basis and guidance for the future improvement of ecological service functions of bird habitats in urban mountain parks in subtropical coastal areas.

Urban park waterfront green spaces provide positive mental health benefits to the public. In order to further explore the specific influence mechanism between landscape elements and public psychological response, 36 typical waterfront green areas in Xihu Park and Zuohai Park in Gulou District, Fuzhou City, Fujian Province, China, were selected for this study. We used semantic segmentation technology to quantitatively decompose the 36 scenes of landscape elements and obtained a public psychological response evaluation using virtual reality technology combined with questionnaire interviews. The main results showed that: (1) the Pyramid Scene Parsing Network (PSPNet) is a model suitable for quantitative decomposition of landscape elements of urban park waterfront green space; (2) the public’s overall evaluation of psychological responses to the 36 scenes was relatively high, with the psychological dimension scoring the highest; (3) different landscape elements showed significant differences in four dimensions. Among the elements, plant layer, pavement proportion, and commercial facilities all have an impact on the four dimensions; and (4) the contribution rate of the four element types to the public’s psychological response is shown as spatial element (37.9%) > facility element (35.1%) > natural element (25.0%) > construction element (2.0%). The obtained results reveal the influence of different landscape elements in urban park waterfront green spaces on public psychology and behavior. Meanwhile, it provides links and methods that can be involved in the planning and design of urban park waterfront green space, and also provides emerging technical support and objective data reference for subsequent research.

A bioretention system is a low-impact and sustainable treatment facility for treating urban stormwater runoff. To meet or maintain a consistently satisfactory performance, especially in terms of increasing nitrogen removal efficiency, the introduction of a submerged (anoxic) zone (SZ) combined with a module-based carbon source (C) has been recommended. This study investigated the removal of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and heavy metals with a retrofitted bioretention system. A significant (p < 0.05) removal enhancement of N as well as total phosphorus (TP) was observed, in the mesocosms with additions of exogenous carbon as opposed to those without such condition. However, even in the mesocosm with SZ alone (without exogenous C), TP removal showed significant enhancement. With regard to the effects of SZ depth on nutrient removal, the results showed that the removal of both N and P in module with a shallow SZ (200 mm) showed significant enhancement compared to that in module with a deep SZ (300 mm). Removal efficiencies greater than 93% were observed for all three heavy metals tested (Cu, Pb, and Zn) in all mesocosms, even in the bioretention module without an SZ or plants, and it indicated that adsorption by the filtration media itself is probably the most important removal mechanism. Only Cu (but not Pb or Zn) showed significantly enhanced removal in module with an SZ as compared to those without an SZ. Carbon source played a minor role in metal removal as no significant (p > 0.05) improvement was observed in module with C as compared to that without C. Based on these results, the incorporation of SZ with C in stormwater biofilters is recommended.

The concept of National Forest Park (NFP) is mainly used in mainland China. Originating in 1982, NFP embodies a “top-down” concept and associated program launched by the Chinese government. It is aimed at promoting forest-based tourism and economic development under the premise of protecting forest resources. After 30 years of development, NFPs have made great achievements in protecting specific forest resources, promoting forest-based tourists, promoting regional economic development, and they have gained popularity worldwide. However, due to the fast pace of NFP expansion, lack of predictable planning and innovative thinking, and ineffective governance, some problems like overexploitation, scenic pollution, monotonous development patterns, and ecological degradation associated with NFP constrain its sustainable development. In order to solve these problems effectively, a holistic review of the status of NFPs in China is needed. To help meet this need, the origin, evolution, and current status of NFPs in China were analyzed. The presented research also included retrospective analyses of challenges and opportunities for NFPs sustainable development in China. Results show that from 1982 to 2015, the number of NFPs grew dramatically, and this development occurred in four phases. In addition, NFP development has been unbalanced in regional distribution. When analyzing the evolution of NFPs, the main issues to date have included failure to implement Master Plans in practice, unclear supervisory responsibilities, ambiguous classification, unbalanced distribution, destruction of natural resource and ecosystems, insufficient cultural protection, weak awareness of nature education, lack of resource statistics, monotonous planning, and weak marketing. Study findings can contribute to promoting the sustainable future development of NFPs and support the forest-based tourism industry.

Globalization and urbanization have made many Chinese cities lose their distinct characteristics and have led to emotional sense of loss for individuals. Place attachment, as encompassing place dependence and place identity, is the positive emotion that describes the psychological connections between people and a certain place. Many studies have indicated that people develop place attachment toward a certain place by long-term interaction with that place. However, few studies have demonstrated that place attachment might also be evoked by a landscape that looks familiar, but with which a person has not had long-term interactions. It is important to understand the role of place attachment in urban design, as neglecting place attachment can have a negative impact on the outcomes of urban planning and urban design. In this study we explored the contributions of local landscape elements to people’s place attachment to a new physical environment by means of a cross-regional comparative study. Three groups of respondents living in three different areas of China were chosen, and a photo-based approach was used to examine the association between local landscape elements and place attachment. The results indicate, first, that local landscapes positively contribute to residents’ place attachment. Next, an individual’s place attachment to new environments can be enhanced by adding familiar local landscape elements. Findings suggest that planners and designers can build stronger place attachment by integrating landscape elements that are familiar to people. This can have implications, for example, when creating links between newcomers and the new environments to which they have moved.