An ecological benefit assessment of the Grain for Green Project in Shaanxi Province

Based on the resource area data of the Grain for Green Project in Shaanxi province by the end of 2013, according to the standards of " Specifications for assessment of forest ecosystem services in China" and " Ecological Standard Monitoring and Evaluation of Grain for Green Project", the ecological benefits of the project in Shaanxi Province were assessed with the distributed measurement method for water storage, soil conservation, nutrient accumulation, C fixation and O2 release, biodiversity conservation, air quality purification, and forest protection. We concluded that the total value of the Grain for Green Project in Shaanxi province was 97. 347 billion yuan, with the most valuable assets being water storage（27. 407 billion yuan）, air quality purification（20.396 billion yuan）, and C fixation and O2 release（17.395 billion yuan）. The ecosystem service of afforestation on barren hills and wasteland was the highest and the closing hillsides to facilitate afforestation was the lowest. The ecosystem services of ecological forests were better than those of economic forests and shrubs among three forest types. In the value of ecological benefits in different regions, the value of Yan’ an city was the highest.