| Wetlands are considered to be the most important ecosystem in the world and are of high ecological value. Due to the fast urbanization in China, the cities sprawals have done much damage to the natural wetlands around. Those city-nearby wetlands turned to lakes inside the city, which were later constructed and became urban parks (Urban Parks of Lake Type), providing green space for citizens. Wetlands that aren't near the cities were planned for Urban Wetland Park in recent years, because they were less disturbed by human construction activities. Urban wetland parks are growing very fast in China these years. This paper first elaborates the concept and definition of Wetlands, Urban Wetlands, Wetland Park, Urban Wetland Park and Urban Park of Lake Type, then states their functions and classifications. Collects related data on 10 cases of Urban Wetland Park and Urban Park of Lake Type. Based on documentary researches and on-the-spot investigations, the paper comparatively studies the two kinds of parks from four perspectives:natural elements, recreational function, economic value and planning and design schemes, then summarizes the different contributions they both make to the living environment. Urban Wetland Park contributes a lot to the conservation of biodiversity, while it focuses on the environmental science education among tourists. Urban Park of Lake Type is planned and designed to meet the demand of recreation and water features in the downtown, and is therefore suffered with heavy human activities. It contains less ecology value compared to Urban Wetland Park. The purpose of building The Urban Park of Lake Type is all about human being, while the Urban Wetland Park needs the relationship between man and nature (wildlife) to be well considered. The maintainance cost of Urban Wetland Park is somewhat lower. With the comparison considered, the paper proclaims that only if we preserve and properly utilize wetlands can we enjoy the living support fuction and ecology value of Mother Nature. Wetlands'connections to the land's water system shouldn't be broken up by human activities, in case they become artificial lakes. Planning an Urban Wetland Park is considered to be a proper approach to preserve and utilize wetland resources. Finally, the paper studies a comparative case between Hongkong Wetland Park and Shenzhen Lichi Park. |
