The ecological systems services or multi-functionality of paddy rice cultivation are critical to the functioning of the Earth’s life-support system.  We estimated the ecosystem services value (ESV) of paddy rice during 1980–2014 across China.  The results indicated that the ESV of the paddy field in China showed an upward trend during this period.  The share of ESV on CO2 sequestration was the highest, followed by ESV on temperature cooling and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission.  The yield-scaled ESVs of Zones II (southern rice–upland crops rotation regions) and III (southern double rice production regions) were similar and significantly higher than the ESVs of Zones I (northeastern single rice production regions) and IV (Southwest rice–upland crops rotation regions).  Between 1980 and 2014, the ESV of each region increased to varying degrees, except for the ESVs of Guangxi, Zhejiang, Fujian, and Guangdong.  Such effects suggest the existence of a significant spatial–temporal variation in the total amount, structure, and density of ESV of paddy fields in China, which can further guide the development of future options for the adaptation of healthy rice production in China.

The ecosystem services value (ESV) of rice system has received increasing attention in agricultural policy decision. Over the last three decades, China’s rice production presented an obviously trend that moving towards north locations. However, the impacts of this migration on the ESV of rice production have not been well documented. In this paper, we analyzed the change of the ESV of rice production in China under “north migration” and “no migration” scenarios during 1980–2014 based on long-term historical data. The results showed that both the positive and negative ESVs of rice production were lower under “north migration” than under “no migration” scenarios. The total ESV during 1980–2014 was reduced by 15.8%. “North migration” significantly reduced the area-scaled ESV since the early 1990s; while its impact on yield-scaled ESV was not significant. The effects of “north migration” on ESV showed great spatial variation. The greatest reduction in total and area-scaled ESV was observed in south locations. While the yield-scaled ESVs of most south locations were enhanced under “north migration” scenario. These results indicated that “north migration” has generated adverse effects on the ESV of rice production. An adjustment in the spatial distribution is essential to protecting the non-production benefits of rice ecosystem.