**1. Introduction**

Coastal wetlands are located in the terrestrial-aquatic transverse zone and are an important landscape type and ecosystem. These wetlands have high biodiversity, serve as a buffer zone

© 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2018 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

for adjacent upland development, and provide multiple services such as protection of water quality, and flood and erosion control. Furthermore, coastal wetlands provide visual diversity and unique visual character, which significantly influences the well-being of people and their emotional attachment to the environment. For various reasons, half of the world's wetlands have disappeared since 1990, and therefore, wetlands have become the most threatened landscape type. Anthropogenic activities can impact the coastal wetland environment in different ways. Furthermore, coastal marshes and swamps are vulnerable to climate change and sea level rise.

target species is beautiful or if its habitat is attractive [4]. Therefore, environmental perception and experience can influence conservation behavior [5, 6]. In addition to wetland protection through policy and legislation, conservation approaches should consider both the esthetic and ecological impacts and aim to promote public participation in protection activities.

Combining the Aesthetic and Ecological Aspects of Man-Made Structures on Coastal Wetlands

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Man-made structures are built in the coastal intertidal area and as a result dominate the landscape and ecology of many coastal wetlands. To overcome the negative ecological impacts of man-made structures, environmentally friendly structures had been applied to coastal wetlands. Man-made structure changed the scale and openness of landscape room, and the state of environmental information, thus had effects on esthetic value and preference. The drawback to this purely ecological approach is that landscape esthetics have not been deeper

The known influence of landscape esthetics on public ecological protection action implies that esthetic consideration during the development and application of man-made structures in coastal wetlands is necessary. The initial objective of man-made structures was to protect coastline and human habitats; however, protection of sensitive and ecologically important coastal wetlands should also be considered due to the knock-on benefits for humans and the environment. Under the coastal defense and undamaged habitat objective, an approach that improves landscape esthetics and healthy ecological functioning through refinement of the visual landscape of man-made structures could be crucial for influencing public perception

Landscape esthetic is based on the idea that human preference for a particular physical landscape is rooted in biological or evolutionary adaption [7–9]. The habitat theory and the information-processing theory provide insight into why people may prefer certain landscape characteristics. These theories suggest that human interactions with the environment are related to various survival behaviors. An environment benefited to people that provided those with the capacity to observe without being seen meant both prospect- and refuge-

Humans require environmental information to understand their surroundings. According to the information processing theory [9, 10], human perception is oriented to understand and react to the environment. High coherence setting means that the setting is orderly, and legibility can be more preferred. An environmental setting with high species richness and diversity indicates complexity. The human environmental perception of this situation could be mysteriousness in which humans react by exploring their surroundings and discover valuable resources. Conversely, highly homogenous or too heterogeneous environmental setting could induce an uninterested or fearful environmental perception, provoking a reaction to escape. The human perception of environmental settings and information provides critical guidance

**2. Landscape esthetic and ecology of healthy coastal wetlands**

considered.

and conservation action.

**2.1. Experience of landscape with ecology**

dominant landscape settings were more preferred.

for determining which habitats are suitable.

Land use, economic development demands, reclamation of land from the sea, and natural oceanographic processes can alter the coastal wetland environment. To manage these anthropogenic and natural factors, man-made structures have been applied to protect and maintain the intertidal zone. Man-made structures can affect the coastal wetland ecology by reducing coastal area, disrupting natural water flow, and threatening species survival. Furthermore, such structures hinder people close to water, change the visual perception of the landscape, decrease the esthetic value, and weaken the environmental attachment for local people.

Although support for wetland conservation is strong, wetlands are disappearing. Urban sprawl and increase in population density are primarily attributable for wetland loss. Environmental education, besides policies and legislations, is a commonly adopted strategy to encourage public participation in wetland protection activities. Widespread wetland degradation and loss may imply a generational knowledge gap about environmental issues.

Due to land development activities, man-made structures are playing an increasingly dominant role in shaping the coastal wetland environment [1]. People were surrounded by the scenery in their daily life. Both older and younger generations are affected by modified coastal wetlands environments frequently. An understanding of the healthy ecological conditions in the past is lacking, and therefore, environmental norms continue to change. Loss of an ecological baseline will bring about still unknown challenges for coastal wetland conservation [2, 3].

It was widely hypothesized that landscape esthetic is a stimulus–response relationship based on the interaction between humans and the environment. The human perception of the environment is immediate and is accompanied by short-term emotional pleasure, while ecological esthetic is a knowledge-based cognitive experience where long-lasting pleasure is obtained through understanding. It is debated whether people can directly sense ecological quality; however, based on evolutionary and cultural theory, good landscape esthetics is associated with high ecological quality. For survival, people choose suitable habitats and alter them to suit their needs, while there is a sense of enjoyment and desire to live among scenery perceived as beautiful. There are common physical environmental elements, which affect landscape, ecological function, and the composition of visual image, individually. For example, ecological functions affect the appearance of a landscape and people appreciate the appearance; therefore, good ecological health would be inherently included in the landscape esthetic.

Ecologists have worked toward improving the public's environmental protection awareness through environmental education. The willingness to protect a habitat will triple if the target species is beautiful or if its habitat is attractive [4]. Therefore, environmental perception and experience can influence conservation behavior [5, 6]. In addition to wetland protection through policy and legislation, conservation approaches should consider both the esthetic and ecological impacts and aim to promote public participation in protection activities.

Man-made structures are built in the coastal intertidal area and as a result dominate the landscape and ecology of many coastal wetlands. To overcome the negative ecological impacts of man-made structures, environmentally friendly structures had been applied to coastal wetlands. Man-made structure changed the scale and openness of landscape room, and the state of environmental information, thus had effects on esthetic value and preference. The drawback to this purely ecological approach is that landscape esthetics have not been deeper considered.

The known influence of landscape esthetics on public ecological protection action implies that esthetic consideration during the development and application of man-made structures in coastal wetlands is necessary. The initial objective of man-made structures was to protect coastline and human habitats; however, protection of sensitive and ecologically important coastal wetlands should also be considered due to the knock-on benefits for humans and the environment. Under the coastal defense and undamaged habitat objective, an approach that improves landscape esthetics and healthy ecological functioning through refinement of the visual landscape of man-made structures could be crucial for influencing public perception and conservation action.
