Abstract: Hydropower, as a clean and renewable energy source, plays a crucial role in achieving carbon neutrality goals.However, balancing the economic benefits of hydropower development with its environmental impacts necessitates a thorough exploration of ecological compensation mechanisms.We took the Maerdang Hydropower Station in the upper Yellow River as the case, analyzed its ecosystem service values in 2015 and 2021 by using the ecological value equivalent method.Then we predicted its ecosystem service values after water impoundment in 2025,in combination with the prediction of the land use change by remote sensing data.Then we put forward a reasonable ecological compensation reference scheme.The results indicate that from 2015 to post-reservoir filling, ecosystem service values such as hydrological regulation and water resource provision have increased significantly due to the conversion of grassland, forestland, and cropland to water bodies.However, other services like climate regulation, soil conservation, and biodiversity have shown slight declines.Overall, ecosystem service value exhibits a moderate upward trend.Specifically, the ecological compensation amount for 2021 was RMB 11.291 billion, with an anticipated increase to RMB 11.367 billion post-reservoir filling, with the Maqin County area prioritized for compensation.Given uncertainties related to climate change and other factors, this study emphasizes the importance of interdisciplinary approaches and long-term monitoring, and it provides an initial exploration of applying ecological compensation mechanisms across the entire lifecycle of hydropower projects.