Ecosystem Services最新文献

The European Space Agency (ESA) project “Pioneering Earth Observation Applications for the Environment – Ecosystem Accounting” (PEOPLE-EA) aimed to study and demonstrate the relevance of Earth Observation (EO) for ecosystem accounting in terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems. Ecosystem accounts are inherently spatial accounts, with the implication that they strongly depend on the availability of spatially explicit datasets. In the project’s framework, an in-depth literature review of 113 scientific papers has shown EO data streams can be integrated to accelerate ecosystem account reporting. However, these workflows need to be further extended to support extent accounting that involves a more disaggregated ecosystem classification compared to land cover types. EO provides wall-to-wall monitoring and hence can contribute to provide reliable and consistent metrics on ecosystem condition, next to ecosystem extent. EO contribution is mainly to delineate and characterize ecosystem extent, structure, function and composition indices, and probably their distance from a reference condition, if not set too far back in time. The use of EO data for ecosystem services is more challenging, despite the well-established conceptual framework. EO data can support and accelerate ecosystem accounting under the standardised SEEA EA framework providing the most cost-effective way to collect large amounts of data in a standardised form with consistency in space and time.

Effective water policy requires good information. The System of Environment-Economic Accounting Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA-EA) organises information on ecosystems and the interactions with the economy. We investigate how accounting for water-related ecosystem services (ES) using SEEA-EA could provide information for water policy and management, using the integrated water resource management (IWRM) framework and a case study from the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). A policy review and consulting process linking ACT water policies to SEEA-EA identified three key issues, water security, water quality, and soil erosion, which are evident in many parts of the world. Available data and models were used to account for three ES related to these issues: water supply, soil and sediment retention (soil erosion control), and water purification (nutrient retention). Modelled estimates varied but were broadly consistent and used to construct ES accounts. The accounts provide comprehensive information linking the ecosystems supplying ES to the use of ES in economic production and consumption. This supports five ACT water policy actions and three of the four IWRM Principles. The accounts suggest investment in catchment restoration and management in the Queanbeyan River Catchment to increase ES and improve water supply and quality. The accounts show how much of water is available (IWRM Principle 1), and recognise water as an economic good (IWRM Principle 4) by identifying the uses of water by industry and households. The accounting also enables a participatory approach to water development and management (IWRM Principle 2) by providing stakeholders with information for informed decision-making. Because the policy issues in the case study are common, and IWRM is widely adopted, there is potential to use SEEA-EA for water policy and management globally.

This paper serves as an initial exploration of the stages involved in the formation of auroral ecosystem services (ES) and interactions between the geosphere, biosphere and anthroposphere. This is performed through the development of an auroral ES cascade model with the integration of four main co-production stages: (i) value attribution, (ii) mobilization of ES potential, (iii) value appropriation, and (iv) commercialization. The cascade model is expanded upon in detail by using examples from published academic and grey literature, highlighting the demand for capital inputs and strengthening the conceptual understanding of human-nature relationships in the context of auroral ES. The co-production stages illustrate the importance of action on the demand-side in order for the supply of benefits from auroral ES to be delivered. The potential for feedback from the anthroposphere into geophysical properties, processes and functions through anthropogenic space weather and artificial particle precipitation from the Van Allen Radiation Belts via ionospheric heating and low frequency radio wave generation is emphasized. Additionally, feedback via policy and decision making from the anthroposphere into the biosphere and geosphere is highlighted, especially in the context of managing light pollution and artificial space weather. The discussion considers the potential implications of the expanded model, in addition to the valuation of auroral ES across three value domains (monetary, socio-cultural and biophysical) and the potential use of such information in decision-making, followed by reflecting on the potential limitations of the expanded model.

Marine ecosystems provide essential services to coastal residents, particularly for indigenous fishing communities that have strong ties to the environment and obtain multiple benefits from their use and management of ocean spaces. However, understanding of how these are impacted by fisheries, external pressures, and ocean management, remains limited due to a focus on economic valuation and aggregated metrics. This study explores the importance of select marine ecosystem services to the wellbeing of an indigenous community in West Hawaiˈi and the observed impacts on these ecosystem services by commercial and subsistence fishing. We used a mixed-methods approach that combined a workshop with an online survey of community perceptions regarding community important marine resources and cultural values. We find that both fish and non-fish species are important to all four well-being categories, including food security, culture, mental wellbeing, and income, though the least importance was given to the economic value. This study also found that commercial fishing is perceived to have a higher negative impact on marine resources and cultural values than subsistence fishing, but a generally lower impact on non-fish than fish species. The lack of community input into legislation development and a lack of enforcement capacity were perceived to aggravate these further, whereas the integration of place-based knowledge, values and rules of the environment was seen as beneficial to both marine and cultural ecosystem services. Overall, this study shows that non-economic and disaggregated valuation approaches are critical for revealing the variable ecosystem services that marine environments provide to local communities and the importance of more inclusive resource management approaches to manage impacts on these services.