Conflicting demands on wetland ecosystem services: nutrient retention,biodiversity or both?

1. Wetland ecosystems may, besides having considerable economical value, increase landscape biodiversity and function as traps for nutrients from land to freshwater‐ and marine systems. As a result of these features, wetlands are nowadays often protected and restored, and many countries have even initiated wetland construction programmes. 2. In the present study, we aim at increasing the knowledge on how to improve the design of a wetland with respect to both biodiversity and nutrient retention, by analysing physical, chemical and biological features of a large set of constructed wetlands. 3. Our results show that a combination of the wetland features, namely shallow depth, large surface area and high shoreline complexity are likely to provide a high biodiversity of birds, benthic invertebrates and macrophytes and to have high nitrogen retention, whereas a small, deep wetland is likely to be more efficient in phosphorus retention, but less valuable in terms of biodiversity. 4. Hence, among the features used to design new wetlands, area, depth and shoreline complexity have fundamental, and sometimes conflicting, effects on nutrient retention and biodiversity. This means that there are, within limits, possibilities to direct the ecosystem function of a specific wetland in desired directions.     

生态系统服务功能管理研究进展

生态系统给人类提供了自然资源和生存环境两个方面的多种服务功能,这些服务功能的可持续供给是经济社会可持续发展的基础.然而,生态系统服务功能从认知走向管理实践面临着严峻挑战,包括:定量测度、多种服务功能权衡、生态系统服务功能多尺度关联、生态系统服务功能与政策设计的结合.针对这些难点,近年来生态系统服务功能管理研究主要集中在以下领域:生态系统服务功能度量;生态系统服务功能与人类福祉的关系;多种生态系统服务功能权衡;生态系统服务功能保护规划;基于生态系统服务功能的生态补偿机制.为了进一步推动生态系统服务功能管理实践,应该进一步加强生态系统服务功能供给的理论研究;增加生态系统服务研究结果表达的多样性;增加与社会学、经济学、人口统计学等领域跨学科研究;进一步探索生态系统服务功能研究的结果如何运用到管理决策中,促进在管理实践中的应用.     

The human dimensions of coastal ecosystem services: Managing for social values

Coastal management is driven by the values and priorities of society as expressed through social, political, and economic systems. Diverse resource management goals reflect what society wants from its surrounding environments as presented in enabling legislation and other resource laws. Today, coastal management encompasses decisions of what to regulate, what enterprises and initiatives to promote, and which ecosystem services are most important to citizens and businesses. Data based on the natural or physical sciences are important, but are just one input into this socially driven, value-based process. This paper offers an insight into why an ecosystem service approach using human dimensions as the major driver is becoming an increasing focus of coastal resource management.     

Challenges in integrating the concept of ecosystem services and values in landscape planning,management and decision making

Despite the growing body of literature on ecosystem services, still many challenges remain to structurally integrate ecosystem services in landscape planning, management and design. This paper therefore aims to provide an overview of the challenges involved in applying ecosystem service assessment and valuation to environmental management and discuss some solutions to come to a comprehensive and practical framework.First the issue of defining and classifying ecosystem services is discussed followed by approaches to quantify and value ecosystem services. The main part of the paper is focussed on the question how to analyze trade-offs involved in land cover and land use change, including spatial analysis and dynamic modelling tools. Issues of scale are addressed, as well as the question how to determine the total economic value of different management states.Finally, developments and challenges regarding the inclusion of ecosystem services in integrative landscape planning and decision-making tools are discussed.It is concluded that the ecosystem service approach and ecosystem service valuation efforts have changed the terms of discussion on nature conservation, natural resource management, and other areas of public policy. It is now widely recognized that nature conservation and conservation management strategies do not necessarily pose a trade-off between the “environment” and “development”. Investments in conservation, restoration and sustainable ecosystem use are increasingly seen as a “win-win situation” which generates substantial ecological, social and economic benefits.     

Quantifying street tree regulating ecosystem services using Google Street View

The urban heat island is a particular challenge for tropical cities, which receive year-round high inputs of solar radiation. Plants can help mitigate elevated urban temperatures by providing shade and increasing evaporative cooling, although the resulting increase in humidity may negatively affect thermal comfort. Street trees offer particular potential for cooling urban microclimates, as well as providing other ecosystem services, because they can be integrated within dense urban street networks. However, we have little quantitative information about the role of street trees in providing regulating ecosystem services in tropical cities. In this study, we analysed hemispherical photographs extracted from Google Street View to quantify the proportion of green canopy coverage at 50 m intervals across more than 80% of Singapore’s road network. Canopy coverage data were then used to estimate the proportion of annual radiation that would be blocked from reaching ground level by the canopy. Across all locations, a median of 13% of the annual diffuse and direct solar radiation was shaded, and over 70% of this shading effect was due to the tree canopy. There was significant variation between different urban landuse types, with trees providing more shade in parks and low-density low-rise areas than in industrial and higher-density residential areas. Mapping the provision of street tree ecosystem services could help to prioritise areas for new planting by identifying streets or street sections with low shading. The approach developed in this article could be readily applied to quantify the proportion of canopy coverage and proportion of solar radiation shaded across other tropical cities. The method may also be applicable in temperate cities if Google Street View photographs were collected during the growing season.     

海平面上升对生态系统服务价值的影响及适应措施

海平面上升导致了海岸线后退、沿海侵蚀、风暴潮加强、生物栖息地改变、湿地变迁等,引起了近海域生态系统服务价值的变化。以美国Hillsborough County为研究区域,应用SLAMM模型,模拟了海平面从2010年—2100年上升1m的情景下各类用地面积的变化,利用效益转移法评价了生态系统服务价值的变化。结果表明:1旱地面积减少3037 hm~2,湿地面积增加3037hm~2,其中河口水域、滩涂、盐沼、定期洪水沼泽面积大幅度增加;季节性洪水沼泽、潮汐淡水沼泽、河流潮汐、沙滩面积大幅度减少,其它类型湿地受影响较小。2湿地总面积的增加反而导致了生态系统服务价值总量的降低,从2010年的61672万美元降低到2100年的61548万美元,这是由于净水湿地和沙滩大面积损失引起的;其中艺术娱乐、水调节、气候调节、文化精神价值将下降,水供应、栖息地保护、干扰调节和废物处理价值将上升。3防护、适应、后退3种措施分别降低、不影响、提升了生态系统服务价值,应根据其适用范围综合应用以制定应对海平面上升的适应性措施。     

中国陆地生态系统服务功能及其生态经济价值的初步研究

生态系统服务功能主要表现为提供保存生物进化所需要的丰富的物种与遗传资源,太阳能,二氧化碳的固定,有机质的区域气候调节,维持水及营养物质的循环,土壤的形成与保护,污染物的吸收与降解及创造物种赖以生存与繁育的条件,维持整个大气化学组分的平衡与稳定,以及由于丰富的生物多样性所形成的自然景观及其具有的美学,文化科学,教育的价值。     

Reviewing the dynamics of economic values and preferences for ecosystem goods and services

The present paper addresses the issue of a dynamic approach to biodiversity conservation by focusing on published evidence on the dynamics of economic values and preferences for ecosystem goods and services. Empirical evidence referring to the dynamics of ecosystem values was identified as both demand-driven and supply-driven value dynamics. A survey of temporal reliability tests revealed considerable differences in the time span examined (2 weeks to 20 years). The evidence shows that ecosystem value estimates, as expressed through mean Willingness To Pay remain significantly stable in the time span of 2 weeks to 5 years, but this is not the case for time periods of 20 years. For longer periods, both a weak and strong version of preference evolution were examined; here the elements of cultural transmission and evolutionary approaches make the task of modelling the dynamics of preferences rather complex. Integrated models and dynamic bioeconomic models were examined as representative approaches to supply-driven dynamics. These approaches share a role in pushing our understanding of complex systems and alerting both researchers and policy makers to the dangers of oversimplification. The reviewed models are nevertheless normative in nature in the sense that they describe how the complex socio-ecological systems should evolve over time in order to fulfil the requirements of efficiency and sustainability. Mixing of methods and pooling of data seems the only way forward. In this respect, the potential of systematic and formalised interdisciplinary research lies in the integration of insights, methods and data drawn from natural and social sciences.     

面向生态系统服务的森林生态系统经营:现状、挑战与展望

森林生态系统是地球陆地生态系统的主体,它具有很高的生物生产力和生物量以及丰富的生物多样性,对全球生态系统和人类经济社会发展起着至关重要和无可替代的作用。伴随着人口的不断增长和经济社会的迅猛发展,对森林资源和森林生态系统服务的需求不断高涨,而且人类对森林资源价值的认识也发生了很大程度的改变。推进森林资源可持续经营,增加森林总量、提高森林质量、增强生态功能,已成为中国林业可持续发展乃至推进中国生态文明建设和建设美丽中国的战略任务。本文全面综述了森林生态系统经营发展历程,分析了森林生态系统经营的现状和存在问题,在此基础上,提出整合基于生态系统管理与满足现代人类福祉对森林多重需求的新的森林生态系统经营理念,面向生态系统服务的森林生态系统经营理念是未来的发展趋势。森林经营发展战略表现为:1)从单纯的森林面积数量扩张,转变到提高单位面积的森林生产力和森林质量;2)从单一追求木材生产逐步转变为多目标经营,将森林林产品单一的经营目标转变为广泛的生态、经济和社会等多目标经营;3)森林经营重点从林分水平转变为森林景观的经营,强调森林景观的时空异质性和动态变化,权衡和协同多种生态系统的服务功能,倡导森林景观的多样性和连通性,提高森林与其它土地利用模式镶嵌构成的复合景观的可持续性和稳定性,增强森林生态系统对气候变化影响的适应能力;4)森林生态系统经营将从依赖传统经验的主观决策转变为信息化、数字化和智能化的决策,发展森林生态系统经营决策支持系统和森林景观恢复与空间经营规划系统。     

The value of coordinated management of interacting ecosystem services

Coordinating decisions and actions among interacting sectors is a critical component of ecosystem-based management, but uncertainty about coordinated management's effects is compromising its perceived value and use. We constructed an analytical framework for explicitly calculating how coordination affects management decisions, ecosystem state and the provision of ecosystem services in relation to ecosystem dynamics and socio-economic objectives. The central insight is that the appropriate comparison strategy to optimal coordinated management is optimal uncoordinated management, which can be identified at the game theoretic Nash equilibrium. Using this insight we can calculate coordination's effects in relation to uncoordinated management and other reference scenarios. To illustrate how this framework can help identify ecosystem and socio-economic conditions under which coordination is most influential and valuable, we applied it to a heuristic case study and a simulation model for the California Current Marine Ecosystem. Results indicate that coordinated management can more than double an ecosystem's societal value, especially when sectors can effectively manipulate resources that interact strongly. However, societal gains from coordination will need to be reconciled with observations that it also leads to strategic simplification of the ecological food web, and generates both positive and negative impacts on individual sectors and non-target species.     

Exploring the links between functional traits and cultural ecosystem services to enhance urban ecosystem management

Functional traits have been proposed as a more mechanistic way than species data alone to connect biodiversity to ecosystem processes and function in ecological research. Recently, this framework has also been broadened to include connections of traits to ecosystem services. While many links between traits and ecosystem processes/functions are easily and logically extended to regulating, supporting, and provisioning services, connections to cultural services have not yet been dealt with in depth. We argue that addressing this gap may involve a renegotiation of what have traditionally been considered traits, and a targeted effort to include and expand upon efforts to address traits-cultural ecosystem services links in traits research. Traits may also offer a better way to explore the recognition and appreciation of biodiversity. Drawing upon examples from outside the explicit traits literature, we present a number of potential connections between functional traits and cultural ecosystem services for attention in future research. Finally, we explore considerations and implications of employing a traits approach in urban areas, and examine how connections between traits and ecosystem services could be developed as indicators in a research and management context to generate a robust and resilient supply of ecosystem services.     

Economic valuation of kelp forests in northern Chile: values of goods and services of the ecosystem

Kelp beds, besides being one of the most important benthic resources in northern Chile, provide a variety of environmental goods and services. In order to evaluate economically the wild kelp populations in northern Chile (26° to 32° S) more than simply their commercial value as a source of raw materials for alginate extraction, we used several economic indicators to holistically assess the value of a group of brown seaweeds of economic importance, Lessonia spp. and Macrocystis pyrifera: (1) market value of biomass as a source of raw material for extraction of alginic acid, (2) market value of associated species of economic importance, (3) value as a source of scientific information, (4) value as a climate buffer (CO₂ capture and release of O₂), (5) value of associated biodiversity (non-commercial species), (6) value as cultural heritage and (7) value as a reservoir of biodiversity. Existence values of kelp beds which estimate the willingness of citizens to pay and work without payment to preserve the ecosystem were calculated using the contingent valuation technique. The results indicate that kelp beds in northern Chile have a total value of US $540 million. Of this total, kelp fishery accounts for 75 % and associated-species fisheries account for 15 %. In this context, the economic value of Chilean kelp beds is mainly associated with the industry of alginate extraction. By contrast, existence value as a source of scientific information or environmental buffer for CO₂ capture or O₂ production represents only 9 % of the total value, representing a very low relative importance to society. The economic valuation of coastal resources and marine ecosystems is a complementary tool for decision making and implementation of public policies related to the conservation and sustainable exploitation of renewable resources and their ecosystems.     

Analysis and management of multiple ecosystem services within a social-ecological context

The assessment of ecosystem services (ESS) requires approaches that are capable to deal with the complexity of social-ecological systems (SES). A new viewpoint is proposed, in which the social-ecological perspective of Ostrom’s SES framework is used to describe the flow of ESS, through the identification of the social and ecological elements involved. Two types of ESS flow emerge from this analysis, depending on the way in which the elements of ESS supply (resource system and resource units) and demand (actors) interact: (i) a “direct flow type” in which the resource units deliver the ESS through some specific ecological functions (e.g. wetlands providing carbon sequestration), and (ii) a “mediated flow type” in which the resource units become themselves the ESS when “used” by means of human activities (e.g. fish harvested through fishing activities). The identification of activities is crucial to understand the interactions between ESS, because of the feedbacks they produce on the ecosystem functioning and thus on the provision of the same or other ESS. In addition, these feedbacks can depend on temporal aspects of ESS provision. On these regards, a hypothesis is proposed according to which a time lag can exist between the ESS supply-side and flow in human-modified SES. Altogether, this social-ecological analysis of ESS can contribute to focus the management strategies on the control of impacting activities and on the maintenance of those processes which underpin ESS’ provision, thus contributing to the implementation of an ecosystem-based management of SES. These aspects are discussed in the light of the Venice lagoon example.     

Ecosystem services and management options as blanket indicators of ecosystem health

A pragmatic and integrative approach to evaluation of the environment combines ecosystem sciences, health sciences, and social sciences. Each has a crucial role to play: the ecosystem sciences provide information on the complex dynamics of ecosystems as they are influenced by stress and disturbance; the health sciences provide a methodology for systematic diagnosis of pathology, taxonomy of ills, and models for preventive as well as rehabilitative modes; the social sciences bring to the fore the importance of human values which are part and parcel of any health evaluation. The complexity of stress-response systems precludes anything approximating a complete understanding of mechanisms underpinning ecosystem transformations. However, the loss of ecosystem services and management options appears to be a general phenomenon that permits an overall evaluation of ecosystem health in both aquatic and terrestrial systems. Such blanket indicators take into account both the impairment of ecosystem function and societal values. This is illustrated by the history of ecosystem transformation in the Laurentian Lower Great Lakes and in the overharvested forest ecosystems of Eastern Canada. In both cases, cultural stress resulted in losses in highly valued ecosystem services and management options. These losses have been partially compensated for by new technologies that have permitted commercial use of the remaining lower quality resources. This process itself, however, may be pathological, reinforcing a degradation sequence rather than serving to restore ecosystem health.     

Global effects of non‐native tree species on multiple ecosystem services

Non‐native tree (NNT) species have been transported worldwide to create or enhance services that are fundamental for human well‐being, such as timber provision, erosion control or ornamental value; yet NNTs can also produce undesired effects, such as fire proneness or pollen allergenicity. Despite the variety of effects that NNTs have on multiple ecosystem services, a global quantitative assessment of their costs and benefits is still lacking. Such information is critical for decision‐making, management and sustainable exploitation of NNTs. We present here a global assessment of NNT effects on the three main categories of ecosystem services, including regulating (RES), provisioning (PES) and cultural services (CES), and on an ecosystem disservice (EDS), i.e. pollen allergenicity. By searching the scientific literature, country forestry reports, and social media, we compiled a global data set of 1683 case studies from over 125 NNT species, covering 44 countries, all continents but Antarctica, and seven biomes. Using different meta‐analysis techniques, we found that, while NNTs increase most RES (e.g. climate regulation, soil erosion control, fertility and formation), they decrease PES (e.g. NNTs contribute less than native trees to global timber provision). Also, they have different effects on CES (e.g. increase aesthetic values but decrease scientific interest), and no effect on the EDS considered. NNT effects on each ecosystem (dis)service showed a strong context dependency, varying across NNT types, biomes and socio‐economic conditions. For instance, some RES are increased more by NNTs able to fix atmospheric nitrogen, and when the ecosystem is located in low‐latitude biomes; some CES are increased more by NNTs in less‐wealthy countries or in countries with higher gross domestic products. The effects of NNTs on several ecosystem (dis)services exhibited some synergies (e.g. among soil fertility, soil formation and climate regulation or between aesthetic values and pollen allergenicity), but also trade‐offs (e.g. between fire regulation and soil erosion control). Our analyses provide a quantitative understanding of the complex synergies, trade‐offs and context dependencies involved for the effects of NNTs that is essential for attaining a sustained provision of ecosystem services.     

生物多样性与生态系统服务——关系、权衡与管理

生物多样性和生态系统服务是人类生存和社会经济可持续发展的物质基础,应对生物多样性丧失和生态系统服务退化问题已经成为继气候变化之后的又一个全球性环境热点问题。生物多样性是生态系统生产力、稳定性、抵抗生物入侵以及养分动态的主要决定因素,生物多样性越高,生态系统功能性状的范围越广,生态系统服务质量就越高越稳定。目的是探讨生物多样性和生态系统服务之间的关系:(1)明确了生物多样性与生态系统过程、功能、服务之间的关系;(2)生物多样性在生态系统服务中的角色:生物多样性在不同的空间尺度通过各种形式的运行机制与生态系统服务产生联系,生物多样性是生态系统过程的调节者,是巩固生态系统服务的一个重要因素,生物多样性也是一种终极的生态系统服务,并在遗传和物种水平上直接贡献了其利益和价值;(3)生物多样性与生态系统服务权衡和协同关系的研究可以更好的帮助管理人员做出有利的决策和保护工作,也是制定规划和适应策略以减少生物多样性危机带来的不利影响的基础;(4)生物多样性与生态系统服务的关系在不同的时间和空间尺度上是不恒定的,有必要共同确定生态系统服务和生物多样性的空间格局,以有效和可持续的进行生态系统管理;(5)虽然生物多样性保护和生态系统管理还存在许多不确定性,但相关理论应该在管理、保护和恢复生态系统中发挥重要作用。研究提出了进一步研究的领域,以促进生物多样性保护和生态系统服务提供之间的协同作用。希望对相关领域的研究有所帮助。     

Variation in ecosystem services of street tree assemblages can guide sustainable urban development

城市行道树集合生态服务功能变化研究及对城市可持续发展管理的启示     

江西省阔叶林生态系统服务功能价值动态分析

依据林业行业标准《森林生态系统服务功能评估规范》(LY/T1721—2008),利用江西省第五、第六次森林资源清查资料、森林生态站长期观测数据、公开发表文献数据及社会公共数据,对江西省"九五"和"十五"期间阔叶林生态系统服务功能价值进行了动态分析。结果表明:江西省阔叶林在"九五"期间生态系统服务功能年均总价值为1880亿元,单位面积价值为11.1万元·hm-2·a-1;"十五"期间生态系统服务功能年均总价值为2010亿元,单位面积价值为11.0万元·hm-2·a-1;年均总价值增长了6.91%,但单位面积价值减少了0.95%;其中,生物多样性保护和固碳释氧价值及其在总价值中所占比重增加最快;江西省阔叶林净生产力增长缓慢,致使2个时期6项服务功能价值大小排列顺序略有差异,但涵养水源、生物多样性保护和固碳释氧价值等前3项功能约占年均总价值的95%;在确保森林质量的同时,通过阔叶林保护和恢复、低效残次林改造及退耕还林工程等方式增加阔叶林面积,是提高阔叶林生态系统服务功能总价值的有效方式。