Ecosytem services: A rapid assessment method tested at 35 sites of the LTER-Europe Network

The identification of parameters to monitor the ecosystem services delivered at a site is fundamental to the concept’s adoption as a useful policy instrument at local, national and international scales. In this paper we (i) describe the process of developing a rapid comprehensive ecosystem service assessment methodology and (ii) test the applicability of the protocol at 35 long-term research (LTER) sites across 14 countries in the LTER-Europe network (www.lter-europe.net) including marine, urban, agricultural, forest, desert and conservation sites. An assessment of probability of occurrence with estimated confidence score using 83 ecosystem service parameters was tested. The parameters were either specific services like food production or proxies such as human activities which were considered surrogates for cultural diversity and economic activity. This initial test of the ecosystem service parameter list revealed that the parameters tested were relatively easy to score by site managers with a high level of certainty (92% scored as either occurring or not occurring at the site with certainty of over 90%). Based on this assessment, we concluded that (i) this approach to operationalise the concept of ecosystem services is practical and applicable by many sectors of civil society as a first screen of the ecosystem services present at a site, (ii) this study has direct relevance to land management and policy decision makers as a transparent vehicle to focus testing scenarios and target data gathering, but (iii) further work beyond the scale investigated here is required to ensure global applicability

Dynamic Modeling for Environmental Processes: A Case Study of Lake Engure

This focus of the study was on system dynamic models that could be useful for modelling environmental processes in Lake Engure. The paper considers the system dynamic model development principles, the most important elements and structure. The aim of the study was to describe possible methods of ecosystem process modelling that allow to represent the actual state of ecosystems and provide opportunities to predict further processes. The methods of ecosystem modelling considered in the paper reveal interactive factors of anthropogenic and environmental processes that influence changes in ecosystems. System dynamic models indicate not only interactions between various factors in the environment but also the most important driving forces. These models are based on flowchart and algorithm systems, which represent changes using mathematical functions in a graphic or tabular form. In the case study of Lake Engure, connections between factors that influence ecosystems in the study area were identified. Specialised software, PowerSim Studio Academic 9.0, was used for modelling. The model consists of qualitative and multifactor data of Lake Engure ecosystems, such as water chemical, physical and hydrological parameters, biological, ornithological and other data collected in the study area. Development of this modelling method will make it possible to evaluate the impact of various processes on biological diversity changes in the study area and to identify the most important problems. Furthermore, this method could improve environmental management practice in the surrounding municipalities, and it will also be possible to make similar models of ecosystem quality in other regions

Bioekologiska monitoringa sistemas pamatu izstradasana Ziemelvidzemes dabas aizsardzibas kompleksa meza ekosistemas

Abstract in EnglishAvailable from Latvian Academic Library / LAL - Latvian Academic LibrarySIGLELatvian Council of Science, Riga (Latvia)LVLatvi

Barriers and Bridges for Landscape Stewardship and Knowledge Production to Sustain Functional Green Infrastructures

eISBN 9783319745152Sustainable landscapes and regions require both stewardship and management to sustain the composition, structure and function of ecosystems as a base for delivering human benefits. This complex is captured by the topic of ecosystem services. To deliver these, the concept green (or blue) infrastructure emerged as a tool for spatial planning of networks of natural and semi-natural areas. Such planning requires evidence-based knowledge about both ecological and social systems. For ecosystems, states and trends need be monitored, and improved knowledge must be developed about ecological tipping points for assessment of sustainability, as well as measures for conservation, management and restoration of representative habitat networks for biodiversity and human well-being, i.e. green infrastructures. For social systems, barriers and bridges for stakeholders’ involvement in stewardship and management at multiple levels of governance and spatial scales must be understood. This dual approach requires collaboration among natural and human sciences (i.e. humanities and social sciences) researchers, practitioners and stakeholders. This chapter identifies barriers for place-based collaborative knowledge production and learning and discusses how to bridge them in social-ecological systems. We review results from: (1) long-term place-based initiatives aiming at knowledge production and learning about how to sustain ecosystem services and (2) experiences of human and natural scientists, practitioners and stakeholders about how to bridge barriers for knowledge production and learning. Then, we discuss how coordination and integration of researchers’ and stakeholders’ contributions can be improved through learning by evaluation and traditional knowledgeVytauto Didžiojo universitetasŽemės ūkio akademij

Preliminary Characteristics of Ecological and Socioeconomic Components and their Interaction within the Long Term Socioecological Research Platform of Latvia

Review of previous ecological and socioeconomic studies performed in the drainage basin of Lake Engure - the long-term socioecological research region (LT(S)ER) of the National LTER network of Latvia has been given. A number of studies on biodiversity and ecosystem structure of the region were published during the last century. There have been no special socioeconomic studies of the region till now. The data should be collected mostly from different archives and statistical summaries. Biodiversity of the region has been formed over the centuries and is strongly dependent on socioeconomic factors