Mapping and assessment of ecosystems and their services. Urban ecosystems

Action 5 of the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020 requires member states to Map and Assess the state of Ecosystems and their Services (MAES). This report provides guidance for mapping and assessment of urban ecosystems. The MAES urban pilot is a collaboration between the European Commission, the European Environment Agency, volunteering Member States and cities, and stakeholders. Its ultimate goal is to deliver a knowledge base for policy and management of urban ecosystems by analysing urban green infrastructure, condition of urban ecosystems and ecosystem services. This report presents guidance for mapping urban ecosystems and includes an indicator framework to assess the condition of urban ecosystems and urban ecosystem services. The scientific framework of mapping and assessment is designed to support in particular urban planning policy and policy on green infrastructure at urban, metropolitan and regional scales. The results are based on the following different sources of information: a literature survey of 54 scientific articles, an online-survey (on urban ecosystems, related policies and planning instruments and with participation of 42 cities), ten case studies (Portugal: Cascais, Oeiras, Lisbon; Italy: Padua, Trento, Rome; The Netherlands: Utrecht; Poland: Poznań; Spain: Barcelona; Norway: Oslo), and a two-day expert workshop. The case studies constituted the core of the MAES urban pilot. They provided real examples and applications of how mapping and assessment can be organized to support policy; on top, they provided the necessary expertise to select a set of final indicators for condition and ecosystem services. Urban ecosystems or cities are defined here as socio-ecological systems which are composed of green infrastructure and built infrastructure. Urban green infrastructure (GI) is understood in this report as the multi-functional network of urban green spaces situated within the boundary of the urban ecosystem. Urban green spaces are the structural components of urban GI. This study has shown that there is a large scope for urban ecosystem assessments. Firstly, urban policies increasingly use urban green infrastructure and nature-based solutions in their planning process. Secondly, an increasing amount of data at multiple spatial scales is becoming available to support these policies, to provide a baseline, and to compare or benchmark cities with respect to the extent and management of the urban ecosystem. Concrete examples are given on how to delineate urban ecosystems, how to choose an appropriate spatial scale, and how to map urban ecosystems based on a combination of national or European datasets (including Urban Atlas) and locally collected information (e.g., location of trees). Also examples of typologies for urban green spaces are presented. This report presents an indicator framework which is composed of indicators to assess for urban ecosystem condition and for urban ecosystem services. These are the result of a rigorous selection process and ensure consistent mapping and assessment across Europe. The MAES urban pilot will continue with work on the interface between research and policy. The framework presented in this report needs to be tested and validated across Europe, e.g. on its applicability at city scale, on how far the methodology for measuring ecosystem condition and ecosystem service delivery in urban areas can be used to assess urban green infrastructure and nature-based solutions

Taxonomic and functional turnover are decoupled in European peat bogs

In peatland ecosystems, plant communities mediate a globally significant carbon store. The effects of global environmental change on plant assemblages are expected to be a factor in determining how ecosystem functions such as carbon uptake will respond. Using vegetation data from 56 Sphagnum-dominated peat bogs across Europe, we show that in these ecosystems plant species aggregate into two major clusters that are each defined by shared response to environmental conditions. Across environmental gradients, we find significant taxonomic turnover in both clusters. However, functional identity and functional redundancy of the community as a whole remain unchanged. This strongly suggests that in peat bogs, species turnover across environmental gradients is restricted to functionally similar species. Our results demonstrate that plant taxonomic and functional turnover are decoupled, which may allow these peat bogs to maintain ecosystem functioning when subject to future environmental change

Immunogenicity and cytoadherence of recombinant heparin binding haemagglutinin (HBHA) of <i>Mycobacterium avium</i> subsp. <i>paratuberculosis</i>: functional promiscuity or a role in virulence?

Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) is the causative agent of Johne's Disease, a chronic granulomatous enteritis of ruminants. Recently, an association of MAP bacilli with Crohn's disease in humans has been proposed. Due to genetic similarities and serological cross-reactivity of the M. avium complex with other mycobacteria, functional analysis of species-specific proteins may allow new insights into the pathogenesis of mycobacterial diseases. We report production and molecular characterization of the recombinant HBHA from the MAP complex bacilli. The HBHA was expressed in Escherichia coli and Mycobacterium smegmatis using efficient expression vector systems. The recombinant HBHA was found to be immunogenic and therefore induced antibody responses in cattle against the MAP bacilli with a possible cross reactivity with M. bovis infection. The MAP complex HBHA was thus found to be a target of the host humoral responses in Johne's disease. The recombinant HBHA protein was also found to be adherent to the Caco2 cell lines in-vitro, a significant observation to understand possible virulence mechanisms. Since M. tuberculosis HBHA was earlier shown to be involved in dissemination of the tubercle bacilli, the immunogenicity and cytoadherent nature of this MAP protein possibly suggests functional promiscuity

Molecular epidemiology by ribotyping and PCR-ribotyping of <i>Enterococcus faecium</i> strains isolated from intercontinental areas

In this study classical ribotyping based on hybridization of an enteroccocal ribosomal operon previously cloned from Enterococcus hirae (Sechi and Daneo-Moore, 1993) with XbaI cut chromosomal DNA and PCR-ribotyping were used to characterize the molecular epidemiology of 131 Enterococcus faecium, with high-level resistance to gentamicin, isolated from different hospitals in Italy and the United States. The ribotyping was able to differentiate all 131 clinical isolates into 96 family patterns. These family patterns appeared to be useful in establishing epidemiological spread. The results obtained were in agreement with those previously published, suggesting the presence of five to six operons in the Enterococcus genus (Sechi et al., 1994). We performed PCR-ribotyping, based on conserved sequences at the 3' end of the enterococcal 16S rrn and the 5' end of the 23S rrn, on 131 clinical isolates as well as on several enterococcal ATCC strains tested. The results were then compared with those obtained with the classical ribotyping method. The results suggest the presence of at least four classes of intergenic spacers among enterococci, but these classes are not helpful in differentiating between Enterococci or among Enterococcal isolates

Strategia Nazionale per la Biodiversità in Italia.

La proposta di Strategia Nazionale per la Biodiversità è stata elaborata a partire dal dibattito mondiale ed europeo sulla conservazione della biodiversità post-2010 e dagli impegni assunti con la Carta di Siracusa, facendo tesoro dell’esperienza maturata da questo Dicastero, attraverso i momenti di confronto e collaborazione con le amministrazioni centrali, con le amministrazioni regionali e locali, con gli enti di ricerca e le società scientifiche, con le organizzazioni non governative, con le associazioni di categoria e tutti i portatori di interesse. Il processo di condivisione intrapreso è essenziale affinché l’integrazione della biodiversità nelle politiche di settore trasformi in opportunità quelle che oggi sono viste come limitazioni: la coniugazione delle esigenze della conservazione con quelle dello sviluppo è la chiave per un nuovo approccio alla sostenibilità in cui diversità biologica, economica e culturale giocano un ruolo fondamentale e sinergico per lo sviluppo equilibrato del Paese

La strategia nazionale per la biodiversità in Italia

La conservazione della biodiversità e l’uso sostenibile delle risorse garantiscono il corretto funzionamento degli ecosistemi così come la fornitura dei loro servizi, che sono le basi essenziali della vita e dell’economia umane. La società moderna e l’economia sono, infatti, legate in modo sistemico all'uso delle risorse naturali e dei sistemi produttivi. In particolare, questa stretta dipendenza si manifesta con le attività agricole e forestali, oltre che con le attività collegate ai trasporti, al turismo e alla crescita urbana.I benefici diretti e indiretti della biodiversità si riflettono in servizi riguardanti i prodotti (cibo, principi farmaceutici, materie prime, acqua), la regolazione (controllo climatico, protezione dagli eventi estremi), il supporto (produzione di ossigeno, formazione del suolo) e gli interessi culturali (aumento delle conoscenze, valore estetico, relazioni sociali). Realizzare un bilancio ottimale tra tutela della biodiversità, valorizzazione delle risorse naturali e sviluppo economico significa perseguire l’obiettivo dello sviluppo sostenibile. Inoltre, la perdita di biodiversità e la riduzione dell’efficienza dei servizi ecosistemici hanno costi economici e sociali rilevanti non solo in relazione alla sostenibilità ambientale, ma anche ai tentativi in atto per ridurre la povertà, la fame e la malattia nel mondo. Grazie alle sue caratteristiche ambientali e storiche, l’Italia è un paese che contiene, a tutti i livelli di organizzazione biologica e territoriale, un elevato valore di biodiversità. In questo contesto, studi e attività di ricerca rappresentano il presupposto irrinunciabile per la sostenibilità ambientale di scelte e azioni future