Integrating methods for ecosystem service assessment and valuation: mixed methods or mixed messages?

A mixed-method approach was used to assess and value the ecosystem services derived from the Dogger Bank, an extensive shallow sandbank in the southern North Sea. Three parallel studies were undertaken that 1) identified and quantified, where possible, how indicators for ecosystem service provision may change according to two future scenarios, 2) assessed members of the public's willingness-to-pay for improvements to a small number of ecosystem services as a consequence of a hypothetical management plan, and 3) facilitated a process of deliberation that allowed members of the public to explore the uses of the Dogger Bank and the conflicts and dilemmas involved in its management. Each of these studies was designed to answer different and specific research questions and therefore contributes different insights about the ecosystem services delivered by the Dogger Bank. This paper explores what can be gained by bringing these findings together post hoc and the extent to which the different methods are complementary. Findings suggest that mixed-method research brings more understanding than can be gained from the individual approaches alone. Nevertheless, the choice of methods used and how these methods are implemented strongly affects the results obtained

Cook-book for water ecosystem service assessment and valuation

This work proposes a methodological framework for the biophysical assessment and the economic valuation of water ecosystem services at the water body, the catchment and the European scale. It suits the intent of understanding how changes in pressures may affect the delivery and the value of these services. We integrated the existing knowledge with experience of experts and operational needs (collected through a consultation), to propose practical methodologies able to address specific objectives. This report is organized as follows. The first section analyses the objectives of an ecosystem services assessment, explains how and why we selected and designed the methodology proposed, and discusses the concepts of ecosystem services and their integrated assessment and valuation. The results of the consultation of the experts are presented in the second section. The third section (‘cook-book’) exposes, in a concise and practical way, the approach and methodologies proposed to assess and value water ecosystem services. Finally, some major issues related to this methodology are discussed in the last section.JRC.H.1-Water Resource

Delineating and mapping riparian areas for ecosystem service assessment

Riparian buffers, the interface between terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems, have the potential to protect water bodies from land-based pollution, and also for enhancing the delivery of a range of ecosystem services. The UK currently has no defined optimal width or maximum extent of riparian buffers for specific ecosystem services. Here, we present the first study, which attempts to (a) compare and critique different riparian buffer delineation methods and (b) investigate how ecological processes, for example, pollutant removal, nutrient cycling, and water temperature regulation, are affected spatially by proximity to the river and also within a riparian buffer zone. Our results have led to the development of new concepts for riparian delineation based on ecosystem service-specific scenarios. Results from our study suggest that choice of delineation method will influence not only the total area of potential riparian buffers but also the proportion of land cover types included, which in turn will determine their main ecosystem provision. Thus, for some ecological processes (e.g., pollutant removal), a fixed-distance approach will preserve and protect its ecosystem function, whereas for processes such as denitrification, a variable-width buffer will reflect better riparian spatial variability maximizing its ecological value. In summary, riparian delineation within UK habitats should be specific to the particular ecosystem service(s) of interest (e.g., uptake of nutrients and shading), and the effectiveness of the buffer should be ground-truthed to ensure the greatest level of protection

Selecting methods for ecosystem service assessment: a decision tree approach

A range of methods are available for assessing ecosystem services. Methods differ in their aims; from mapping and modelling the supply and demand of ecosystem services to appraising their economic and non-economic importance through valuation techniques. Comprehensive guidance for the selection of appropriate ecosystem service assessment methods that address the requirements of different decision-making contexts is lacking. This paper tackles this gap using the experience from 27 case studies which applied different biophysical, socio-cultural and monetary valuation methods to operationalise the ecosystem service concept towards sustainable land, water and urban management. A survey of the reasons why the case study teams selected particular methods revealed that stakeholder-oriented reasons, such as stakeholder participation, inclusion of local knowledge and ease of communication, and decision-oriented reasons, such as the purpose of the case study and the ecosystem services at stake, were key considerations in selecting a method. Pragmatic reasons such as available data, resources and expertise were also important factors. This information was used to develop a set of linked decision trees, which aim to provide guidance to researchers and practitioners in choosing ecosystem service assessment methods that are suitable for their context

Integrating methods for ecosystem service assessment: Experiences from real world situations

The Ecosystem Services (ES) concept highlights the varied contributions the environment provides to humans and there are a wide range of methods/tools available to assess ES. However, in real-world decision contexts a single tool is rarely sufficient and methods must be combined to meet practitioner needs. Here, results from the OpenNESS project are presented to illustrate the methods selected to meet the needs of 24 real-world case studies and better understand why and how methods are combined to meet practical needs. Results showed that within the cases methods were combined to: i) address a range of ES; ii) assess both supply and demand of ES; iii) assess a range of value types; iv) reach different stake-holder groups v) cover weaknesses in other methods used and vi) to meet specific decision context needs. Methods were linked in a variety of ways: i) as input-output chains of methods; ii) through learning; iii) through method development and iv) through comparison/triangulation of results. The paper synthesises these case study-based experiences to provide insight to others working in practical contexts as to where, and in what contexts, different methods can be combined and how this can add value to case study analyses. (C) 2017 Published by Elsevier B.V.Peer reviewe

Managing Forests and Water for People under a Changing Environment

The Earth has entered the Anthropocene epoch and forest managers are facing unprecedented challenges to meet multiple ecosystem service demands from forests. Understanding the complex forest-water relations under a changing environment must add a human dimension, and this is essential in the move towards sustainable forest management in the 21st century. This Special Issue contains 10 papers presented at a joint international forest and water conference in Chile in 2018. These studies provide global examples on new advancements in sciences in forest ecohydrology, watershed management, and ecosystem service assessment under various geographical and socioeconomic settings