Ecosystem services: definitions, concepts and applications Flashcards
Lots of history in this one (20 cards)
How are ecosystem services commonly defined?
As the benefits of ecosystems for humans (well-being).
There is a great range in definitions, but the common theme are humans.
What is an ecosystem?
A dynamic complex of plants, animals, and microorganism communities and the non-living environment, including humans, interacting as a functional unit.
What are the properties of ecosystems?
- Can vary in size
- Share the same basic structural units (e.g., trees in a forest provide the structure)
- Clear boundary where a number of discontinuities coincide (e.g., where biotic and abiotic features change etc.)
What is the ecosystem approach? What are the 6 key principles?
An approach that seeks to achieve the sustainable use of ecosystem services through these key principles:
1. Management within natural limits (this requires knowledge of thresholds)
2. Management for the long term
3. Management at the macro and micro scales (at all ecosystem scales)
4. Account for true value
5. Make trade-offs clear (ecosystem disservices – always winners and losers)
6. Involve stakeholders in decisions
What are the four ways that ecosystem services reach beneficiaries?
- Beneficiaries are in the same place as the ecosystem services
- Ecosystem services benefit the surrounding landscape
- Directional flow (e.g., beneficiaries downstream)
- One directional flow (e.g., mangrove protects land behind).
What is the chain from ecosystems to actual value?
Ecosystems -> ecosystem services -> benefit -> this benefit has a value (that can be calculated)
What are the different terms for accessibility of the benefits of ecosystem services/economic goods (in terms of excludability and rivals)? Provide an example for each.
- Private goods -> excludable and rivalled (e.g., fish)
- Common-pool resource -> non-excludable but rivalled (e.g., public grazing land)
- Toll or club good -> excludable but non-rivalled (information with subscriptions)
- Public good -> non-excludable and non-rivalled (fresh air)
What did Plato (~400 BC) understand about human dependence on ecosystems?
He recognized that forests prevent soil erosion and help maintain underground water, reflecting an early understanding of ecosystem functions.
What was the message of Man and Nature by George Perkins Marsh (1864)?
It warned that unchecked exploitation of nature destroys land, making it the first book on human destruction of the environment.
What idea emerged in the late 1940s related to ecosystem services?
The idea of “natural capital”—that nature provides valuable services that support economies and human life.
When was the term “ecosystem services” first used?
In the 1970s, alongside ideas about sustainable resource use and recycling.
What is the Countryside Survey (UK) and why is it important?
A regular audit of the UK’s natural resources (since 1978), showing a gradual decline in natural quality using scientific methods.
What is Nature’s Services by Gretchen Daily (1997) about?
A foundational book describing the benefits nature provides and how humans depend on those services.
What did the 1997 paper by Costanza et al. estimate?
The global economic value of ecosystem services at $18–54 trillion/year—though this was controversial for putting a price tag on nature.
What was the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) (2005)?
The first global study of ecosystems, defining ESs as the benefits people obtain from ecosystems and classifying them into four types.
What are the four types of ecosystem services in the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) (2005)?
Supporting (indirect: e.g. nutrient cycling)
Provisioning (e.g. food, water)
Regulating (e.g. climate regulation)
Cultural (e.g. knowledge, aesthetics)
Why are supporting services unique in the MA framework?
They do not directly benefit humans but support other services that do.
How does the MA link ecosystem services to human well-being? What are these?
Through five well-being categories,
1. Security
2. Basic material for good life
3. Health
4. Good social relations
5. Freedom of choice and actions
Note: freedom of choice is only possible when other well-being categories are met.
What did Haines-Young & Potschin (2010) contribute to ecosystem service thinking?
A revised framework showing clear links between biodiversity, ecosystem services, and human well-being.
What issue did Balmford et al. (2011) address in ES valuation?
They warned against double-counting ecosystem service values, especially when supporting services feed into others (like regulating services).
