Download Ecosystem goods and services provided by salt marshes

Ecosystem goods and services provided
by salt marshes
Angus Garbutt
NERC Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, UK.
Wadden Sea Trilateral Conference, Wilhelmshaven, 29th August 2013
Contact: ag(at)ceh.ac.uk
Introduction
•UK National Ecosystem
Assessment
•Conceptual framework
•Relative importance of
ecosystems for delivery of
goods and services
•Coastal Biodiversity and
Ecosystem Service
Sustainability project
The UK National Ecosystem Assessment
A review following the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment to
enable the identification & development of effective policy
responses to ecosystem service degradation
Covers terrestrial, freshwater, marine ecosystems across the UK.
• Primary aims are to:
1. Provide a high level picture of the current state and trends
since WWII in ecosystems (habitats) and ecosystem services
2. Look to the future (2050) to evaluate change under plausible
scenarios and consider a range of possible policy responses
• More than 400 researchers integrating environmental, economic
and social science knowledge. Guided by ‘Expert’ panel.
• Co-construction of scenarios with stakeholders to enhance policy
relevance.
Overall Conceptual Framework
Drivers of Change (Direct & Indirect)
Social
feedbacks
• Environmental (incl. climate change)
• Management practices (incl. harvest)
• Socio-political (e.g. policies, governance)
• Economic (e.g. markets)
• Science/technology
• Behaviour/Cultural (e.g. preferences)
• Demographic.
Human
Well-being
- Economic value
- Health value
-Shared (social)
value
Good(s)
Ecosystem
Services
Provisioning,
Regulating,
Cultural,
Supporting
Ecosystems
Air, land, water & all living things
UK National Ecosystem Assessment
Services from ecosystems
ECOSYSTEMS
ECOSYSTEM
SERVICES
Places
(e.g: Broad Habitats)
where
biological,
chemical
physical
interactions
The
benefits and
people
get from
ecosystems occur.
Provisioning
Cultural
In terrestrialRegulating
habitats these include
services
services
services
above and below
ground processes
Crops, Livestock,
Game, Fisheries,
Water supply, Wild
species diversity
(genetic resources)
Climate, Hazards,
Detoxification &
Purification,
Disease/pest control
Pollination
Aesthetic, Spiritual,
Inspirational,
Educational,
Recreation, Tourism
Wild species diversity
Supporting services
Necessary for the delivery of other ecosystem services
Soil formation, Nutrient cycling, Water cycling, Primary production
Air, land, water, and all living organisms
Ecosystem services – what nature does for us
http://www.metrovancouver.org/planning/development/biodiversity/PublishingImages/
Ecosystem.jpg
Ecosystem services – what nature does for us
Wind and water utilised
for renewable energy
Woodland provides
setting for tourism,
biofuels, carbon
store and education
Upland grazing and
moorland drainage
scheme slows and
reduces run-off and locks
up carbon
Riverside
walk
Woodland improves air
quality and reduces
particulates from
motorway
Country park on
reclaimed industrial
site provides:
Commercial development set
within GI
Sustainable
drainage system
Biomass operation
supplies fuel to
power station
Trees and green
spaces in town
improve quality of
life
•Healthy leisure and
exercise
•Urban wildlife
•Employment
Commercial development set
within Green Infrastructure
Sustainable
drainage
system
Adapted from Natural Economy Northwest
UK Ecosystems (Broad Habitats)
Mountains/Moors/Heaths
Freshwater/Wetlands
Semi-natural grasslands
Urban (settlement)
Woodlands
Enclosed farmland
Coastal margins
Marine
Distribution of Broad habitats in the UK
UK National Ecosystem Assessment
Relative importance of Broad Habitats for Ecosystem
Services and overall direction of change since 1990
Service
Group
Final
Ecosystem Service
Mountains,
Moors,
Heaths
Livestock / Aquaculture
↓
Enclosed
Farmland
↔
↑
↗
↔
Woodland
↔
Fish
Freshwater &
Wetlands
Urban
Coastal
margins
↓
↗
↘
↘
↔
↘
↗
↘
↔
↘
↘
Marine
Key
Trees, standing vegetation,
peat
↘
↔
↗
↗
↘
↔
↘
Water supply
↔
↘
↘
↔
↘
↔
~
Wild species diversity
↔
↓
↓
↗
↘
↔
↘
↘
Local places
↔
↔
~
↑
↗
↔
↔
~
Landscapes/ Seascapes
↔
↔
↔
↗
↔
↔
↗
~
Climate
↔
↔
↗
↗
↔
↘
↗
↘
Hazard
↘
↔
↘
↗
↘
↘
↔
↓
Diseases & pests
↔
↔
+/-
↘
↘
~
+/-
↘
Pollination
↘
↘
↘
↔
↔
↔
Water
quality
↔
↗
+/-
↔
+/-
+/-
~
Soil quality
↔
↘
↘
↔
↘
↓
↘
Air quality
↔
↔
↗
↗
↔
↔
↔
~
↔
↔
~
↗
↔
↓
↔
↔
Detoxification
& purification
Regulating
Cultural
Provisioning
Crops
Seminatural
grassland
Noise
Importance for Ecosystem
Service
High
High - Medium
Medium - Low
Low
Not applicable
Direction of Change
↑
↗
↔
+/
↘
↓
~
Improving
Some improvement
No net change
Gains & Losses in
contrasting sub-sets
Some deterioration
Deteriorating
Unknown
↔
UK National Ecosystem Assessment
Biodiversity – critical to delivery of ecosystem services
Provisioning
Cultural
Regulating
Mammals
Birds
Reptiles
Amphibians
Fish
Marine
Freshwater
Marine
Invertebrat
es
Terrestrial
Terrestrial
Higher
Plants
Seagrasses
Bryophytes
Lower
Plants
Phytoplankt
on
Macroalgae
Fungi
Lichens
Non-lichens
Marine
Final ecosystem
services
Terrestrial
Service Group
Microorganisms
Biodiversity Groups
Crops, plants,
livestock, fish
Trees, standing
vegetation & peat
Water
supply
Wild species
diversity
Meaningful
places
Social valued land
and waterscapes
Climate
regulation
Hazard
regulation
Waste breakdown
& detoxification
Purification
Importance
High
Medium
Low
Disease &
pest regulation
UK National Ecosystem Assessment
Goods and benefits provided by the final ecosystem
service for UK salt marshes
Final ecosystem service
Goods/Benefits
Importance
(R) Waste breakdown & detoxification
Immobilisation of pollutants
High
(P,R) Wild species diversity including microbes
(P) High diversity, or rare/unique plants, animals and
birds, insects
(P) Ecosystem-specific protected areas
(R) Nursery grounds for fish
(R) Breeding, over-wintering, feeding grounds for
birds
Water filtration: groundwater1, surface flow2,
seawater3
Sites of religious/cultural significance; World Heritage
Sites; folklore; TV & Radio programmes & Films
Paintings, sculpture, books
Beach cleaning/litter picking
High
(R) Purification
(C) Spiritual/religious + Cultural heritage & media
(C) Aesthetic/inspirational
(C) Enfranchisement + Neighbourhood development
(C) Recreation/tourism
(C) Physical/mental health + Security and freedom
(C) Education/ ecological knowledge
Many opportunities for recreation: incl. sunbathing,
walking, camping, boating, fishing, bird watching etc.
Opportunities for exercise, local meaningful space,
wilderness, personal space
Resource for teaching, public information, scientific
study
High
High
High
Some2
Some
High
High
Some
High
Chapter 11: Coastal Margins. UK National Ecosystem Assessment
Better data needed to value coastal ecosystems
Recreation and tourism
associated with the
coast worth £19.2 billion
to the UK economy in
2000 (Pugh & Skinner
2002)
Globally, the average rate of
carbon sequestration of carbon
dioxide m/y-1 in salt marshes an
order of magnitude greater than
carbon sequestration by peat
lands (Chmura et al. 2003)
Carbon Stock for UK Coastal Margins
8
7
6
5
Mt C
Coastal defence value of
salt marshes
Machair
4
Saltmarsh
3
Sand dunes
2
1
0
Scotland
England
Wales
N. Ireland
UK
NERC Biodiversity & Ecosystem Service Sustainability
research programme (BESS)
BESS
(Biodiversity & Ecosystem Service
Sustainability)
CBESS
A hierarchical approach
to the examination of
the relationship between
biodiversity & ecosystem
service flows across
coastal margins
Fragments,
functions &
flows
The scaling of biodiversity
& ecosystem services in
urban ecosystems
Wessex BESS
Biodiversity and the
provision of multiple
ecosystem services in
current & future lowland
multifunctional
landscapes
DURESS
Diversity in upland rivers
for ecosystem service
sustainability
Coastal BESS
Key research questions
• What role does biodiversity play in ecosystem processes and
ecosystem service provision of UK salt marsh & mudflat
habitats?
• How does this role change with location, season and spatial
scale?
• How can vegetation community structure be linked to
Ecosystem Service Provisioning to provide predictive tools
for policy makers?
THEME 1: DATA COLLECTION
East Coast verses West Coast marshes
Broadleaved / mixed woodland
Coniferous woodland
Broadleaved / mixed woodland
Arable & horticulture
Coniferous woodland
Improved grassland
Arable & horticulture
Rough grasslandImproved grassland
Neutral grassland
Rough grassland
Calcareous grassland
Neutral grassland
Acid grassland Calcareous grassland
Heather
Acid grassland
Heather grassland
Heather
Fen, marsh & swamp
Heather grassland
Bogs
Fen, marsh & swamp
Freshwater
Bogs
Montane
Freshwater
Inland rock
Montane
Suburban
Inland rock
Urban
Suburban
Supra-littoral rock
& sediment
Urban
Littoral rock & sediment
Supra-littoral rock & sediment
Saltmarsh
Littoral rock & sediment
Saltwater
Saltmarsh
Saltwater
Morecambe Bay
Morecambe Bay
Essex
Abbotts Hall, Essex marshes
Data collection
Greenhouse gas measurements
CO2 fluxes
Fish diversity
Physio-chemical conditions of the sediment
Data collection...........
Sediment-living animals
Insect diversity
Net primary production
Root stabilisation
Data collection...........
Soil-living invertebrates
Marsh stability
Wave attenuation
Plant diversity & height
Socio-economics
Determine the monetary & non-monetary value of cultural services
provided by birds.
RSPB reserve
Visitors in 2009
Estimated spend
(£)
Bempton cliffs,
England
67,500
750,000
South Stack, Wales
44,000
223,000
Mull of Galloway,
Scotland
19,000
126,000
Rathlin Island,
Northern Ireland
14,5000
115,000
Totals
145,000
1,214,000
RSPB
Non-monetary value of ecosystem services.
Stake holder workshops in Morecambe & Essex
• The focus is on cultural services provided by biodiversity
ecosystem services:
– Recreation
– Tourism
• To be held in Sept 2013 with co-operation with:
– Essex Estuaries Forum
– Colne Estuary Partnership
– Morecambe Bay Partnership
THEME 2: HOW SCALE EFFECTS
BIODIVERSITY & ECOSYSTEM
SERVICE RELATIONSHIPS
The relationship between biodiversity and ES and variation across
spatial scales
THEME 3: DETERMINE IF
CONTEXT IMPACTS THE
BIODIVERSITY & ECOSYSTEM
SERVICE RELATIONSHIP
The relationship between biodiversity, ES and context
THEME 4: UP-SCALING
BIODIVERSITY & ECOSYSTEM
SERVICES FROM THE TWO
REGIONAL SITES
Examining the strength of the relationships between biodiversity
and higher spatial scales
Richness-area
Rank-abundance
20
Number of species
Likelihood of occurence
1
0.1
15
10
5
0.01
0
10
Species rank
0
20
0
Function vs. richness
for different areas
1m²
0.5
35m²
3
70m²
2
1
100
Function / richness
for different areas
Ecosytem service /
species number
Function per m²
4
50
Area sampled (m2)
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
0
10
20
30
Species richness
(cumulative number species)
0
1
10
Area averaged (m2)
100
THEME 5: CREATE NOVEL
TOOLS FOR PREDICTING
ECOSYSTEM SERVICE
PROVISIONING (ESP)
Ecosystem Service Prediction tool
Site Information &
modelled data
National data sets
Policy relevant
scenarios e.g. Water
Framework
Directive/agrienvironment schemes
ESP map
• Management
options
• Climate change
• Policy directives
CBESS Summary
Theme 1: data
collection
Theme 2: how scale
effects biodiversity &
ecosystem service
relationships
Theme 4: up-scaling
biodiversity &
ecosystem services
from the two
regional sites
Theme 3: determine
if context impacts
the biodiversity &
ecosystem service
relationship
Theme 5: create
novel tools for
predicting Ecosystem
Service Provisioning
(ESP)
Thank you
Acknowledgements:
UK National Ecosystem Assessment
CBESS partnership