Mapping of ecosystems and their services in the EU and its Member States Leon C. Braat, Alterra, Wageningen, The Netherlands MESEU Brussels, July 1, 2015
MESEU FINAL REPORT OCTOBER 2015
The Objective : - to compare and test EU methods on pilot cases from Member States - in order to identify possible commonalities and facilitate cross-linkages between national/subnational assessments and - the work carried out at EU level. The Approach : - to collect and analyse Ecosystem & Ecosystem Services Maps and Assessments, across Europe (EU and non- EU) - to examines Country Cases at National, Regional and Local level - to develop and test A Guidance Manual for mapping ecosystems and their services
Member States involved in Mapping Projects
COVERAGE OF ECOSYSTEM TYPES
MAP EXAMPLES: Land Use Distribution of intensified land use in 1990 with a resolution of 1 km x 1 km, with a value from 0 (lowest intensity of human use, green) to 1 (the highest intensity of human use, red). Source: Corine land cover Distribution of intensified land use in 2006 with a resolution of 1 km x 1 km, with a value from 0 (lowest intensity of human use, green) to 1 (the highest intensity of human use, red). Source: Corine land cover.
MAP EXAMPLES: Ecosystems
MAPS, INDICATORS & QUANTIFICATION OF ECOSYSTEM SERVICES
MAP EXAMPLES: Ecosystem Condition. The state of the biodiversity in the major ecosystems in 2010, as measured by the Nature Index. The Nature Index Value 1 reflects intact nature. For open lowlands the value 1 reflects a wellmanaged ecosystem with respect to biodiversity.
Provisioning services Food Water & Electricity Sand from sediments Timber
MAP EXAMPLES: Provisioning Services Figure R2. Food production according to the five soil suitability classes ranking from low to high. Based on Swiss soil suitability map for agriculture agricultural production FLOW indicator from Based on Soil Production potential data
Regulating services Regulating services Urban air quality improvement Erosion protection Global Climate regulation
MAP EXAMPLES: Regulation Services STOCK/FLOW INDICATOR Based on max soil potential? STOCK/FLOW INDICATOR Based on soil potential? Figure1 : maximum carbon uptake in Flanders for the present situation.
Artistic inspiration Cultural services Iconic Species Sense of Place Outdoor recreation
MAP EXAMPLES: Cultural Services Cultural function: Recreation Figure 8 Visual and sensory evaluation of Wales, LANDMAP landscape values.
MAP EXAMPLES: Bundles of Ecosystem Services Comparative regional mapping Figure R3. Regional assessment of four ecosystem services highlighting regions with high provision of services. (Figure from a presentation related to Grêt-Regamey, A., Rabe, S.E., Crespo, R., Ryffel A. (2012)
MAP EXAMPLES: Bundles of Ecosystem Services Figure 1: Provisioning ES map Figure 2: Regulating ES map Mapping aggregate indicators Figure 3: Cultural ES map
Towards a Guidance Manual for Mapping Ecosystem & their Services
EU level conclusions based on the Fact Sheet Survey 1. The MAES Policy process A vast majority is currently in the process of implementing or developing Action 5 activities. Some national scale mapping of ecosystems Many regional case studies Building on Natura2000 activities. Several specific ecosystem or sectoral studies Stakeholders. Involved in many of the EU Member States.. In several cases stakeholders are included to test outcome.. In other cases, stakeholders consulted as part of policy process.
EU level conclusions based on the Fact Sheet Survey 2. Science. Ecosystems of the MAES matrix have not yet explicitly been used in many countries BUT the selections used are similar. The Ecosystems map for Europe was not mentioned yet at all.. Challenge to include condition of ecosystems (Czech R example) MA, TEEB & CICES are used across EU. CICES most popular. The Translation Table in the 1 st MAES Technical Report =>for harmonisation Various Tables of Indicators produced Quantification methods and data sources ~ MESEU Guidance Manual, 2013
EU level conclusions based on the Fact Sheet Survey 3. Technology Base Data Almost all (would) use Corine data, often augmented with their national land use / land cover data (maps). This offers a solid basis for a harmonisation of the Ecosystems and Ecosystem Services maps Technical In general, the Member states appear to have access to technical skills to obtain, produce and manipulate maps of very high resolutions and create alternative aggregations
Further Challenges in Biophysical Mapping Learning curves: 1. are Member States "picking up" the Mapping Challenge? 2. are they using progressively better methods? 3. are they providing country specific insights and share them? 4. are they expanding the mapping community (mappers, users, stakeholders)? Embedding the maps in the policy arena: How can we facilitate to have the maps being used in land use, economic and environmental policy, regional planning, and/or project evaluation (extended EIA)?