Ecosystem services as the silver bullet? A systematic review of how ecosystem services assessments impact biodiversity prioritisation in policy

被引:9
|
作者
Zolyomi, Agnes [1 ]
Franklin, Alex [1 ]
Smith, Barbara [1 ]
Soliev, Ilkhom [2 ]
机构
[1] Coventry Univ, Ctr Agroecol, Water & Resilience CAWR, Priory St, Coventry CV1 5FB, England
[2] Martin Luther Univ Halle Wittenberg, Ctr Interdisciplinary Reg Studies ZIRS, Reichardtstr 6, D-06114 Halle, Germany
关键词
Ecosystem services; Ecosystem services assessments; Valuation; Policy impact; KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE; DECISION-MAKING; LESSONS; VALUATION; CONSERVATION; INFORMATION; EXPERIENCES; GOVERNANCE; FRAMEWORK; ECONOMICS;
D O I
10.1016/j.esg.2023.100178
中图分类号
X [环境科学、安全科学];
学科分类号
08 ; 0830 ;
摘要
The concept of ecosystem services and their valuation have been used extensively across the last 20 years as a means of demonstrating the immense value of nature to policy-makers. Assessing ecosystem services and assigning an economic value to them has been thought of as the silver bullet. They were expected to bring the breakthrough for biodiversity prioritisation that is sorely needed amidst the current environmental crisis. The vast figures and values attributed to nature was thought to be capable of changing decision-makers' rational minds to prioritise biodiversity in their agendas. However, to date, there has been limited research that explores how the focus on ecosystem services assessments (ESA) has impacted on policy. This understanding is profoundly needed as, despite much discussion of ecosystem services, biodiversity loss continues. To understand how policy impact is considered in ESA research and what factors enable it, this paper presents the findings from a systematic review of 137 research articles investigating ESA at the EU level (the EU is considered the trailblazer of environmental policy in the international policy arena). Of the studies captured in the systematic review, 48% of the assessments included monetary valuation methods, 62% involved experts or stakeholders and 72% specifically referred to EU, regional, national, or local policy documents. We found that 8% of the articles reported on policy impact, whilst only 8% assessed the potential enabling and 2% the hindering factors of their research to influence policy. It was evident that economic valuation, although widely used, does not necessarily lead to a higher reported policy impact. On the other hand, wide stakeholder involvement was highlighted as a key element to reach policy impact. In this paper we argue that limited coverage of impact is also partly because research on ecosystem services and their valuation, somewhat paradoxically, does not necessarily focus on the impact of these assessments. The findings thus demonstrate a need for further empirical research into the reasons for the insubstantial coverage of policy relevance in scientific reporting. The results also indicate the necessity for a review of ecosystem services valuations' actual effectiveness as a means of communicating scientific research to policy-makers. Furthermore, a wider discussion on complementary or alternative ways to upscale policy impacts is required, along with a better understanding of the target audience's needs.
引用
收藏
页数:15
相关论文
共 50 条
  • [1] Ecosystem services and conservation strategy: beware the silver bullet
    Vira, Bhaskar
    Adams, William M.
    CONSERVATION LETTERS, 2009, 2 (04): : 158 - 162
  • [2] Linkages between biodiversity attributes and ecosystem services: A systematic review
    Harrison, P. A.
    Berry, P. M.
    Simpson, G.
    Haslett, J. R.
    Blicharska, M.
    Bucur, M.
    Dunford, R.
    Egoh, B.
    Garcia-Llorente, M.
    Geamana, N.
    Geertsema, W.
    Lommelen, E.
    Meiresonne, L.
    Turkelboom, F.
    ECOSYSTEM SERVICES, 2014, 9 : 191 - 203
  • [3] Ecosystem Services: A Systematic Review of Provisioning and Cultural Ecosystem Services in Estuaries
    Booi, Sipesihle
    Mishi, Syden
    Andersen, Oddgeir
    SUSTAINABILITY, 2022, 14 (12)
  • [4] Impact of climate change on biodiversity and associated key ecosystem services in Africa: a systematic review
    Sintayehu, Dejene W.
    ECOSYSTEM HEALTH AND SUSTAINABILITY, 2018, 4 (09) : 225 - 239
  • [5] Handbook on biodiversity and ecosystem services in impact assessment
    Huge, Jean
    IMPACT ASSESSMENT AND PROJECT APPRAISAL, 2017, 35 (03) : 268 - 269
  • [6] Integrating ecosystem services into conservation assessments: A review
    Egoh, Benis
    Rouget, Mathieu
    Reyers, Belinda
    Knight, Andrew T.
    Cowling, Richard M.
    van Jaarsveld, Albert S.
    Welz, Adam
    ECOLOGICAL ECONOMICS, 2007, 63 (04) : 714 - 721
  • [7] The Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Science-Policy Interface
    Perrings, Charles
    Duraiappah, Anantha
    Larigauderie, Anne
    Mooney, Harold
    SCIENCE, 2011, 331 (6021) : 1139 - 1140
  • [8] How to analyse ecosystem services in landscapes-A systematic review
    Englund, Oskar
    Berndes, Goran
    Cederberg, Christel
    ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS, 2017, 73 : 492 - 504
  • [10] How Agricultural Intensification Affects Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services
    Emmerson, M.
    Morales, M. B.
    Onate, J. J.
    Batry, P.
    Berendse, F.
    Liira, J.
    Aavik, T.
    Guerrero, I.
    Bommarco, R.
    Eggers, S.
    Part, T.
    Tscharntke, T.
    Weisser, W.
    Clement, L.
    Bengtsson, J.
    ADVANCES IN ECOLOGICAL RESEARCH, VOL 55: LARGE-SCALE ECOLOGY: MODEL SYSTEMS TO GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES, 2016, 55 : 43 - 97