Policy Brief: Nordic ecosystem services:

Policy Brief: Nordic ecosystem services:

Author: Kristin Magnussen

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2019-01-10

Total Pages: 60

ISBN-13: 9289359447

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Nature provides us with a multitude of goods like food and fiber, drinking water, protection against floods and storms, carbon storage and recreational services like swimming and bird watching. Our welfare and well-being depend on these goods and services – often called ecosystem services, defined as “the benefit people directly and indirectly obtain from nature”. We often distinguish between four categories of ecosystem services; supporting, provisioning, regulating and cultural ecosystem services. This report aims to sum up and show some examples of the results of the ecosystem services projects carried out for NCM. It illustrates which ecosystem services we receive from Nordic nature and the importance of these. It also shows examples of how the ecosystem services approach has been and can be used in management of nature in the Nordic countries, and to point out some knowledge gaps.


Ecosystem services in MSP

Ecosystem services in MSP

Author: Mats Ivarsson

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2017-09-06

Total Pages: 169

ISBN-13: 928935013X

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This study describes a proposal for a new tool on how to incorporate an ecosystem services approach into the maritime spatial planning process. The proposed tool provides a prototype for a stepwise methodology to analyze linkages between maritime activities and ecosystem services, and to assess the status of marine ecosystem services as a part of the MSP process. The report addresses the Nordic cooperation needs, economic valuation of ecosystem services and trade-offs between concurrent uses of marine areas and ecosystem services. The study shows that making use of the proposed methodology enables and facilitates the incorporation of an ecosystem services approach in the planning process. However, in order to fully assess its possibilities, and the needs for further improvements, future work should focus on applying the methodology on a comprehensive marine spatial planning case.


Ecosystem Services

Ecosystem Services

Author: Kristin Magnussen

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2014-12-08

Total Pages: 158

ISBN-13: 9289338539

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Human wellbeing is dependent upon and benefit from ecosystem services which are delivered by well-functioning ecosystems. Ecosystem services can be mapped and assessed consistently within an ecosystem service framework. This project aims to explore the use and usefulness of the ecosystem service framework in freshwater management, particularly water management according to the Water Framework Directive (WFD). There are several examples of how ecosystem services have been used in WFD related studies in all the Nordic countries. Most of them involve listing, describing and categorizing freshwater ecosystem services, while there are few comprehensive Cost Benefit Analyses and analyses of disproportionate costs that apply this framework. More knowledge about ecosystem services and the value of ecosystem services for freshwater systems is needed.


Ecosystem Services

Ecosystem Services

Author: Gundersen, Hege

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published:

Total Pages: 130

ISBN-13: 9289347473

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People are dependent on the ocean and coasts and their resources for their survival and well-being. Coastal ecosystems of the Nordic countries, such as kelp forests, blue mussel beds, eelgrass meadows and shallow bays and inlets, provide a number of supporting, provisioning, regulating, and cultural ecosystem services to both the local communities as well as the wider population who benefit from them. The study has focused on examining these coastal values through selected examples, and recommend possible applications and relevance for the management of the Nordic coastal areas and their resources. The project has also identified key gaps in the knowledge and suggests where further work should be emphasized.


Biodiversity and ecosystem services in Nordic coastal ecosystems

Biodiversity and ecosystem services in Nordic coastal ecosystems

Author: A. Belgrano

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2018-06-18

Total Pages: 203

ISBN-13: 9289356650

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This report describes the status and trends of biodiversity and ecosystem services in the Nordic region, the drivers and pressures affecting them, interactions and effects on people and society, and options for governance. The main report consists of two volumes. Volume 1 The general overview (this report) and Volume 2 The geographical case studies. This study has been inspired by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystems Services (IPBES). It departs from case studies (Volume 2, the geographical case studies) from ten geographical areas in the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden) and the autonomous areas of Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Åland. The aim was to describe status and trends of biodiversity and ecosystem services in the Nordic region, including the drivers and pressures affecting these ecosystems, the effects on people and society and options for governance. The Nordic study is structured as closely as possible to the framework for the regional assessments currently being finalized within IPBES. The report highlights environmental differences and similarities in the Nordic coastal areas, like the inhabitants´ relation to nature and the environment as well as similarities in social and policy instruments between the Nordic countries. This study provides background material for decision-making and it is shown that Nordic cooperation is of great importance for sustainable coastal management and should be strengthened in future work.


Nordic Ecosystem Services

Nordic Ecosystem Services

Author: Kristin Magnussen

Publisher:

Published: 2019

Total Pages: 59

ISBN-13: 9789289359467

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-- Preface -- Nordic Ecosystem Services -- Brief Summary -- Application of the ecosystem services approach in ecosystem management -- Introduction and Background -- Literature -- Ecosystems and ecosystem services in NCM reports.


Marine Ecosystem Services

Marine Ecosystem Services

Author: Hasler, Berit

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2016-04-18

Total Pages: 159

ISBN-13: 9289344458

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Marine Ecosystem Services (MARECOS) is an interdisciplinary study that provides relevant information for national, Nordic and international ecosystem services assessments and valuation in the implementation of marine policy. This report aims to provide suggestions on how ecosystem condition assessments, being based on the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), and the HELCOM indicator based assessments for the Baltic Sea, could be used for the assessment of ecosystem services. By describing the potentials of linking data and knowledge describing the status of marine ecosystems and water quality to the values of the services and goods provided, the report offers useful information for policy and decision makers in the domain of the marine and aquatic policies around the Baltic and in the Nordic countries.


Socio-economic Importance of Ecosystem Services in the Nordic Countries

Socio-economic Importance of Ecosystem Services in the Nordic Countries

Author:

Publisher:

Published: 2014

Total Pages: 290

ISBN-13: 9789289329750

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Abstract: Nature provides a range of benefits (ecosystem services) that underpin human and socio-economic well-being. Many of these benefits - and the associated economic values - are not acknowledged in decision-making. As a result, nature remains almost invisible in the political and individual choices made. This report presents a synthesis of the socio-economic importance of ecosystem services in the Nordic countries. The study was initiated by the Nordic Council of Ministers (NCM) and the NCM Finnish Presidency in 2011, following in the footsteps of The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) initiative. The study reveals that Nordic ecosystems play an integral role in supporting socio-economic wellbeing. However, a number of gaps in the existing information base still need to be addressed to ensure that these benefits are fully integrated into the Nordic decision-making processes


Biodiversity and ecosystem services in Nordic coastal ecosystems

Biodiversity and ecosystem services in Nordic coastal ecosystems

Author: J. Berglund

Publisher: Nordic Council of Ministers

Published: 2018-06-18

Total Pages: 303

ISBN-13: 9289355999

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This report contributes to a Nordic IPBES-like assessment of biodiversity and ecosystem services in Nordic coastal areas. It is based on ten geographical cases in the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden) and Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Åland. The purpose is to reflect upon local biodiversity and ecosystem services, e.g. status and trends, drivers of change and policies for governance, and what future we are to expect. The cases describe the situation in the Näätämö area, Kalix archipelago, Quark, Lake Puruvesi, Bay of Lumparn, Öresund, Helgeland archipelago, Faroe Islands, the northern coastline of Iceland, and Disko Bay. It stretches from fresh water areas to ecosystems in the Atlantic Ocean and from urbanised areas with heavy pressures on the environment, e.g. Öresund, to sparsely populated areas, like Greenland with a population of around 0.03 habitants/km2.