Approaches for Estimating the Supply of Ecosystem Services: Concepts for Ecosystem-Based Management in Coastal and Marine Environments

Ecosystem services have emerged as a critical concept for Ecosystem-Based Management (EBM) in aquatic environments, namely in coastal and marine environments. However, despite conceptual advances over the last two decades, major challenges remain in the operationalisation of ecosystem service concepts and practical application. This chapter describes a selection of EBM assessment approaches applied to coastal and marine environments, where the ecosystem services approach is key. These approaches range from qualitative to quantitative, all being transdisciplinary. In the first, (ODEMM project, supported by linkage frameworks) trade-offs in EBM management options can be considered, in terms of their potential to reduce ecological risk, maintain sustainable supply of ecosystem services, and the governance complexity associated with implementing them. In the second, (AQUACROSS project, combining causality links relations and spatial multicriteria analysis) trade-offs are supported by maps with governance boundaries, spatially explicit valuation of ecosystem services and ecological risk. In the third, (MCES project, supported by the GIS-based modelling tool InVest) trade-offs are supported by a developed spatially explicit proxy for the habitats’ vulnerability to deliver ecosystem services. Finally, we describe a policy-based operational assessment tool that allows users to assess the current and future capacity of regional seas to supply ecosystem services, based on their current and future ecosystem status reporting. We go on to describe some lessons learnt from our experience in applying these approaches.