Post on 26-May-2018
transcript
What do Ecosystems
do for us?
We use environmental resources
We are part of the food web:
plants, animals, animal products
reproduction success products like
eggs and milk
top omnivores
What do Ecosystems
do for us?
We use by other species developed strategies
power to carry goods
power to pull tools
power for faster movements/transport
protection against environmental stresses
like cold and wet conditions
What do Ecosystems
do for us?
We use by other species developed strategies
chemicals protection against
diseases, parasites, environmental
stresses like radiation, cancer
sense of smell to identify environmental
risks, location of special food,
individuals, diseases etc.
physical behavior to adapt technical
innovation
What do Ecosystems
do for us?
We use environmental resources
abiotic: water, ores, mineral
biological: oil, gas,
energetic resources: water-, solar-, fuel-
energies
soils as fodd production base
What do Ecosystems
do for us?
We use environmental structures and processes
landscape: for regulation processes, sinks
and sources; movement and
transport
volcanoes and hot springs: energy and
soil fertilation sources
hydrological regime: irrigation, floods and
droughts regulation
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
In the moment it is too late?
Hopefully earlier, when we still can do something about
human impacts on ecosystem dynamics
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
Platon (424/423 BCE – 348/347 BCE): Greek
philosopher, recognized already 2400 before today
that deforestation changes hydrological regime,
leads to soil erosion and droughts.
Did we learn?
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
Thomas Robert Malthus (1766-1834): political /economic
hypotheses in 1798:
‘An Essay on the Principles of population’
Discrepancies between uncontrolled exponential population
growth and reduced food supply lead to catastrophes in form
of diseases, starvation, and wars.
Called the ‘Mathusian catastrophe’. This catastrophe will
regulate population growth, but at the expense of innocent
human individuals: “positive checks” in population growth.
Or self regulating process with high risk on collapse.
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
Thomas Robert Malthus (1766-1834): political
/economic hypotheses in 1798:
‘An Essay on the Principles of population’
Hence, need for active popultation growth control to keep a
sustainable level: ”preventive checks” in form of moral
restrains (mariaged approved according financial balance)
Earth has limited resources
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
George Perkin Marsh (1801 -1882)
published 1864 the book ‘Man and
nature’. http://books.google.se/books?id=q-
7wEQi0Gj0C&printsec=frontcover&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
George Perkin Marsh (1801 -1882)
published 1864 the book ‘Man and
nature’.
Marsh argued that deforestation could lead to deserfication.
Did we learn?
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
George Perkin Marsh (1801 -1882)
published 1864 the book ‘Man and
nature’.
Marsh pointed out that that ‘welfare’ is secured as long as
man are able to manage resources
Did we learn?
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
George Perkin Marsh (1801 -1882)
published 1864 the book ‘Man and
nature’.
Future generations success depends
on resource management.
Did we learn?
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
George Perkin Marsh (1801 -1882)
published 1864 the bool ‘Man and
nature’.
Marsh argues that resource scarcity is a result of
unreasonable human action rather by resource scarcity.
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
Henry Fairfield Osborn (1887 —1969) published 1948 the book ‘Our Plundered Planet’.
About environmental destruction by humans;
Critique about poor rescource management of
human kind;
Revival of Malthusian hypotheses: control
human population
Nature as capital rather than infinite resource
spring
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
Vogt, W. 1948. Road to Survival. William Sloan: New
York.
Vogt country-wise investigation
relates soil and water resources to agricultural demand,
Agricultural demand describes human population size
Industrial development: higher population size; more
agricultural demand: loss of recources by intensive
farming: reduction in available resources: reduction in
population size:
”parabola misery”
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
Leopold, A. (1887 1948)
Son published 1949 his book . A Sand
County Almanac and Sketches from
Here and There
responsible relationship between
people and the land: “LAND ETHIC”;
Book is considered as landmark in the
American conservation movement.
Responsible for widespread interest in
ecology as a subject of science.
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
Leopold, A. (1887 1948)
Son published 1949 his book . A Sand
County Almanac and Sketches from
Here and There
”LAND ETHIC”
"A thing is right when it tends to
preserve the integrity, stability, and
beauty of the biotic community. It is
wrong when it tends otherwise.“
Aldo Leopold 1949
Ehrlich and Ehrlich (1970) suggested that “the most subtle and dangerous threat to man’s existence… is the potential destruction, by man’s own activities, of those ecological systems upon which the very existence of the human species depends” “Environmental services”
‘ecosystem services’ became the
standard in the scientific literature
(Ehrlich and Ehrlich, 1981)
History: when did we actively
recognize that we depend on
ecosystems
ECOSYSTEM SERVICES?
Are benefits which people obtain from
Ecosystems.
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA). 2005. Ecosystems and Human Well-Being: Synthesis. Island Press, Washington
• There are many types of ecosystem
services and several ways to classify them
• Millenium Ecosystems Assessment
The Millenium Ecosystem
Assessment (MA)
• assessed the consequences of ecosystem change for human well-being
• 2001 to 2005
• 1,360 experts worldwide
• A scientific state-of-the-art of the condition and trends in the world’s ecosystems and the services they provide
• A scientific basis for action to conserve and use them sustainably
Some main findings of MA
• 60% of the world ecosystem services evaluated are
being degraded or used unsustainably.
• >1/4 of all fish stocks are overharvested
• About 20% of corals were lost in just 20 years
• The degradation of ecosystem services often
causes significant harm to human well-being and
represents a loss of a natural asset or wealth of a
country.
• The degradation of ecosystem services could grow
significantly worse during the first half of this century.
The MA divides the ESS into 4 categories,
each of which has several sub-categories:
Provisioning services
Regulatory
services
Food production
Water purification
• Provisioning services: products obtained from
ecosystems, including food, fibre, fuel, genetic
resources, ornamental resources, freshwater,
biochemical, natural medicines and
pharmaceuticals.
• About a quarter of the Earth's land surface is
now cultivated (MA 2005)
• 63 % of all wood harvested in world is eventually
burned as fuel (FAO, 1999)
– Even in highly industrial nations such as Sweden,
wood supplies 17% of total energy consumption! (MA,
2005)
• 75% of the world’s population rely on traditional
medicine for primary health (UNDP et al, 2000)
Provisioning services
Regulating Services: benefits obtained from the
regulation of ecosystem processes including air quality
regulation, climate regulation, water regulation,
erosion regulation, water purification and waste
treatment, disease regulation, pest regulation,
pollination and natural hazard regulation.
• Tropical deforestation accounts for ca 20% of
the net increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide
(IPCC, 2001)
• Forests also moderate the runoff from
precipitation, reducing flows during flooding,
increasing flows during drier times and
protecting soil from erosion (UNDP, 2000)
• Deforestation may cause the spread of diseases
• Pest destroy 25 to 50% of world crops before or
after harvest (Pimentel et al., 1989)
Regulating Services
• Cultural Services:
non-material benefits what people obtain from
ecosystems through spiritual enrichment, cognitive
development, reflection, recreation, and aesthetic
experiences, including cultural diversity, spiritual and
religious values, knowledge systems, educational
values, inspiration, aesthetic values, social relations,
sense of place, cultural heritage values, recreation and
ecotourism.
• Total value of international tourism > 444
Billion (World Bank 1999)
• Ecotourism (Nature based tourism) may
comprise 40-60% of this total
Cultural Services
• Supporting services which are necessary for the production of all other ecosystem services. They differ from provisioning, regulating, and cultural services in that their impacts on people are often indirect or occur over a very long time, whereas changes in the other categories have relatively direct and short-term impacts on people. Some services, like pollination, can be categorized as both a supporting and a regulating service, depending on the time scale and immediacy of their impact on people.
These services include soil formation, photosynthesis, primary production, nutrient and water cycling
• Pollinators contribute to the production of
food and other agricultural goods
– It is estimated that 90% of all flowering plants
would not exist without animals and insects
transporting pollen from one plant ot another
(UNDP et al, 2000)
Supporting services
Despite their obvious importance, ESS are in
decline in many places of the world, though
some services are increasing in some areas, for
example food production in managed
ecosystems, but always on the cost of other
services.
“Many people have benefited over the last
century from the conversion of natural
ecosystems to human-dominated ecosystems
and from the exploitation of biodiversity. At the
same time, however, these gains have been
achieved at growing costs in the form of
losses in biodiversity, degradation of many
ecosystem services, and the exacerbation of
poverty for other groups of people.”
(MA, 2005)
Why is biodiversity / Ecosystem services loss
a concern?
• Over the past 50 years virtually all of Earth’s
ecosystems have been significantly transformed
through human actions resulting in a substantial and
largely irreversible loss in biodiversity.
Why is biodiversity / Ecosystem services
loss a concern? • Over the past 50 years virtually all of Earth’s
ecosystems have been significantly transformed
through human actions resulting in a substantial and
largely irreversible loss in biodiversity.
• Changes in important components of biological
diversity were more rapid in the past 50 years than at
any time in human history.
Ca. 1.3 million known invertebrate species:
ca 30 percent of species at risk of extinction
Most severely threatened: freshwater invertebrates
water pollution, groundwater withdrawal, and water projects;
deforestation, tropical rainforests loss
1/3 of reef building corals globally
2010 evaluation of invertebrates extinction risks
All: insects, corals, molusks and worms
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/biodiversity/elements_of_biodiversity/extinction_crisis/
300,000 known species of plants,
Ca. 13000 specie evaluated by the IUCN: findings: ca 68 percent of plant
species are threatened with extinction.
habitat destruction which leads to an “extinction debt
Climate change
Primary producers: effects on whole food web
2010 evaluation of plant species
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/biodiversity/elements_of_biodiversity/extinction_crisis/
Status of 21 percent of all fish species
described is status at risk of, including
more than a third of sharks and rays.
2010 evaluation in vertebrates extinction risks
Fishes
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/biodiversity/elements_of_biodiversity/extinction_crisis/
At least a third of 6,300 known amphibians (6300) are at risk of
extinction. The current extinction rate ranges between 25 and 45
thousand tomes of the background extinction rate.
habitat loss,
water and air pollution,
Too fast climate change,
ultraviolet light exposure,
introduced exotic species and disease.
2010 evaluation in vertebrates extinction risks
Amphibians
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/biodiversity/elements_of_biodiversity/extinction_crisis/
Globally view: 21 percent at risk to extinction
Island reptile species highest risk and highest extinction rate
during the last 500 years;
On continental scale: mainland transformed into islands of
reptiles populations: time delay of same extinction rate
Habitat destruction
Invasive species species,
2010 evaluation in vertebrates extinction risks
Reptiles
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/biodiversity/elements_of_biodiversity/extinction_crisis/
BirdLife International: on a global view 12 percent of known ca.
10000 species considered as threatened; 192 species (ca. 2 %)
uunder high risk of extinction
Habitat degradation
Habitat loss
Invasive species
Capture by collectors
2010 evaluation in vertebrates extinction risks
Birds
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/biodiversity/elements_of_biodiversity/extinction_crisis/
90 percent of primates threatened
50 percent of primates at risk of extinction
Overall mammals on a global view (ca. 5500 species): 50
percent population decrease; 20 percent at risk of extinction
Marine mammals : encounter highest and fastest population
decline;
2010 evaluation in vertebrates extinction risks
Mammals
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/biodiversity/elements_of_biodiversity/extinction_crisis/
Why is biodiversity / Ecosystem services
loss a concern? • Over the past 50 years virtually all of Earth’s
ecosystems have been significantly transformed
through human actions resulting in a substantial and
largely irreversible loss in biodiversity.
• Changes in important components of biological
diversity were more rapid in the past 50 years than at
any time in human history.
• Land use change, particularly the expansion of
agriculture, is projected to stay a major direct driver of
biodiversity/ESS losses
Losses of Habitat as a Result of Land Use Change between 1970 and
2050 and Reduction in the Equilibrium Number of Vascular Plant Species
under the MA Scenarios
explores the
possibilities of a
world in which global
economic and social
policies are the
primary approach to
sustainability.
examines the
outcomes of a world in
which protection
through boundaries
becomes paramount.
explores benefits and risks of
environmentally proactive
local & regional management
as the primary approach to
sustainability.
explores potential role of
technology in providing or
improving the provision of
ecosystem services.
Why is biodiversity / Ecosystem services
loss a concern? • Over the past 50 years virtually all of Earth’s
ecosystems have been significantly transformed
through human actions resulting in a substantial and
largely irreversible loss in biodiversity.
• Changes in important components of biological
diversity were more rapid in the past 50 years than at
any time in human history.
• Land use change, particularly the expansion of
agriculture, is projected to stay a major direct driver of
biodiversity/ES losses
• Demands for services is continually growing
World population is projected to reach between approximately 8.1 and 9.6 billion people in 2050 (and between 6.8 and 10.5 billion in 2100), depending on the scenario
As human populations grow, so do the resource demands
imposed on ecosystems. Increased consumption!
Why is biodiversity / Ecosystem services
loss a concern? • Over the past 50 years virtually all of Earth’s ecosystems have
been significantly transformed through human actions resulting
in a substantial and largely irreversible loss in biodiversity.
• Changes in important components of biological diversity were
more rapid in the past 50 years than at any time in human
history.
• Land use change, particularly the expansion of agriculture, is
projected to stay a major direct driver of biodiversity/ES losses
• Demands for services is continually growing
• Projections and scenarios indicate that these rates will
continue, or accelerate, in the future.
Number of Ecosystem Services Enhanced or Degraded by 2050 in the Four MA Scenarios
"The Figure shows the net change in the number of ecosystem services enhanced or degraded in the MA
scenarios in each category of services for industrial and developing countries expressed as a percentage of the
total number of services evaluated in that category. Thus, 100% degradation means that all the services in the
category were degraded in 2050 compared with 2000, while 50% improvement could mean that three out of six
services were enhanced and the rest were unchanged or that four out of six were enhanced and one was
degraded. The total number of services evaluated for each category was six provisioning services, nine regulating
services, and five cultural services."
There is a growing consensus among scientists and the
general public that the climate is changing (IPCC, 2001)
Climate change effects on biodiversity and ecosystem services are projected to increase.
Valuation
• The value of all ecosystem services was
estimated globally at US$33 trillion per
year (Costanza et al., 1997), updated for
the year 2000 to US$38 trillion per year,
an amount that is similar to the Gross
National Product of all the world’s
economies (Balmford et al.,2002).
A way of protecting Biodiversity/ ESS:
put a market value on it!!
Trading scheme REDD (Reducing Emissions from
Deforestation and Degradation)
”Countries that are willing and able to reduce emissions
from deforestation should be financially compensated for
doing so”
REDD: A solution to many problems?
• Combat Climate change
– Deforestation currently responsible for up to 20% of global carbon
emissions
• Combat rural poverty
• Combat Biodiversity/ESS loss
– Will help preserve many other ES beyong Carbon storage, such as
watershed protection, water flow regulation, disease regulation...
Failure of civilizations and
ecosystem services
History shows that human well-being and
indeed the persistence of civilizations is
strongly linked to the capacity of their
environments to continue to deliver ecosystem
services at the local to regional scale
Past society: Easter
Island
• is the most remote island in the south
Pacific Ocean belonging to Chile.
• Peak of population ca 7000 inhabitants
• The island is famous for its numerous
moai, the stone statues located along the
coastlines
• Why did this civilization collapse?
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/Easter_Isla
nd,_Ahu_Tongariki_(6691281879).jpg
Past society: Easter
Island
• The whole forest is gone!
• Pollinating birds were lost
• Losses of wild-caught foods (Only
chickens!) and decreased crop yields
• No escape possible: lack of large timber
brought an end to the construction of
seagoing canoes
• No wood for fuel to keep themselves warm http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/Easter_Isla
nd,_Ahu_Tongariki_(6691281879).jpg
What did we learn?
The wellbeing of humans is integrally linked
to the wellbeing of the other species with
which we share the planet. There is now wide
acceptance that if the current rate of loss of
biological resources is continued, the result
will be catastrophic for humankind within a
few generations.
Further reading Millenium Ecosystem Assessment (2005) Ecosystems
and human well-being: a framwork for assessment.
Island Press, Washington DC, USA.
Diamond, J. (2005). Collapse. How societies choose
to fail or survive.
www.RUBICODE.net