Jonathan P. Atkins

Management of the marine environment: integrating ecosystem services and societal benefits with the DPSIR framework in a systems approach.

Ever increasing and diverse use of the marine environment is leading to human-induced changes in marine life, habitats and landscapes, making necessary the development of marine policy that considers all members of the user community and addresses current, multiple, interacting uses. Taking a systems approach incorporating an understanding of The Ecosystem Approach, we integrate the DPSIR framework with ecosystem services and societal benefits, and the focus this gives allows us to create a specific framework for supporting decision making in the marine environment. Based on a linking of these three concepts, we present a set of basic postulates for the management of the marine environment and emphasise that these postulates should hold for marine management to be achieved. We illustrate these concepts using two case studies: the management of marine aggregates extraction in UK waters and the management of marine biodiversity at Flamborough Head, UK.

A problem structuring method for ecosystem-based management: The DPSIR modelling process

The purpose of this paper is to learn from Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS) theory to inform the development of Problem Structuring Methods (PSMs) both in general and in the specific context of marine management. The focus on marine management is important because it is concerned with a CAS (formed through the interconnection between natural systems, designed systems and social systems) which exemplifies their particularly ‘wicked’ nature. Recognition of this compels us to take seriously the need to develop tools for knowledge elicitation and structuring which meet the demands of CAS. In marine management, chief among those tools is the DPSIR (Drivers – Pressures – State Changes – Impacts – Responses) model and, although widely applied, the extent to which it is appropriate for dealing with the demands of a CAS is questionable. Such questioning is particularly pertinent in the context of the marine environment where there is a need to not only recognise a broad range of stakeholders (a question of boundary critique) but also to manage competing knowledge (economic, local and scientific) and value claims. Hence this paper emphasises how a CAS perspective might add impetus to the development of a critical perspective on DPSIR and PSM theory and practice to promote a more systemic view of decision-making and policy development.

“And DPSIR begat DAPSI(W)R(M)!” - A unifying framework for marine environmental management

The marine environment is a complex system formed by interactions between ecological structure and functioning, physico-chemical processes and socio-economic systems. An increase in competing marine uses and users requires a holistic approach to marine management which considers the environmental, economic and societal impacts of all activities. If managed sustainably, the marine environment will deliver a range of ecosystem services which lead to benefits for society. In order to understand the complexity of the system, the DPSIR (Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response) approach has long been a valuable problem-structuring framework used to assess the causes, consequences and responses to change in a holistic way. Despite DPSIR being used for a long time, there is still confusion over the definition of its terms and so to be appropriate for current marine management, we contend that this confusion needs to be addressed. Our viewpoint advocates that DPSIR should be extended to DAPSI(W)R(M) (pronounced dap-see-worm) in which Drivers of basic human needs require Activities which lead to Pressures. The Pressures are the mechanisms of State change on the natural system which then leads to Impacts (on human Welfare). Those then require Responses (as Measures). Furthermore, because of the complexity of any managed sea area in terms of multiple Activities, there is the need for a linked-DAPSI(W)R(M) framework, and then the connectivity between marine ecosystems and ecosystems in the catchment and further at sea, requires an interlinked, nested-DAPSI(W)R(M) framework to reflect the continuum between adjacent ecosystems. Finally, the unifying framework for integrated marine management is completed by encompassing ecosystem structure and functioning, ecosystem services and societal benefits. Hence, DAPSI(W)R(M) links the socio-ecological system of the effects of changes to the natural system on the human uses and benefits of the marine system. However, to deliver these sustainably in the light of human activities requires a Risk Assessment and Risk Management framework; the ISO-compliant Bow-Tie method is used here as an example. Finally, to secure ecosystem health and economic benefits such as Blue Growth, successful, adaptive and sustainable marine management Responses (as Measures) are delivered using the 10-tenets, a set of facets covering all management disciplines and approaches.

What are the costs and benefits of biodiversity recovery in a highly polluted estuary

Biodiversity recovery measures have often been ignored when dealing with the restoration of degraded aquatic systems. Furthermore, biological valuation methods have been applied only spatially in previous studies, and not jointly on a temporal and spatial scale. The intense monitoring efforts carried out in a highly polluted estuary, in northern Spain (Nervión estuary), allowed for the economic valuation of the costs and the biological valuation of the benefits associated with a 21 years sewage scheme application. The analysis show that the total amount of money invested into the sewage scheme has contributed to the estuarys improvement of both environmental and biological features, as well as to an increase in the uses and services provided by the estuary. However, the inner and outer parts of the estuary showed different responses. An understanding of the costs and trajectories of the environmental recovery of degraded aquatic systems is increasingly necessary to allow policy makers and regulators to formulate robust, cost-efficient and feasible management decisions.

A Multilateral Decomposition of Racial Wage Differentials in the 1994 South African Labour Market

This article develops a new multilateral decomposition procedure for the analysis of wage differentials and applies this to the racial wage hierarchy in the South African labour market. Using micro-data on male workers from the 1994 October Household survey, it is found that whites received the highest wages followed by Asians, then coloureds and finally blacks. Productivity differences are shown to explain approximately two-thirds of the white and black wage differentials, with the unexplained residuals attributable to discriminatory overpayment of whites and underpayment of blacks, and virtually all of the Asian and coloured differentials. The results provide the basis for a discussion of post-apartheid policy initiatives to tackle racial inequalities in the labour market.

Can the benefits of physical seabed restoration justify the costs? An assessment of a disused aggregate extraction site off the Thames Estuary UK

Physical and biological seabed impacts can persist long after the cessation of marine aggregate dredging. Whilst small-scale experimental studies have shown that it may be possible to mitigate such impacts, it is unclear whether the costs of restoration are justified on an industrial scale. Here we explore this question using a case study off the Thames Estuary, UK. By understanding the nature and scale of persistent impacts, we identify possible techniques to restore the physical properties of the seabed, and the costs and the likelihood of success. An analysis of the ecosystem services and goods/benefits produced by the site is used to determine whether intervention is justified. Whilst a comparison of costs and benefits at this site suggests restoration would not be warranted, the analysis is site-specific. We emphasise the need to better define what is, and is not, an acceptable seabed condition post-dredging.

The Evolution of the Racial Wage Hierarchy in Post-Apartheid South Africa

This article develops a multilateral decomposition procedure for the analysis of wage differentials and applies this to the evolution of the racial wage hierarchy in South Africa over the period 1993–2001. We find evidence that the wage position of the majority African workforce improved relative to all other racial groups immediately following the transition to democratic rule in 1994, but that these gains have been largely eroded in the ensuing years of the post-apartheid era. We review the range of policy initiatives that have been taken by the government since 1994 in the light of our empirical findings.

Assessing Costs and Benefits of Measures to Achieve Good Environmental Status in European Regional Seas: Challenges, Opportunities, and Lessons Learnt

The EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) requires Member States to assess the costs and benefits of Programmes of Measures (PoMs) put in place to ensure that European marine waters achieve Good Environmental Status by 2020. An interdisciplinary approach is needed to carry out such an assessment whereby economic analysis is used to evaluate the outputs from ecological analysis that determines the expected effects of such management measures. This paper applies and tests an existing six-step approach to assess costs and benefits of management measures with potential to support the overall goal of the MSFD and discusses a range of ecological and economic analytical tools applicable to this task. Environmental cost-benefit analyses are considered for selected PoMs in three European case studies: Baltic Sea (Finland), East Coast Marine Plan area (UK) and the Bay of Biscay (Spain). These contrasting case studies are used to investigate the application of environmental cost-benefit analysis including the challenges, opportunities and lessons learnt from using this approach. This paper demonstrates that there are opportunities in applying the six-step environmental cost-benefit analysis framework presented to assess the impact of PoMs. However, given demonstrated limitations of knowledge and data availability, application of other economic techniques should also be considered (although not applied here) to complement the more formal environmental cost-benefit analysis approach.

Identification of a Practicable Set of Ecosystem Indicators for Coastal and Marine Ecosystem Services

Indicators of ecosystem services can provide insight into the behaviour, state and trajectory of coastal and marine systems, and contribute to the decision support system for adaptive coastal management. This chapter examines our understanding of indicators and their key purposes and applications. A set of indicators are developed that meet operational requirements and are grounded within the UK NEAFO marine ecosystem services framework. Ecosystem service indicators are therefore identified for components and processes, intermediate services, final services and goods and benefits. For UK coastal and marine environments, examples of national-level data sources available to support indicator use are identified. A more detailed application of these indicators is provided for fisheries and aquaculture, and carbon sequestration and storage. Case studies are presented in relation to marine protected areas and managed realignment sites which demonstrate the importance of site-specific data sources.

Community Operational Research and Citizen Science: Two icons in need of each other?

Citizen Science attracts a lot of positive attention and a convenient alignment with it might offer multiple benefits for Community Operational Research. But what would be the basis for such an alignment? Could it offer important reciprocal benefits for Citizen Science? We address our first question by conducting a systematic comparison of Community Operational Research and Citizen Science to reveal points of commonality and difference between the two. Having established the basis for alignment, we then address our second question by exploring how alignment might be realised at micro, meso and macro levels. Through this exploration, we highlight opportunities for Community Operational Research to avail itself of Citizen Sciences proximity to policy makers, and we make available to Citizen Science some approaches from Community Operational Research for structuring issues and dealing with contestable knowledge claims.