Nicola Beaumont

Economic valuation for the conservation of marine biodiversity

Policy makers are increasingly recognising the role of environmental valuation to guide and support the management and conservation of biodiversity. This paper presents a goods and services approach to determine the economic value of marine biodiversity in the UK, with the aim of clarifying the role of valuation in the management of marine biodiversity. The goods and services resulting from UK marine biodiversity are detailed, and 8 of the 13 services are valued in monetary terms. It is found that a decline in UK marine biodiversity could result in a varying, and at present unpredictable, change in the provision of goods and services, including reduced resilience and resistance to change, declining marine environmental health, reduced fisheries potential, and loss of recreational opportunities. The results suggest that this approach can facilitate biodiversity management by enabling the optimal allocation of limited management resources and through raising awareness of the importance of marine biodiversity.

Coastal Management for Sustainable Development: Analysing Environmental and Socio-Economic Changes on the UK Coast

Littoral areas of the British Isles present an array of properties and features which have long been exploited by human populations and have contributed to the wealth and the quality of life of the nation. Past and ongoing differentiation in uses of coastal zones has led to conflicts ranging from deleterious effects on supporting ecosystems to symbiosis with human activities. This paper aims to elicit the main forces influencing the development of coastal areas and the means available to assess the present use and manage future exploitation of the coastal zone, following the P-S-I-R Framework and an ecosystem function-based valuation methodology. A variety of pressures and their trends is analysed (climate change, population and tourism changes, port development, hydrocarbon and marine aggregate extraction and pollution). All these factors are examined in the context of the sustainable use of coastal resources and on the basis of an interdisciplinary ecological economics approach.

Coastal zone ecosystem services : from science to values and decision making : a case study

This research is concerned with the following environmental research questions: socio-ecological system complexity, especially when valuing ecosystem services; ecosystems stock and services flow sustainability and valuation; the incorporation of scale issues when valuing ecosystem services; and the integration of knowledge from diverse disciplines for governance and decision making. In this case study, we focused on ecosystem services that can be jointly supplied but independently valued in economic terms: healthy climate (via carbon sequestration and storage), food (via fisheries production in nursery grounds), and nature recreation (nature watching and enjoyment). We also explored the issue of ecosystem stock and services flow, and we provide recommendations on how to value stock and flows of ecosystem services via accounting and economic values respectively. We considered broadly comparable estuarine systems located on the English North Sea coast: the Blackwater estuary and the Humber estuary. In the past, these two estuaries have undergone major land-claim. Managed realignment is a policy through which previously claimed intertidal habitats are recreated allowing the enhancement of the ecosystem services provided by saltmarshes. In this context, we investigated ecosystem service values, through biophysical estimates and welfare value estimates. Using an optimistic (extended conservation of coastal ecosystems) and a pessimistic (loss of coastal ecosystems because of, for example, European policy reversal) scenario, we find that context dependency, and hence value transfer possibilities, vary among ecosystem services and benefits. As a result, careful consideration in the use and application of value transfer, both in biophysical estimates and welfare value estimates, is advocated to supply reliable information for policy making.

Response to Comments on “Impacts of Biodiversity Loss on Ocean Ecosystem Services”

We show that globally declining fisheries catch trends cannot be explained by random processes and are consistent with declining stock abundance trends. Future projections are inherently uncertain but may provide a benchmark against which to assess the effectiveness of conservation measures. Marine reserves and fisheries closures are among those measures and can be equally effective in tropical and temperate areas—but must be combined with catch-, effort-, and gear restrictions to meet global conservation objectives.

The effect of ocean acidification on carbon storage and sequestration in seagrass beds; a global and UK context

Ocean acidification will have many negative consequences for marine organisms and ecosystems, leading to a decline in many ecosystem services provided by the marine environment. This study reviews the effect of ocean acidification (OA) on seagrasses, assessing how this may affect their capacity to sequester carbon in the future and providing an economic valuation of these changes. If ocean acidification leads to a significant increase in above- and below-ground biomass, the capacity of seagrass to sequester carbon will be significantly increased. The associated value of this increase in sequestration capacity is approximately £500 and 600 billion globally between 2010 and 2100. A proportionally similar increase in carbon sequestration value was found for the UK. This study highlights one of the few positive stories for ocean acidification and underlines that sustainable management of seagrasses is critical to avoid their continued degradation and loss of carbon sequestration capacity.

Integrated assessment for catchment and coastal zone management: The case of the Humber

In the context of the Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC), EU Member States are required to introduce water quality objectives for all water bodies, including coastal waters. Given the impact of catchment fluxes on coastal water quality, decision-making at the catchment scale is essential. This chapter investigates the use of integrated assessment as an overall decision-support process and toolbox in the Humber estuary.

Livestock grazing alters multiple ecosystem properties and services in salt marshes: a meta-analysis

1.The far-reaching impacts of livestock grazing in terrestrial grasslands are widely appreciated, but how livestock affect the structure and functions of sensitive coastal ecosystems has hitherto lacked synthesis. Grazing-induced changes in salt marshes have the potential to alter the provision of valuable ecosystem services, such as coastal protection, blue carbon and biodiversity conservation. 2.To investigate how livestock alter soil, vegetation and faunal properties in salt marshes, we conducted a global meta-analysis of ungulate grazer impacts on commonly measured ecosystem properties (498 individual responses from 89 studies). We also tested stocking density, grazing duration, grazer identity, continent and vegetation type as potential modifiers of the grazing effect. The majority of studies were conducted in Europe (75) or the Americas (12), and investigated cattle (43) or sheep (22) grazing. 3.All measures of above-ground plant material (height, cover, above-ground biomass, litter) were decreased by grazing, potentially impairing coastal protection through diminished wave attenuation. 4.Soil carbon was reduced by grazing in American, but not European marshes, indicating a trade-off with climate regulation that varies geographically. Additionally, grazing increased soil bulk density, salinity and daytime temperature, and reduced redox potential. 5.Biodiversity responses depended on focal group, with positive effects of grazing on vegetation species richness, but negative effects on invertebrate richness. Grazing reduced the abundance of herbivorous invertebrates, which may affect fish and crustaceans that feed in the marsh. Overall vertebrate abundance was not affected, but there was provisional evidence for increases over a longer duration of grazing, potentially increasing birdwatching and wildfowling opportunities. 6.Synthesis and applications. Our results reveal that the use of salt marshes for livestock production affects multiple ecosystem properties, creating trade-offs and synergies with other ecosystem services. Grazing leads to reductions in blue carbon in the Americas but not in Europe. Grazing may compromise coastal protection and the provision of a nursery habitat for fish while creating provisioning and cultural benefits through increased wildfowl abundance. These findings can inform salt marsh grazing management, based on local context and desired ecosystem services

What are the local impacts of energy systems on marine ecosystem services: a systematic map protocol

BackgroundIncreasing concentrations of atmospheric greenhouse gases (GHG) and its impact on the climate has resulted in many international governments committing to reduce their GHG emissions. The UK, for example, has committed to reducing its carbon emissions by 80% by 2050. Suggested ways of reaching such a target are to increase dependency on offshore wind, offshore gas and nuclear. It is not clear, however, how the construction, operation and decommissioning of these energy systems will impact marine ecosystem services, i.e. the services obtained by people from the natural environment such as food provisioning, climate regulation and cultural inspiration.Research on ecosystem service impacts associated with offshore energy technologies is still in its infancy. The objective of this review is to bolster the evidence base by firstly, recording and describing the impacts of energy technologies at the marine ecosystems and human level in a consistent and transparent way; secondly, to translate these ecosystem and human impacts into ecosystem service impacts by using a framework to ensure consistency and comparability. The output of this process will be an objective synthesis of ecosystem service impacts comprehensive enough to cover different types of energy under the same analysis and to assist in informing how the provision of ecosystem services will change under different energy provisioning scenarios.MethodsRelevant studies will be sourced using publication databases and selected using a set of selection criteria including the identification of: (i) relevant subject populations such as marine and coastal species, marine habitat types and the general public; (ii) relevant exposure types including offshore wind farms, offshore oil and gas platforms and offshore structures connected with nuclear; (iii) relevant outcomes including changes in species structure and diversity; changes in benthic, demersal and pelagic habitats; and changes in cultural services. The impacts will be synthesised and described using a systematic map. To translate these findings into ecosystem service impacts, the Common International Classification of Ecosystem Services (CICES) and Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA) frameworks are used and a detailed description of the steps taken provided to ensure transparency and replicability.

Bioremediation of waste under ocean acidification: Reviewing the role of Mytilus edulis.

Waste bioremediation is a key regulating ecosystem service, removing wastes from ecosystems through storage, burial and recycling. The bivalve Mytilus edulis is an important contributor to this service, and is used in managing eutrophic waters. Studies show that they are affected by changes in pH due to ocean acidification, reducing their growth. This is forecasted to lead to reductions in M. edulis biomass of up to 50% by 2100. Growth reduction will negatively affect the filtering capacity of each individual, potentially leading to a decrease in bioremediation of waste. This paper critically reviews the current state of knowledge of bioremediation of waste carried out by M. edulis, and the current knowledge of the resultant effect of ocean acidification on this key service. We show that the effects of ocean acidification on waste bioremediation could be a major issue and pave the way for empirical studies of the topic.

The cost of reducing the North Atlantic Ocean biological carbon pump

To predict the impacts of climate change it is essential to understand how anthropogenic change alters the balance between atmosphere, ocean, and terrestrial reservoirs of carbon. It has been estimated that natural atmospheric concentrations of CO2 are almost 200 ppm lower than they would be without the transport of organic material produced in the surface ocean to depth, an ecosystem service driven by mechanisms collectively referred to as the biological carbon pump. Here we quantify potential reductions in carbon sequestration fluxes in the North Atlantic Ocean through the biological carbon pump over the twenty-first century, using two independent biogeochemical models, driven by low and high IPCC AR5 carbon emission scenarios. The carbon flux at 1000 m (the depth at which it is assumed that carbon is sequestered) in the North Atlantic was estimated to decline between 27 and 43% by the end of the century, depending on the biogeochemical model and the emission scenario considered. In monetary terms, the value of this loss in carbon sequestration service in the North Atlantic was estimated to range between US