Towards an enhanced indication of provisioning ecosystemservices in agro-ecosystems

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Authors

  • Claudia Bethwell
  • Benjamin Burkhard
  • Katrin Daedlow
  • Claudia Sattler
  • Moritz Reckling
  • Peter Zander

External Research Organisations

  • Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF)
  • Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (HU Berlin)
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Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number269
JournalEnvironmental Monitoring and Assessment
Volume193
Issue number1
Publication statusPublished - 14 May 2021

Abstract

Provisioning ecosystem services play a vital role in sustaining humanwell-being. Agro-ecosystems contribute a significant share of these services,besides food and fodder and also fuel and fibre as well as regulating and culturalecosystem services. Until now, the indication of provisioning ecosystem services ofagro-ecosystems has been based almost only on yield numbers of agriculturalproducts. Such an indication is problematic due to several reasons which include adisregard of the role of significant anthropogenic contributions to ecosystemservice co-generation, external environmental effects and strong dependence on siteconditions. We argue for an enhanced indication of provisioning ecosystem servicesthat considers multiple aspects of their delivery. The conceptual base for such anindication has been made by prior publications which have been reviewed. Relevantpoints were taken up in this article and condensed into a conceptual model in orderto develop a more holistic and expanded set of indictors, which was then exemplarilyapplied and tested in three case studies in Germany. The case studies representdifferent natural conditions, and the indicator set application showed thatecosystem services (ES) flow—in terms of output alone—does not characteriseagro-ecosystems sufficiently. The proposed aspects of provisioning ecosystemservices can give a fuller picture, for example, by input-output relationships, asit is possible by just using single indicators. Uncertainties as well as pros andcons of such an approach are elaborated. Finally, recommendations for an enhancedindication of provisioning ecosystem services in agro-ecosystems that can help tointegrate agricultural principles with ideas of sustainability and site-specificland use are derived.

Keywords

    Agricultural landscapes, Environmental effects, Indicators, Management, Site-specific land use

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Sustainable Development Goals

Cite this

Towards an enhanced indication of provisioning ecosystemservices in agro-ecosystems. / Bethwell, Claudia; Burkhard, Benjamin; Daedlow, Katrin et al.
In: Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, Vol. 193, No. 1, 269, 14.05.2021.

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Bethwell C, Burkhard B, Daedlow K, Sattler C, Reckling M, Zander P. Towards an enhanced indication of provisioning ecosystemservices in agro-ecosystems. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment. 2021 May 14;193(1):269. doi: 10.1007/s10661-020-08816-y
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AU - Zander, Peter

N1 - Funding Information: This research is based on ideas discussed by the authors at the workshop “Ecosystem Services in Agricultural landscapes” held at the Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research ZALF (2015). The authors want to thank the organisers and participants of that workshop. Furthermore, the authors want to thank Angie Faust from Leibniz University Hannover for the final language check.

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