This case study uses the concept of ecosystem services and specifically payments for ecosystem services, alongside five experiences from the Westcountry Rivers Trust (WRT), which celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2024, to demonstrate the need for integrated catchment management (ICM). It highlights the multifaceted benefits that ecosystems provide to human well-being, the challenges faced in managing these often-siloed services and the role of ICM in preserving and enhancing multiple ecosystem services, focusing on the water-related drivers of flooding, drought, water quality and aquatic biodiversity. Through WRT projects this case study highlights practical applications and successes in managing ecosystem services at the catchment level and what considerations are needed for future integration and delivery of multi-benefit solutions. This paper is derived in part from the interviews and workshops undertaken as part of the Atlantic Area Interreg funded Triple C project (EAPA_772/2018), as well as contributions from the Horizon funded, InnWater project (Horizon EUROPE No. 101036683 and UKRI No. 10066637) and the OFWAT-funded, mainstreaming Nature-based Solutions.

Climate change will increase average temperatures and the frequency and intensity of summertime droughts; those shifts will in turn affect forage production in grassland-based livestock farms. Farmers will accordingly likely have to implement adaptation strategies to cope with the effects of climate change. We hypothesized that farmers' resilience strategies would depend on (i) their intention to adapt to climate change, which partly results from previous climate risk exposure, (ii) how they perceive the values and disvalues of multi-species permanent grasslands (PGs), and (iii) that both of the aforementioned factors would vary according to the geographical context of each farm. We carried out 15 semi-structured interviews with dairy cattle farmers in the French Massif Central; the farms were distributed along a range of climatic and topographic conditions. We used (i) the Model of Proactive Private Adaptation to Climate Change to analyze farmers' individual process of adaptation, (ii) the Integrated Nature Futures Framework to analyze farmers' perception of multi-species PGs, and (iii) text analysis to identify the farmers' adaptation strategies. Nine of the farmers felt that they were already adapted to climate change or that they had a plan in place to implement new adaptations in the future. We observed straightforward relationships between these farmers' perception of PGs and their choice of adaptation strategy; those relationships varied, however, with the geographical context of each farm. Farmers in the northern Massif Central and southern uplands highlighted the values of PGs and considered PGs to be central to their adaption strategies. Conversely, farmers in the southern lowlands mostly referred to the disvalues of PGs; they based their adaptation strategies on temporary grasslands and forage crops. Three of the farmers believed that climate change posed a significant risk, but they foresaw little room to maneuver. Despite acknowledging the values of PGs, those individuals did not intend to use PGs to adapt to climate change. The final three farmers did not intend to adapt to climate change; their reasoning stemmed from either a mindset of fatalism or their acknowledged desire to retire soon. Extreme events such as the summertime drought of 2003 and human factors such as intergenerational transmission of farm can accordingly facilitate or inhibit climate change-related adaptation. It is accordingly important to take into account both socio-psychological and environmental factors when analyzing how grassland-based farmers transition to more climate change-resilient systems.

We estimate the economic value of birding, which is an important ecosystem service produced by bird populations in recreation areas. Our research identifies the link between values and species richness as well as the abundance of the sandhill crane (Grus canadensis), which migrates each year through our study area. Sandhill crane stopovers at state and federal wildlife areas can attract many birders. We estimate this nonmarket value using the zonal travel cost method and data from the eBird project on wildlife areas in Indiana. We compare crane counts based on eBird with those from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR). We find important differences depending on whether we use eBird or DNR counts. On average, birders are willing to pay $28 per trip to sites in the study area and less than $1 per trip to see an additional species, while the value of 1000 more cranes is either about $1 or $10 per trip depending on how abundance is measured.

This study addresses the regulatory impacts on an innovative project seeking to introduce autonomous robots into the potable water network, Pipebots. It does so through the lens of adaptive governance, principally the under-explored area of adaptive governance and formal law. Through this study, suggestions are made to improve the regulatory regime, including a separate authorisation process for novel or complex products, built-in feedback loops to encourage learning and reflection and the need for early engagement by innovators in the regulatory process. Further, the analysis exposes a wider, serious tension: How do we encourage the innovation and flexibility we need to ensure the resilience and sustainability of our systems and at the same time safeguard strict human and environmental protections? The Pipebots project is used to explore the law’s role within adaptive governance, and suggestions to improve water governance are proposed.

Iguaçu National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, faces threats from proposed legislation aimed at downgrading its protection to allow reopening of the Caminho-do-Colono road, which would fragment the National Park. This study assesses the National Park’s importance in preserving native vegetation and its economic significance via payments for environmental services. We evaluated different scenarios, demonstrating how these resources are vital for certain municipalities. By comparing economic performance before and after the road’s closure, our findings reveal that, contrary to local beliefs, the closure did not negatively impact the local economy. Additionally, these legislative bills are legally infeasible and fail to offer environmental or economic benefits, favouring small interest groups over the collective good. This research highlights that the Caminho-do-Colono road is not a viable approach to municipal development. Instead, maintaining the National Park’s integrity is crucial for both ecological preservation and economic stability in the region. Our analysis underscores the broader implications of environmental conservation efforts and the necessity of rejecting projects that compromise protected areas. This study provides a comprehensive evaluation of the National Park’s role, emphasizing the need for sustainable development that aligns with environmental and community well-being.

In the West Asia region, the vulnerability of Ramsar Convention wetlands due to unsustainable utilization driven by water scarcity continues to grow. Here, a global surface water product generated by the European Joint Research Centre was used to assess changes in surface water in 77 wetlands listed under the Ramsar Convention over a 37-year period (1984–2021). By combining this product with a quantitative valuation model, estimates were made of the economic value of the ecosystem services provided by these wetlands, enabling the determination of the economic losses resulting from any reduction in surface water. We show that 20% (7550 km2) of permanent surface waters in Ramsar sites have disappeared or are no longer classified as permanent. Based on this, USD 106 billion of the economic value of wetlands ecosystem services have been lost. Additionally, 33% (12 100 km2) of seasonal surface waters in these wetlands have experienced a decrease in area. Iran and Iraq account for 90% of water losses, primarily in 34 wetlands (30 in Iran and 4 in Iraq). These findings underscore the urgent need for water management policies and conservation strategies in the West Asia region.

There is a relative lack of research, targeted models and tools to manage beaches in estuaries and bays (BEBs). Many estuaries and bays have been highly modified and urbanised, for example port developments and coastal revetments. This paper outlines the complications and opportunities for conserving and managing BEBs in modified estuaries. To do this, we focus on eight diverse case studies from North and South America, Asia, Europe, Africa and Australia combined with the broader global literature. Our key findings are as follows: (1) BEBs are diverse and exist under a great variety of tide and wave conditions that differentiate them from open-coast beaches; (2) BEBs often lack statutory protection and many have already been sacrificed to development; (3) BEBs lack specific management tools and are often managed using tools developed for open-coast beaches; and (4) BEBs have the potential to become important in “nature-based” management solutions. We set the future research agenda for BEBs, which should include broadening research to include greater diversity of BEBs than in the past, standardising monitoring techniques, including the development of global databases using citizen science and developing specific management tools for BEBs. We must recognise BEBs as unique coastal features and develop the required fundamental knowledge and tools to effectively manage them, so they can continue providing their unique ecosystem services.

The real estate business on sandy coasts and coastal dunes has increased dramatically over the last decades because of the growing demands for leisure activities which, consequently, have yielded important economic gains. Such ravaging exploitation results in the replacement of sandy ecosystems with tourism-oriented settlements, infrastructure, and facilities. As the sandy beaches and coastal dunes become deteriorated or eliminated, their protective role is lost, and the hydrometeorological risks to which the increasing human coastal populations are exposed grow, especially in a climate change scenario with increasing storminess. Furthermore, when possible, the expansion of the tourism industry continues searching for new, unspoiled locations, and the cycle begins again. This situation leads to the dilemma of coastal management: should we continue with the over-exploitation of sandy coasts for growing economic benefits? Or should we preserve the coasts for protection against the impact of increasing storms and sea level rise and to benefit biodiversity? Although scientific evidence demonstrates the relevance of protecting the coasts, coastal development plans continue to ignore these findings. What are the key drivers for these trends? We first looked for scientific evidence of the appraisal of the esthetic beauty of the beach and coastal dunes, as highly important drivers of urbanization and coastal environmental change. We then looked for evidence that demonstrated how coastal dunes offer storm protection Finally, we examined if the conservation of beaches and coastal dunes can be compatible with non-intrusive tourism. In summary, through the literature review and our own data, we show how different alternatives may help achieve a more sustainable coastal tourism by combining economic necessities with environmental concerns.

With climate change and urbanization, city planners and developers have increasing interest and practice in constructing, restoring, or incorporating wetlands as forms of green infrastructure to maintain water-related ecosystem services (WES). We reviewed studies that valued in functional or monetary units the water regulation and purification services of urban wetlands around the globe. We used the adaptive management cycle (AMC) as a heuristic to determine the step that a study would represent in the AMC, the connections between the cycle steps that were used or considered, and the stakeholders involved. Additionally, we identified the social, ecological, and/or technological dimension(s) of the environmental stressors and management strategies described by study authors. While use-inspired research on WES occurs throughout the globe, most studies serve to singularly assess problems or monitor urban wetlands, consider or use no connectors between steps, and involve no stakeholder groups. Both stressors and strategies were overwhelmingly multidimensional, with the social dimension represented in the majority of both. We highlight studies that successfully interfaced with cities across multiple steps, connectors, engaged stakeholder groups, and disseminated findings and skills to stakeholder groups. True use-inspired research should explicitly involve management systems that are used by city stakeholders and propose multidimensional solutions.

The wetlands of the jalca ecoregion in the Andes of northern Peru form peat and play a major role in the hydrological ecosystem services of the ecoregion. Although peat is globally valued for carbon sequestration and storage, peatlands have not yet been mapped in the jalca. In this region, the Gocta waterfall, one of the 20 highest waterfalls in the world, depends on the jalca’s wetlands ecosystem. The local population depends on tourism to the waterfall and is concerned about preserving its drainage area. To inform conservation planning, in this study we delimited the drainage area of the Gocta waterfall and identified land tenure by applying Geographic Information System (GIS), remote sensing and participatory mapping techniques. Then, by classifying optical, radar and digital elevation models data, we mapped peatland in the jalca of the Gocta drainage area with an overall accuracy of 97.1%. Our results will inform conservation strategy in this complex area of communal, private and informal land tenure systems. At a regional level, this appears to be the first attempt at mapping peatlands using remote sensing imagery in the jalca ecoregion, and it represents a milestone for future efforts to map and conserve peatlands in other tropical mountain areas of the world.

Urban green spaces are primarily recognized for their ability to provide opportunities for recreational activities. However, these spaces also offer a broader range of ecosystem services and benefits, which are often overlooked by city inhabitants and the government. This paper utilizes choice experiments to estimate the benefits derived from ecosystem services provided by undeveloped natural areas and urban parks in San José, Costa Rica. We evaluate three ecosystem services provided by undeveloped natural areas, namely habitats for animals and plants, hydrological control, and recreation. Additionally, we estimate the benefits derived from the restoration and construction of three types of urban parks: neighborhood, metropolitan, and central district parks. The results demonstrate that individuals place significant value on the restoration of undeveloped natural areas and urban parks. The findings also indicate variations in the valuation of ecosystem services between undeveloped natural areas and different park types, as well as among households.

Urban green spaces are indispensable for the conservation of biodiversity in Germany. In addition, the availability of green areas often provides citizens with the only opportunity to experience nature. Lichens are an important component of urban environments in terms of both species diversity, and ecosystem functions and services. However, they are rarely the subject of biodiversity education. To bolster awareness on their diversity and appreciation, a transformative biodiversity education in both the formal and informal sectors is necessary. This transformative biodiversity education should not only provide knowledge about species and habitats, but also on all dimensions of biodiversity, viz., the three levels of biodiversity, drivers of biodiversity loss, and ecosystem services. For this reason, the design of biodiversity education may be particularly challenging for educators and teachers. This paper shows how biodiversity education projects on urban lichens can be developed in accordance with the principles of transformative education, supporting nature experience, knowledge transfer (species knowledge in a broad sense and interdisciplinary aspects), participation and cooperation, as well as the use of digital media. Two best-case projects, tested in Germany, are presented as examples for the design and implementation of a transformative lichen education in urban areas. A similar approach can be easily applied in other education systems beyond national boundaries.

A theoretically consistent structural model facilitates definition and measurement of use and non-use benefits of ecosystem services. Unlike many previous approaches that utilize multiple stated choice situations, we apply this conceptual framework to a travel cost random utility model and a consequential single referendum contingent valuation research design for simultaneously estimating use and non-use willingness to pay for environmental quality improvement. We employ Monte Carlo generated data to evaluate properties of key parameters and examine the robustness of this method of measuring use and non-use values associated with quality change. The simulation study confirms that this new method, combined with simulated revealed and stated preference data can generally, but not always, be applied to successfully identify use and non-use values of various ecosystems while consistency is ensured.