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ReefLink Database

Ecosystem Services

Ecosystem Services

Ecosystem services are the benefits people obtain from ecosystems (Hassan et al. 2005). Humans directly benefit from Regulating Services that regulate ecosystem processes, Provisioning Services that provide food & raw materials, and Cultural Services that provide opportunities for recreation and aesthetic value. Humans indirectly benefit from Supporting Services that maintain the functioning of the Reef Ecosystem.

CMap

Contact Uses, such as biological additions, physical damage, and biological harvesting, are activities in which humans create pressures through direct contact with the ecosystem. Cultural services are the nonmaterial benefits people obtain from ecosystems through spiritual enrichment, cognitive development, recreational opportunities, aesthetic experiences, sense of place, and educational and research opportunities. Discharges are the intentional or unintentional distribution of chemicals, debris, or other pollution, into the environment as a consequence of human activities. Ecosystem services are the benefits people obtain from ecosystems . Landscape Changes are alterations of the natural landscape through human activities, including coastal development, shoreline armoring, impervious surfaces, deforestation, or soil disturbance, which can alter water flow patterns and lead to pollutant runoff into coastal systems. Mitigation is an effort to lessen or alleviate a burden on persons or the environment caused by some action or offense. Monetary valuation involves methods to quantify the worth of ecosystem goods and services in terms of economic units (e.g. Non-monetary valuation methods are used to quantify ecosystem goods and services in terms of units other than economic ones, such as stakeholder preferences or quality of life. The Reef Ecosystem includes a suite of abiotic variables that form the physical and chemical environment. Pressures are human activities that create stress on the environment. Provisioning services are the products or ecosystem goods obtained from ecosystems, including seafood, genetic and biochemical resources, pharmaceuticals, ornamental resources, and water resources. The state of the Reef Ecosystem is the condition, in terms of quantity and quality, of the abiotic and biotic components including physical, chemical, and biological variables. Reef Life is the abundance, distribution, and condition of the biological components of the coral reef ecosystem. Regulating Services are benefits obtained from ecosystem processes that regulate the environment, including erosion regulation, natural hazard regulation, and climate regulation. Responses are actions taken by groups or individuals in society and government to prevent, compensate, ameliorate or adapt to changes in Ecosystem Services or their perceived value. Socio-Economic Drivers include the sectors that fulfill human needs for Food & Raw Materials, Water, Shelter, Health, Culture, and Security, and the Infrastructure that supports the sectors. Supporting services are ecological processes that indirectly benefit humans by maintaining a functional ecosystem for the production of other ecosystem goods and services. Valuation is the process of estimating the worth, merit, or desirability of benefits derived from ecosystems.

CMap Description

Changes in the abundance or condition of reef life have an impact on the health or well-being of humans through the provision of ecosystem services. Many reef species also provide supporting services that maintain the functioning of the ecosystem. Often the socio-economic drivers that benefit from the ecosystem are the same drivers that exert pressures on the ecosystem through their activities. Decision-makers may seek to quantify the importance of ecosystem services through various valuation methods.

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