sussex wetland conference: rob mcinnes

Ecosystem Services and Sussex Wetlands

Robert McInnes

Director RM Wetlands & Environment Ltd

Water and Wetlands: Key Issues and Future Priorities for Sussex January2012

The bad news . . .

UK wetlands No completely pristine freshwater ecosystems remain in the

UK. Over 40% of all floodplains in England and Wales have been

separated from their river. Only 18.4% of all English SSSI rivers are in favourable

condition. Less than 14% of the original extent of the UK lowland raised

bog remains in a semi-natural condition. UK breeding populations of redshank, curlew and lapwing

continue to decline at rates in excess of 20%. Globally the position is even worse . . . .


From Maltby & Ormerod (2011)

The degradation and loss of wetlands is more rapid than that for other

ecosystems


Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005)

How are things in Sussex?

Protected wetlands in Sussex

Analysis of Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs)


There are 142 SSSIs in Sussex. Over 75% of all biological SSSIs support a wetland habitat.





0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

4500

5000

Hab

itat

are

a (h

a)

Wetland SSSIs habitat ≈ 8,120ha (38%) excluding neutral grassland and shrub heath Approximately 2.2% of Sussex





Over 90% of wetland SSSIs

habitat is not in a favourable state

-

10.0

20.0

30.0

40.0

50.0

60.0

70.0

80.0

90.0

100.0

Destroyed Partdestroyed

Unfavourabledeclining

Unfavourableno change

Unfavourablerecovering

Favourable

- - 0.6 3.3

87.6

8.5

Co

nd

itio

n (

% h

abit

at a

rea)





0.0

20.0

40.0

60.0

80.0

100.0

Bogs -lowland

Fen, marshand swamp -

lowland

Rivers andstreams

Standingopen waterand canals

Co

nd

itio

n (

% a

rea)

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

Bogs -lowland

Fen, marshand swamp -

lowland

Rivers andstreams

Standingopen waterand canals

Co

nd

itio

n (h

a)

Destroyed Part destroyed

Unfavourable declining Unfavourable no change

Unfavourable recovering Favourable



Analysis of Ramsar Sites


There are four Ramsar Sites in Sussex. 1. Arun Valley 2. Chichester and Langstone Harbour 3. Pagham Harbour 4. Pevensey Levels





1

3

4





0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

3,500

4,000

Broadleaved,mixed and yew

woodland -lowland

Fen, marsh andswamp - lowland

Littoral sediment Neutralgrassland -

lowland

Standing openwater and canals

Supralittoralsediment

Are

a (h

a)

Destroyed

Part destroyed

Unfavourable declining

Unfavourable no change

Unfavourable recovering

Favourable

Over 84% of Ramsar site habitats are not in a favourable state


Ecosystems are critically important to our well-being and economic

prosperity but . . .

are consistently undervalued in

conventional economic analyses and decision-making

UK National Ecosystem Assessment (2011)

Ecosystem services

The benefits humans derive from the natural world

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005) proposed a four-fold classification of ecosystem services:

Provisioning services Regulating services Cultural services Supporting services


Work has progressed through TEEB (The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity) and nationally through the UK National Ecosystem Assessment.

Ecosystem services


Wetlands deliver a disproportionate about of benefits

Costanza, et al. (1997)

Ecosystem services


Provisioning Services

Food for humans Sustenance for humans (e.g. fish, molluscs)

Fresh water

Drinking water for humans and/or livestock

Water for irrigated agriculture

Water for industry

Water for energy production (hydro-electricity)

Wetland products non-food products

Timber

Fuel wood

Peat Livestock fodder Reeds and fibre

Other

Biochemical products Extraction of material from biota

Genetic materials

Medicinal products

Genes for tolerance to certain conditions (e.g. salinity)

Genes for resistance to plant pathogens

Ornamental species (live and dead)

Regulating Services

Maintenance of hydrological regimes Groundwater recharge and discharge

Storage and delivery of water for agriculture and industry

Erosion protection Soil, sediment and nutrient retention

Pollution control and detoxification Water purification/waste treatment or dilution

Climate regulation Local climate regulation/ buffering of change

Regulation of climactic processes

Biological control of pests and disease Support of predators of agricultural pests

Hazard reduction Flood control, flood storage

Coastal shoreline and river bank stabilization and storm protection

Pollination Acts a source for pollination of other areas


Ecosystem services



Cultural Services

Recreation and tourism

Recreational hunting and fishing

Water sports and activities

Picnics, outings, touring

Nature observation and nature-based tourism

Spiritual and inspirational

Inspiration

Cultural heritage

Contemporary cultural significance

Spiritual and religious values

Aesthetic and “sense of place” values

Scientific and educational

Educational activities and opportunities

Important knowledge systems, and importance for research

Long-term monitoring site

Major scientific study site

‘Type location’ for a taxon

Supporting Services

Biodiversity Supports a variety of all life forms

Soil formation Sediment retention

Accumulation of organic matter

Nutrient cycling Storage, recycling, processing and acquisition of nutrients

Carbon storage/ sequestration

Ecosystem services Ecosystem services and Ramsar sites in Sussex

Methodology

Reviewed Ramsar Information Sheet (RIS) Listed ecosystem services Explicit recognition

Key word searched Interpreted language SSSI information Peer-reviewed and grey literature GoogleEarth review

{

{ Recognised

Unrecognised


Ecosystem services


Ecosystem services and Ramsar sites in Sussex

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1

Chichester & Langstone Harbour

Pagham Harbour

Arun Valley

Pevensey Levels


Pagham Harbour

Arun Valley

Pevensey Levels

Provisioning Services Sustenance for humans (e.g. fish, molluscs)

Drinking water for humans and/or livestock

Water for irrigated agriculture

Water for industry

Water for energy production (hydro-electricity)

Timber

Fuel wood

Peat

Livestock fodder

Reeds and fibre

Other

Extraction of material from biota

Medicinal products

Genes for tolerance to certain conditions (e.g. salinity)

Genes for resistance to plant pathogens

Ornamental species (live and dead)

Unrecognised

Recognised

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1


Pagham Harbour

Arun Valley

Pevensey Levels


Pagham Harbour

Arun Valley

Pevensey Levels

Regulating Services Groundwater recharge and discharge

Storage and delivery of water for agriculture andindustry

Soil, sediment and nutrient retention

Water purification/waste treatment or dilution

Local climate regulation/ buffering of change

Regulation of climactic processes

Support of predators of agricultural pests

Flood control, flood storage

Coastal shoreline and river bank stabilization andstorm protection

Acts a a source for pollination of other areas

Ecosystem services



Unrecognised

Recognised

0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0


Pagham Harbour

Arun Valley

Pevensey Levels


Pagham Harbour

Arun Valley

Pevensey Levels

Cultural Services Recreational hunting and fishing

Water sports and activities

Picnics, outings, touring

Nature observation and nature-based tourism

Inspiration

Cultural heritage

Contemporary cultural significance

Spiritual and religious values

Aesthetic and “sense of place” values

Educational activities and opportunities

Important knowledge systems, and importance forresearch

Ecosystem services



Unrecognised

Recognised

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1


Pagham Harbour

Arun Valley

Pevensey Levels


Pagham Harbour

Arun Valley

Pevensey Levels

Supporting Services

Supports a variety of all life forms

Sediment retention

Accumulation of organic matter

Storage, recycling, processing and acquisition ofnutrients

Carbon storage/ sequestration

Ecosystem services



Unrecognised

Recognised

Ecosystem services



0.0

0.5

1.0Provisioning Services

Regulating Services

Cultural Services

Supporting Services


0.0

0.5


Regulating Services

Cultural Services

Supporting Services

Pagham Harbour

0.0

0.5


Regulating Services

Cultural Services

Supporting Services

Arun Valley

0.0

0.5


Regulating Services

Cultural Services

Supporting Services

Pevensey Levels

Recognised Unrecognised

Recognition Gap


When both the market and non-marketed economic benefits of

wetlands are included, the total economic value of unconverted

wetlands is often greater than that of converted wetlands

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005)


Recognizing value in ecosystems, landscapes, species and other aspects

of biodiversity is a feature of all human societies and communities, and is

sometimes sufficient to ensure conservation and sustainable use.

TEEB (2010)

Ecosystem services

Understanding value is a means to an end, not an end in itself


“The benefits that inland wetlands bring to water quality are worth up to £1.5billion per year to the UK.”

“The amenity benefits of living close to rivers, coasts and other wetlands is worth up to £1.3billion per year to the UK.” Defra (2011)

Ecosystem services We need to understand value in order to reverse degradation of wetland ecosystems and to improve human-well being:


Just like “built” capital assets and infrastructure, investment in wetland conservation and wise use yields tangible returns and cost savings

Ecosystem services

Some key messages

ALL of the wetlands in Sussex have value.

Need to consider both the threatened or rare and the common and mundane.

Need to be better at recognising, demonstrating and capturing value.

Need to communicate in different languages.

If designated sites are in unfavourable condition what does this mean for undesignated wetlands?



Habitats for Species Provisioning Food

Provisioning Fresh Water

Regulating Carbon

Regulating Floods

Regulating Water Treatment

Regulating Pollination

Cultural Service: Aesthetics

Cultural Service: Recreation

Cultural Service: Tourism

So, what is the value of the Arun Valley Ramsar Site?

Thank you


sussex wetland conference: rob mcinnes

Education

protected wetlands

key issues

future priorities

industry water

sussex analysis of sites

sussexanalysis of sites

sussex january2012

humans andor livestock