Effective Ecosystem Management Ecosystem Services: A Tool for More Effective Ecosystem Management Suzanne Marcy, Ph.D. Outreach and Education Ecosystem Services Research Program EPA Office of Research and Development Elliot Rosenberg, Session Organizer EPA Region 10 7B Marcy

Among the greatest challenges we now face as a global community is the increasing changes and adverse effects that humans are having on ecosystem functions and processes at the local to global scale

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment

Consequences for People

Key MEA findings greatly influenced the Ecosystem Services Research Program “Everyone in the world depends on nature and ecosystem services to provide the conditions for a decent, healthy, and secure life.” “Even today’s technology and knowledge can reduce considerably the human impact on ecosystems. They are unlikely to be deployed fully, however, until ecosystem services cease to be perceived as free and limitless, and their full value is taken into account.”

How can using ecosystem services make a difference in ecosystem management ? Use full ecosystem value when evaluating tradeoffs Incorporate true costs and benefits of loss or gain in services Evaluate how to achieve balance for sustainable ecosystems and human health and well-being

Today: Katharine (Trina) Wellman: Introduce the economics of accounting for ecosystem services: both challenges and opportunities David Batker: Feature application of using ecosystem services to improve decision making in Puget Sound and other regions Charles Iceland: Share successes of corporate and other applications using ecosystem services to improve decisions in the US and elsewhere Dixon Landers: Scientific challenges and opportunities for understanding and measuring ecosystem services for practical application

Questions for Discussion How do we effectively account for the full value of ecosystem services? How do we address less quantifiable services? How can ecology, economics and social sciences be fully integrated for understanding full value? What are the philosophical challenges of using ecosystem services: why would you, or wouldn’t you want to use ecosystem services in decision making? What indicators and standardization are needed for ecosystem services?