Ecosystem services in the NDBR Tara Hooper Plymouth Marine Laboratory

Using Ecosystem Services in Management Understand the level of key services delivered by NDBR habitats Evaluate how service delivery changes under different management scenarios Compare outcomes and consider trade-offs

Understanding the delivery of key services HabitatServiceBenefit Nursery habitat Waste processing Carbon burial

Our approach Step 1 – Literature review water depth What do juvenile fish need? sediment type food sources

Our approach Step 1 – Literature review What species/processes control regulating services? bioturbation: how species rework the substrate

Our approach Step 2 – Local survey data What substrates/species are present? PML (1973) National Museums & Galleries of Wales (2003) RWE (2011) Environment Agency (2008, 2010, 2013) Step 3 – Link to habitat types To allow services to be mapped across the NDBR

Findings Good links between sites and habitats for remediation Links between biological traits and habitats not clear Fisheries species food preferences are too general but….. only where species information is present so carbon sequestration mapped by just substrate so not included in the assessment and..... mapped by just substrate/depth Hoping for validation through input from fishers

Estuary: Waste remediation

Offshore: Waste remediation To follow…….

Offshore: Carbon sequestration

Estuary: Carbon sequestration

Offshore: Nursery habitats BassSole/Plaice Cod Skates/rays Lobster To follow…..

Estuary: Nursery habitats Bass LobsterSole/Plaice Cod Skates/rays

Aggregation and trade offs How should we represent the occurrence of multiple services in the same place? What happens when the effects of management interventions occur in opposite directions for different services?

Aggregation and trade offs Just an EXAMPLE – based on equal weighting

Weighting ecosystem services How important are the ecosystem services to you? Carbon sequestration Remediation of waste Nursery habitat TOTAL Please complete the score card Ensure your scores add up to 12 ……

Weighting ecosystem services Please also complete the additional questions How do you rank the fisheries? Bass Cod Lobster Rank 1 – 5 or use equal scores …….. Sole/plaice …….. Skates/rays …… = most important 5 = least important