Ecosystem Goods & Services
Ecosystem services are defined as services
provided by the natural environment that benefit people. The UN
“Millennium Ecosystem Assessment” highlighted the multiple benefits
that ecological systems provide to society, and also recognized
that if policy and planning decisions are to be truly sustainable,
there is always a need to take account of the ecosystem approach
and integrate a socio-economic dimension.
The ecosystem services provided by the marine environment are
entirely dependent on the species and organisms that live in the
sea. These are, in turn, reliant on the maintenance of good-quality
habitats. Any unsustainable degradation of these species or
habitats will lead to a reduction in the provision of the ecosystem
services on which we rely.
PML Applications Ltd, in collaboration with Plymouth Marine
Laboratory (PML), is at the forefront of developing tools for
integrating the socio-economic dimension with our well established
marine science expertise, to ensure that the value of biodiversity
and ecosystem services is adequately captured in all types of
assessment and evaluation. This fast developing science area offers
improvements to a wide range of tools for decision making
transferable and adaptable to marine sites across the globe.
