Temporal Scales, Ecosystem Dynamics, Stakeholders and the Valuation of Ecosystems Services

This paper provides a framework that can be used for analysing temporal dimensions of ecosystem services. It presents a case study that analyses the supply of three ecosystem services in a Dutch national park, the Hoge Veluwe, over a time span of around a century as well as the implications of temporal scales for ecosystem services valuation and ecosystem management.

 

The findings show that there can be major shifts in the values attributed to specific ecosystem services at time scales of decades or less. Changes in values at these time scales are not commonly included in cost-benefit analyses of ecosystem management options or natural capital accounts. However, given the long time lapse with which ecosystems may respond to management, these changes are highly relevant. Therefore, the authors recommend that ecosystem managers using cost-benefit analyses should be aware of both uncertainties and of temporal changes in ecosystem values and that they should consider management strategies that target multiple ecosystem services in order to deal with unexpected changes in ecosystem services values.