ENG Chapter 1 - Biodiversity Skills

Understanding biodiversity and ecosystem servicesThe ecosystem approachOne of the main findings of the UN EcosystemsAssessment is that there must be a shift inthe attitude of policy makers and practitionersto the way in which ecosystems are considered.Ecosystems provide a unifying themefor biodiversity action planning. They not onlyset the context for more effective biodiversityconservation but also provide a way of integratinghuman society through the goods and servicesparadigm. The Convention on BiologicalDiversity has developed an ecosystem approachto help with this and it is directly related to theactivities of local authorities and planners. Theecosystem approach is a strategy for the integratedmanagement of land, water and livingresources that promotes conservation and sustainableuse in an equitable way. It is made upof 12 complementary and interlinked principles(CBD, 2012):Principle 1:Principle 2:The objectives of managementof land, water and living resourcesare a matter of societalchoices.Management should be decentralizedto the lowest appropriatelevel.Case: Parc du chemin de l’ile (France)Located in a degraded brownfield site, the Parc du Cheminde I’lle is part of a big rehabilitation intervention on the urbanspace linking La Defense (Paris business district) andNanterre. In development of the park, all materials usedwas found and recycled on site and then used to build thefacilities. The entrance of the park has been converted intoartificial wetlands. The water of the Seine is taken upstreamby an Archimedes screw then purified by passing throughseven types of basins arranged in cascade. The plants thatadorn the ponds were selected according to changes inwater quality. These ponds filter the pollution from the waterpumped from the Seine. It is then used in the park andthe community gardens. While in input water of the Seineis loaded organic compounds, nitrogen, phosphorus andgerms and has a water quality class 3, it achieves a quality“bathing water” type quality fish Class 1B output. Thepark is full of scenic places to sit and enjoy the surroundingand several contemporary sculptures were placed all overthe park. To facilitate public access, many auxiliary facilitieshave been planned, including a dog park, informationpoint, tavern, gardens, and playgrounds.Laurent Mignaux, METL-MEDDEHow to plan for NatureAction planning skills in practicePrinciple 3:Ecosystem managers shouldconsider the effects (actualor potential) of their activitieson adjacent and otherecosystems.Native marsh vegetation in the basins filters the pollutants fromthe Seine waterPrinciple 4: Recognizing potential gainsfrom management, there is usually a need to understand and manage theecosystem in an economic context.Principle 5:Principle 6:Principle 7:Conservation of ecosystem structure and functioning, in order to maintainecosystem services, should be a priority target of the ecosystem approach.Ecosystems must be managed within the limits of their functioning.The ecosystem approach should be undertaken at the appropriate spatial andtemporal scales.25