ENG Chapter 1 - Biodiversity Skills

Understanding biodiversity and ecosystem servicesHow to plan for NatureAction planning skills in practiceCase: Assessing andpromoting the benefits ofGreen Infrastructure (UK)Green Infrastructure (GI) work in the northwestof England evolved from the work of the region’stwo Community Forests – Red Rose andThe Mersey Forest. This involved adapting workthat was being developed in southeast Englandto suit the needs of the Liverpool and ManchesterCity Regions. The Community Forests havea role to implement change in line with theirForest Plans (e.g. www.merseyforest.org.uk/forest_plan) to shape policy as well as developopportunities to enable the long-term deliveryof the Forests. A key issue was how to bestcoordinate activity so that there was a joint approachto environmental issues. Changing thebasis of discussion with the non-environmentalsector was also a priority. GI provided an opportunityto develop an approach that was betterunderstood by non-environmentalists andoffered potential solutions to some of society’smost difficult and expensive long-term issues,such as adapting to projected climate change,tackling poor health, and improving qualityof life and place. The GI agenda developed anumber of “resources” that supported the workto promote GI in the region.This ecological connectivity is vital to support resilient wildlifepopulations for the future, and is particularly important inlight of both the on-going impacts of habitat fragmentationand new challenges faced by our wildlife as a result of climatechange.In Europe, many of our towns and cities are endowed with ahaphazard lattice of trees, parks, gardens, allotments, cemeteries,woodlands, green corridors, railway sidings and riversand waterways. Set within, between and beyond urban areas,these green assets are often neglected and poorly connected.Much of the problem is that GI is seen more often asa liability and burden rather than a means to deliver criticalecosystems services. In order to achieve the integrated approachthat green infrastructure offers it is usually necessaryto involve key stakeholders and decision makers in a participativeprocess.Ecosystem functioningIn order to better plan the management and use of ecosystemservices, it is necessary to understand the ecologicalprocesses underpinning ecosystem services. There is a growingbody of scientific evidence demonstrating that loss ofbiodiversity is affecting ecosystem functioning as much asclimate change, pollution and other major forms of environmentalstress.The link between biodiversity and resilience has been shown for alimited number of ecosystems, but is difficult to demonstrate for© Laurent Mignaux/METL-MEDDEBocage in Normandy (France) an example of multifunctional landscape28