Freshwater systems and ecosystem services: Challenges and chances for cross-fertilization of disciplines

Ágnes Vári,Thomas Hein,Tibor Erős,Tamás Gruber,Miloš Ćirić,Almut Gerhardt,Anita Dedić,Simone A Podschun,Bojan Gavrilović,Cristian Mihai Adamescu,András Báldi,Ioan-Cristian Iojă,Beáta Pataki

doi:10.1007/s13280-021-01556-4

Abstract

Freshwater ecosystems are among the most threatened in the world, while providing numerous essential ecosystem services (ES) to humans. Despite their importance, research on freshwater ecosystem services is limited. Here, we examine how freshwater studies could help to advance ES research and vice versa. We summarize major knowledge gaps and suggest solutions focusing on science and policy in Europe. We found several features that are unique to freshwater ecosystems, but often disregarded in ES assessments. Insufficient transfer of knowledge towards stakeholders is also problematic. Knowledge transfer and implementation seems to be less effective towards South-east Europe. Focusing on the strengths of freshwater research regarding connectivity, across borders, involving multiple actors can help to improve ES research towards a more dynamic, landscape-level approach, which we believe can boost the implementation of the ES concept in freshwater policies. Bridging these gaps can contribute to achieve the ambitious targets of the EU’s Green Deal.

Highlights

Nature is valued by people in many different ways, while at the same time natural ecosystems are being degraded and destroyed at an unprecedented scale (Dıaz et al 2015; European Environment Agency (EEA) 2019)
In this paper we summarise the output of a workshop aimed at identifying knowledge gaps in freshwater ecosystem services (FES)-related research and addressed the following research questions: What are the challenges and knowledge gaps in freshwater ES studies that are of outstanding importance: (a) for the analysis of freshwater ecosystems and their services?
We developed a conceptual framework: at the core of most issues identified are several features which are unique to freshwater ecosystems and have a firmphysical basis

Summary

Introduction

Nature is valued by people in many different ways, while at the same time natural ecosystems are being degraded and destroyed at an unprecedented scale (Dıaz et al 2015; European Environment Agency (EEA) 2019). Freshwater ecosystems are among the most threatened in the world, with global declines in their area by 64% from 1997 to 2011, and for Europe by 50% from 1970 to 2008 (Costanza et al 2014; IPBES 2018a; Gozlan et al 2019). They are especially vulnerable to multistressor effects (Borgwardt et al 2019). Freshwater ecosystems provide several regulating services, like groundwater recharge, flood regulation, microclimate regulation, carbon sequestration, water quality control (Bullock and Acreman 2003; Aldous et al 2011; Tomscha et al 2017; Hossu et al 2019) as well as cultural services, such as the existence of spiritual places,

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