Provision of Agricultural Ecosystem Services

Abstract

An ecosystem is a community of living organisms, including plants, animals, and microbes, plus the nonliving components of their environment, such as water and minerals, interacting together as a system or an ecological unit (e.g., a pasture or forest). Ecosystems may also be viewed as a form of natural capital, which provides flows of vital goods and services to humans (e.g., Daily 1997). These goods and services are called ecosystem services (ES) and are often defined as the “benefits people obtain either directly or indirectly from ecosystems” (MEA 2005). Many ES are critical to human survival (e.g., climate regulation and nutrient cycling), while others contribute to our well-being (e.g., nature recreation and rural lifestyles) (Kremen 2005). Scientists and scholars have traditionally focused on natural ecosystems, such as wetlands and ponds, for ES provision (e.g., Daily 1997). However, other scholars are beginning to recognize the crucial role agriculture plays in ensuring humans receive an adequate flow of ES to sustain our quality of life (e.g., Swinton et al. 2007). The reason is that agricultural ecosystems comprise about half of global land that is not desert, tundra, rock, or boreal, which makes farmers the chief managers of the most productive lands on Earth (Tillman et al. 2002). How farmers manage this land greatly impacts human health and well-being, the land’s future productivity, neighboring ecosystems such as wetlands and forest, and the sustainability of the world’s food supply (Foley et al. 2005; Horrigan et al. 2002). Despite this importance, most farmers face strong incentives to manage their land for the short-term production of food, fiber, or fuel. The long-term health of agricultural ecosystems, however, as well as their ability to sustain food production and to provide society with diverse benefits, requires that farmers expand their management focus to include the provision of ecosystem services (ES) (Goldman et al. 2007; MEA 2005). In fact, some scholars argue that one of the greatest needs in agriculture, if not the greatest, is the provision of nonproduction-related ES such as water purification and climate regulation (e.g., Antle and Capalbo 2002). Thus, one of the most fundamental ethical issues surrounding the provision of ES is how to encourage farmers to promote, develop, andmanage ES – that is, how to encourage them to overlook short-term incentives to focus primarily on production-related agricultural services and adopt a longer-term public interest perspective by considering the provision of ES. Some relevant questions include: What ES ought to be provided? Do people have a right to specific ES, such as water cycling, clean air, or climate control? If so, whose duty is it to provide ES? If it is the farmers’ duty to provide agriculture-related ES, should farmers be paid for provision? If so, howmuch should