Ecosystem services Flashcards
1
Q
Provisioning services
A
These are products directly obtained from ecosystems:
- Food (fruit, crops, fish etc)
- Fresh water (streams, rain)
- Fuelwood (Quercus, Fraxinus excelsior)
- Fibre (Flax, cotton)
- Biochemicals and genetic resources (aspirin from willow bark)
2
Q
Regulating services
A
These are benefits obtained from regulating of ecosystems:
- Air quality maintenance as chemical are released and extracted from ecosystems
- Water regulation (timing and magnitude of run-off, and flooding)
- Climate regulation (land cover can effect local temperature and precipitation)
- Erosion control (vegetation plays an important role in soil retention and prevention of land erosion)
- Natural hazard protection of storms, flooding and landslides
- Bioremediation of waste includes removal of pollutants through storage, dilution and transformation
- Pollination
3
Q
Cultural services
A
These are indirect benefits from ecosystems including spiritual enrichment, cognitive development and recreation:
- Recreation and tourism
- Education
- Inspiration for art, folklore and architecture
- ‘Sense of self’
- Spiritual and religious links to ecosystems
- Aesthetically pleasing
- Social relations by affecting the kinds of social relations that are formed (e.g. fishing societies)
4
Q
Supporting services
A
These are all other services that can be obtained from ecosystems including:
- Production of atmospheric oxygen
- Nutrient cycling
- Soil formation and retention
- Primary production
- Water cycling
