Unit 3: Ecosystem Service Flashcards
What is the difference between intrinsic and instrumental value?
Intrinsic value is a value independent of any benefit to humans, instrumental value is an instrument or tool that leads to a benefit for humans.
Provisions
Goods produced by ecosystems that humans can use directly.
Examples of provisions
Lumber, food crops, medicinal plants, natural rubber, and furs.
Regulating service
Natural ecosystems help regulate environmental conditions.
As a regulating service, how much carbon do natural ecosystems remove a year?
4 out of 8 gigatons emitted.
Support systems
Services that maintain fundamental ecosystem processes.
Examples of support systems
Pollination, filtered water, and natural pest control.
Cultural service
Ecosystems provide cultural or aesthetic benefits to many people.
Example of cultural service
People will pay for beautiful nature.
How much money are ecosystem services worth?
125 trillion dollars a year.
Why is preserving biodiversity important in the context of medicinal plants?
It improves the chance of finding the next critical drug.
Regulating service examples
Cycling of carbon, absorption of water preventing floods, prevention of soil erosion, cycling of nutrients.
