Marine Ecosystem Services Marine ecosystem services in Nordic marine waters and the Baltic Sea – possibilities for valuation Marine Ecosystem Services Marine ecosystem services in Nordic marine waters and the Baltic Sea – possibilities for valuation Berit Hasler, Heini Ahtiainen, Linus Hasselström, Anna‐Stiina Heiskanen, Åsa Soutukorva and Louise Martinsen TemaNord 2016:501 Marine Ecosystem Services Marine ecosystem services in Nordic marine waters and the Baltic Sea – possibilities for valuation Berit Hasler, Heini Ahtiainen, Linus Hasselström, Anna‐Stiina Heiskanen, Åsa Soutukorva and Louise Martinsen ISBN 978‐92‐893‐4444‐9 (PRINT) ISBN 978‐92‐893‐4445‐6 (PDF) ISBN 978‐92‐893‐4446‐3 (EPUB) http://dx.doi.org/10.6027/TN2016‐501 TemaNord 2016:501 ISSN 0908‐6692 © Nordic Council of Ministers 2016 Layout: Hanne Lebech Cover photo: ImageSelect Print: Rosendahls‐Schultz Grafisk Printed in Denmark This publication has been published with financial support by the Nordic Council of Ministers. However, the contents of this publication do not necessarily reflect the views, policies or recom‐ mendations of the Nordic Council of Ministers. www.norden.org/nordpub Nordic co‐operation Nordic co‐operation is one of the world’s most extensive forms of regional collaboration, involv‐ ing Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Åland. Nordic co‐operation has firm traditions in politics, the economy, and culture. It plays an im‐ portant role in European and international collaboration, and aims at creating a strong Nordic community in a strong Europe. Nordic co‐operation seeks to safeguard Nordic and regional interests and principles in the global community. Common Nordic values help the region solidify its position as one of the world’s most innovative and competitive. Nordic Council of Ministers Ved Stranden 18 DK‐1061 Copenhagen K Phone (+45) 3396 0200 www.norden.org Content Executive summary ....................................................................................................................... 7 Aknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... 9 Comprehensive summary and conclusions ..................................................................... 11 Concepts .................................................................................................................................... 11 Choice of ecosystem services as examples ............................................................... 11 Links between ecosystem functions, processes and services – complexities and potential solutions? .......................................................... 12 Use of descriptors for the assessment ........................................................................ 12 The valuation experiences and usefulness for ecosystem services assessment ................................................................................................................. 13 The case study ........................................................................................................................ 14 Conclusions .............................................................................................................................. 15 1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 17 1.1 Background and focus of the report .............................................................. 17 1.2 The steps of marine ecosystem services assessments ......................... 19 1.3 The content and approaches used in this report .................................... 21 1.4 The outline of the report ..................................................................................... 21 2. Classification of marine ecosystem services .......................................................... 23 2.1 The need for classification systems and concepts for ecosystem services assessments ............................................................................................ 23 2.2 Classification systems used for ecosystem services .............................. 25 3. Ecosystem Services provided by the Baltic Sea – choice of examples ........ 39 3.1 Choice of ecosystem services for the analyses in the report ............. 39 3.2 Commercial fisheries ............................................................................................ 40 3.3 Mitigation of eutrophication and sediment retention .......................... 41 3.4 Marine and coastal tourism and recreation .............................................. 42 4. Ecosystem Services, ecosystem structures and processes in the Baltic Sea ................................................................................................................................................ 45 4.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 45 4.2 Marine ecosystem components providing eutrophication mitigation service ................................................................................................... 46 4.3 Marine ecosystem components providing the flow of ecosystem service “wild fish for food’.................................................................................. 50 4.4 Possibilities and proposals for mapping the ecosystem services ... 51 5. Linking selected ecosystem goods and services to descriptors and indicators of good environmental status .................................................................. 57 5.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 57 5.2 Cultural service: Recreation .............................................................................. 60 5.3 Provisioning service: Wild fish for Food ..................................................... 63 5.4 Maintenance/regulating services: Sediment retention ....................... 67 5.5 Concluding remarks and discussion ............................................................. 68 Marine Ecosystem Services 5 6. Literature study on the value of marine ecosystem services .......................... 69 6.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 69 6.2 Previous reviews of the value of marine ecosystem services ........... 70 6.3 Valuation of ecosystem services ..................................................................... 72 6.4 From goods to values and benefits ................................................................ 75 6.5 Evaluation of literature........................................................................................ 77 6.6 Concluding remarks and discussion.............................................................. 84 7. Case study on seaside recreation in Denmark and Sweden ............................. 87 7.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 88 7.2 About the survey ..................................................................................................... 89 7.3 Implementation of the Danish case study .................................................. 99 7.4 Results from the Danish case study ............................................................ 100 7.5 Implementation of the Swedish case study ............................................ 105 7.6 Results from the Swedish case study ......................................................... 106 7.7 Conclusions and discussion ............................................................................ 111 8. Conclusions and discussions ........................................................................................ 113 References ..................................................................................................................................... 115 Dansk sammenfatning ............................................................................................................. 121 Udvidet dansk sammendrag med konklusioner ................................................. 122 Appendix – The questionnaire used in the case study ............................................ 129 Questionnaire ...................................................................................................................... 129 6 Marine Ecosystem Services Executive summary MARECOS (Marine Ecosystem Services) is an interdisciplinary study that provides relevant information for national, Nordic and international eco- system services assessments and valuation in the implementation of ma- rine policy. The report aims to provide suggestions on how the ecosystem condition assessments, being based on the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), and the HELCOM indicator based assessments for the Baltic Sea, could be used for the assessment of ecosystem services. The guidance report includes: • definitions and description of the common concepts for ecosystem services assessments • a proposal on how to conduct marine ecosystem services assessments • suggestions and examples on how the MSFD descriptors and indicators for environmental status assessment can be linked with selected ecosystem services and how these data can be used for ecosystem services assessments • a presentation and discussion of valuation study results that can be used for