جمع آوری مطالعات ارزیابی اکوسیستم خدمات برای ارتقای گنجاندن در فرآیند تصمیم گیری

The main goals of the Gulf of Mexico Ecosystem Service Valuation Database (GecoServ), an inventory of ecosystem services (ES) valuation studies applicable to the Gulf of Mexico, are to allow for the distribution and sharing of information about said studies and to identify current gaps in the ES valuation literature. The utility of GecoServ (http://www.gecoserv.org) lies in that it fills a void left by non-ES specific environmental databases, highlights the lack of studies for some ecosystems and associated services, and provides background information for future ES valuation studies. GecoServ functions as a uniquely centralized source of information for both researchers and natural resource managers. Researchers can find information for different study sites to be used in value transfer methods. For managers, instead, GecoServ is a tool that provides them with ES values to inform their decision-making process.

Ecosystem services (ES) can be defined as the contributions given by the environment that support, sustain, and enrich human life [1]. They are typically divided into four categories: supportive (e.g. pollination and seed dispersal), regulating (e.g. disturbance regulation), provisioning (e.g. food), and cultural services (e.g. recreation and esthetics) [2]. Regardless of the importance of ES in sustaining and enriching human life, it is still surprisingly rare to see them used to inform the decision-making process. Sharing information about ES values might facilitate this practice.

ES are the benefits provided to humans by the environment and, as such, should be included when managers make decisions concerning our natural resources. To reach this target, and make decisions as complete and efficient as possible, managers should have access to information regarding the economic importance of ES. When time and money constraints do not allow for primary studies to be conducted, then using available information from other study sites and adapting it to the site where information is needed (policy site) is an alternative (i.e., VT). The quality of VT depends on the availability of data that can be adapted to the policy site. Databases storing studies on ES are a way of accessing desirable data, since researchers and managers can search for studies that match their policy site characteristics.