Ecosystem Services and Biodiversity The International Legal Regime and the Ecosystem Approach Ghent, 16 September 2010 – Kathleen Mertens

Ecosystem Services The services ecosystems provide to human beings 4 types of services: supporting services, regulating services, provisioning services and cultural services Climate regulation Forests, soils, vegetation and marine phytoplankton Large capacity to store CO2

Ecosystem Approach Normative framework To achieve the 3 objectives of the CBD A voluntary tool 12 principles

Principles of the Ecosystem Approach P 1: The objectives of management of land, water and living resources are a matter of societal choices P 2: Management should be decentralised to the lowest appropriate level P 3: Ecosystem managers should consider the effects (actual or potential) of their activities on adjacent and other ecosystems P 4: Recognizing potential gains from management, there is usually a need to understand and manage the ecosystem in an economic context

Principles of the Ecosystem Approach P 5: Conservation of ecosystem structure and functioning, in order to maintain ecosystem services, should be a priority target of the ecosystem approach P 6: Ecosystem must be managed within the limits of their functioning P 7: The ecosystem approach should be undertaken at the appropriate spatial and temporal scales P 8: Recognising the varying temporal scales and lag-effects that characterise ecosystem processes, objectives for ecosystem management should be set for the long term

Principles of the Ecosystem Approach P 9: Management must recognize that change is inevitable P 10: The ecosystem approach should seek the appropriate balance between, and integration of, conservation and use of biological diversity P 11: The ecosystem approach should consider all forms of relevant information, including scientific and indigenous and local knowledge, innovations and practices P 12: The ecosystem approach should involve all relevant sectors of society and scientific disciplines

Application of the Ecosystem Approach Institutional cooperation/coordination to avoid adverse effects of fragmented decision-making Coordination of legal requirements EIA and SEA Economic valuation of ecosystem goods and services Flexible mechanisms – valuation of ton CO2 Incentives for biodiversity conservation Phase out market imperfections Application of precautionary approach

Application of the Ecosystem Approach Focus on structures and processes rather than to focus on specific species Sustainable management of ecosystems having regard at the temporal scale of ecosystem functioning and the fact decisions here might affect the functioning of ecosystems at another place Special adaptation and mitigation strategies when ecosystems may be pushed beyond the limits of natural variation Integrate natural resource management in other sectoral policies

Application of the Ecosystem Approach Scientific cooperation Maintain practices and knowledge of indigenous communities Awareness-raising Stakeholder involvement

Conclusion Is it possible to follow the ecosystem approach when implementing the international obligations? No real institutional cooperation No coordination of obligations, unless we take into account indirect references in the conventions and the KP Future? How to better integrate the conventions? Agreements on better cooperation/coordination?