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US Federal Agency Research on Ecosystem Services
Citation:
Cox, L., A. Almeter, AND K. SATERSON. US Federal Agency Research on Ecosystem Services. Presented at Ecosummit 2012, Columbus, OH, September 30 - October 04, 2012.
Impact/Purpose:
Over the last decade, research and policy institutions across the globe have shown a dramatic increase in attention to the benefits that human society receives from ecosystems. In the U.S., a broad range of Federal resource management and environmental agencies are conducting research related to ecosystem services. An awareness of such research will enhance opportunities for the public and private sector to collaborate on ecosystem services work. This presentation will provide a general summary of the ecosystem services research and policy being conducted across several U.S. federal departments and agencies. It will compare and contrast the research and policy topics addressed, identifying trends, gaps, and additional needs.
Description:
Over the last decade, research and policy institutions across the globe have shown a dramatic increase in attention to the benefits that human society receives from ecosystems. In the U.S., a broad range of Federal resource management and environmental agencies are conducting research related to ecosystem services. An awareness of such research will enhance opportunities for the public and private sector to collaborate on ecosystem services work. This presentation will provide a general summary of the ecosystem services research and policy being conducted across several U.S. federal departments and agencies. It will compare and contrast the research and policy topics addressed, identifying trends, gaps, and additional needs. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Ecosystem Services Research Program responded to the need for an inventory of federal ecosystem services research programs. Our inventory to-date includes the following federal entities that explicitly conduct ecosystem services research: United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Department of the Interior (DOI), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Defense (DOD), Department of Transportation (DOT), and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The data is primarily information publicly available on the internet, supplemented by follow-up conversations. We coded each entry according to the type of research or policy (e.g., biophysical, valuation), the ecosystems studied (e.g., wetlands, agriculture), the ecosystem services being assessed (e.g., nutrient cycling, flood protection), the inclusion of market development or payment for ecosystem services, and type of products produced (e.g., journal article, model). Our ecosystem services classification builds upon the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment categories, breaking them down into more detail. The inventory and subsequent analysis may help federal agencies and others to collaborate on existing federal agency work on ecosystem services, apply findings, and avoid duplicative efforts.