A systematic literature review was undertaken to analyse the linkages between different biodiversity attributes and 11 ecosystem services. The majority of relationships between attributes and ...ecosystem services cited in the 530 studies were positive. For example, the services of water quality regulation, water flow regulation, mass flow regulation and landscape aesthetics were improved by increases in community and habitat area. Functional traits, such as richness and diversity, also displayed a predominantly positive relationship across the services, most commonly discussed for atmospheric regulation, pest regulation and pollination. A number of studies also discussed a positive correlation with stand age, particularly for atmospheric regulation. Species level traits were found to benefit a number of ecosystem services, with species abundance being particularly important for pest regulation, pollination and recreation, and species richness for timber production and freshwater fishing. Instances of biodiversity negatively affecting the examined ecosystem services were few in number for all ecosystem services, except freshwater provision. The review showed that ecosystem services are generated from numerous interactions occurring in complex systems. However, improving understanding of at least some of the key relationships between biodiversity and service provision will help guide effective management and protection strategies.
•We undertook a systematic review of the linkages between biodiversity attributes and ecosystem services.•Most reported relationships between biodiversity attributes and ecosystem services were positive.•Relationships were found to be highly complex and service dependent.•Better understanding of these relationships can contribute to more effective management and conservation.
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•780 papers link 13 ecosystem services to 29 biotic attributes & 11 abiotic factors.•Simple typology shows how five groups of attributes deliver bundles of services.•Biological and ...physical diversity generally enhances performance and resilience.•Many synergies and some trade-offs between services are identified.•Sustainable ecosystem management can maximise synergies and minimise trade-offs.
There is no unified evidence base to help decision-makers understand how the multiple components of natural capital interact to deliver ecosystem services. We systematically reviewed 780 papers, recording how natural capital attributes (29 biotic attributes and 11 abiotic factors) affect the delivery of 13 ecosystem services. We develop a simple typology based on the observation that five main attribute groups influence the capacity of natural capital to provide ecosystem services, related to: A) the physical amount of vegetation cover; B) presence of suitable habitat to support species or functional groups that provide a service; C) characteristics of particular species or functional groups; D) physical and biological diversity; and E) abiotic factors that interact with the biotic factors in groups A–D. ‘Bundles’ of services can be identified that are governed by different attribute groups. Management aimed at maximising only one service often has negative impacts on other services and on biological and physical diversity. Sustainable ecosystem management should aim to maintain healthy, diverse and resilient ecosystems that can deliver a wide range of ecosystem services in the long term. This can maximise the synergies and minimise the trade-offs between ecosystem services and is also compatible with the aim of conserving biodiversity.
Soil respiration (SR) was monitored periodically throughout 2001 in a Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) stand located in the Belgian Campine region. As expected for a temperate maritime forest, ...temperature was the dominant control over SR during most of the year. However, during late spring and summer, when soil water content (SWC) was limiting, SR was insensitive to temperature (Q(10) = 1.24). We observed that during prolonged rain-free periods, when SWC was less than 15% (v/v), SR decreased dramatically (up to 50%) and SWC took over control of SR. During such drought periods, however, rain events sometimes stimulated SR and restored temperature control over SR, even though SWC in the mineral soil was low. We hypothesize that restoration of temperature control occurred only when rain events adequately rewetted the uppermost soil layers, where most of the respiratory activity occurred. To quantify the rewetting capacity of rain events, an index (I(w)) was designed that incorporated rainfall intensity, time elapsed since the last rain event, and atmospheric vapor pressure deficit (a proxy for evaporative water losses). To simulate SR fluxes, a model was developed that included the effects of soil temperature and, under drought and non-rewetting conditions (I(w) and SWC < threshold), an SWC response function. The model explained 95% of the temporal variability in SR observed during summer, whereas the temperature function alone explained only 73% of this variability. Our results revealed that, in addition to temperature and SWC, rain plays a role in determining the total amount of carbon released from soils, even in a maritime climate.
Widespread tree species must show physiological and structural plasticity to deal with contrasting water balance conditions. To investigate these plasticity mechanisms, a meta-analysis of Pinus ...sylvestris L. sap flow and its response to environmental variables was conducted using datasets from across its whole geographical range. For each site, a Jarvis-type, multiplicative model was used to fit the relationship between sap flow and photosynthetically active radiation, vapour pressure deficit (D) and soil moisture deficit (SMD); and a logarithmic function was used to characterize the response of stomatal conductance (G s) to D. The fitted parameters of those models were regressed against climatic variables to study the acclimation of Scots pine to dry/warm conditions. The absolute value of sap flow and its sensitivity to D and SMD increased with the average summer evaporative demand. However, relative sensitivity of G s to D (m/G s,ref, where m is the slope and G s,ref is reference G s at D = 1 kPa) did not increase with evaporative demand across populations, and transpiration per unit leaf area at a given D increased accordingly in drier/warmer climates. This physiological plasticity was linked to the previously reported climate- and size-related structural acclimation of leaf to sapwood area ratios. G s,ref, and its absolute sensitivity to D (m), tended to decrease with age/height of the trees as previously reported for other pine species. It is unclear why Scots pines have higher transpiration rates at drier/warmer sites, at the expense of lower water-use efficiency. In any case, our results suggest that these structural adjustments may not be enough to prevent lower xylem tensions at the driest sites.
Poplar clones were studied for their phytoextraction capacity in the second growth cycle (6-year growth) on a site in the Belgian Campine region, which is contaminated with Cd and Zn via historic ...atmospheric deposition of nearby zinc smelter activities. The field trial revealed regrowth problems for some clones that could not be predicted in the first growth cycle. Four allometric relations were assessed for their capacity to predict biomass yield in the second growth cycle. A power function based on the shoot diameter best estimates the biomass production of poplar with R
2
values between 0.94 and 0.98. The woody biomass yield ranged from 2.1 to 4.8 ton woody Dry Mass (DM) ha
−1
y
−1
. The primary goal was to reduce soil concentrations of metals caused by phytoextraction. Nevertheless, increased metal concentrations were determined in the topsoil. This increase can partially be explained by the input of metals from deeper soil layers in the top soil through litterfall. The phytoextraction option with poplar short rotation coppice in this setup did not lead to the intended soil remediation in a reasonable time span. Therefore, harvest of the leaf biomass is put forward as a crucial part of the strategy for soil remediation through Cd/Zn phytoextraction.
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Dostopno za:
BFBNIB, DOBA, GIS, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
An investigation was carried out to compare the water balance of Scots pine in Flanders growing on soils with contrasted water availability. Based on sap flow measurements transpiration of Scots pine ...was determined for two small plots on cover sands resting on a clayey substratum of varying depths (shallow and deep). Soil water content (SWC) was relatively low (0.12–0.21
m
3
m
−3) in the upper topsoil (0–0.75
m) in both plots. However, it was always higher in the shallow plot (by 3–27%) than in the deep plot. The difference between SWC in both plots was more pronounced in the deeper soil layers (0.75–1.5
m). Sap flow was measured in seven sample pine trees on each plot from May to October 2000 using the heat field deformation (HFD) method. Transpiration of the individual trees in the deep plot was 22% lower than in trees in the shallow plot. The difference decreased to 15% after scaling up to the stand level due to a higher density of trees growing in the deep plot. It was hypothesized that higher water uptake in the shallow plot was possibly caused by structural differences between the root systems of trees growing in plots with variable soil texture. The sapwood in shallow-plot trees was 1
cm less deep than in trees growing in the deep plot (as measured by biometric and sap flow pattern methods). Sap flow radial patterns suggested a higher involvement of sinker roots for water uptake in the deep clayey substratum plot. This was in agreement with higher activity of the inner xylem in trees on the deep plot under higher evaporative demands. However, the fraction of the inner xylem to the whole-tree water supply was nearly three-fold lower than the outer xylem, which appeared to provide water presumably from the superficial roots. The fraction of these roots, estimated according to sap flow radial patterns, was around 10% higher in trees on the shallow plot. This caused 30% higher sap flow in the stem outer xylem there. Transpiration of the pine stands was limited under high evaporative demands in both plots by the low availability of soil water. The limitation was greater in the deep plot and persisted throughout the whole growing season.
We estimated daily use of stored water by Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) trees growing in a temperate climate with the ANAFORE model (ANAlysis of FORest Ecosystems) and compared the simulation ...results with sap flow measurements. The original model was expanded with a dynamic water flow and storage model that simulates sap flow dynamics in an individual tree. ANAFORE was able to accurately simulate diurnal patterns of measured sap flow under microclimatic conditions that differ from those of the calibration period. Strong relationships were found between stored water use and several tree characteristics (diameter at breast height, sapwood area, leaf area), but not with tree height. Relative to transpiration, stored water use varied over time (between < 1% and 44% of daily transpiration). On days when transpiration was high, trees were more dependent on stored water, indicating that the contribution of internal water to transpiration is not a constant in the water budget of trees.
This paper focuses on the quantification of the green – vegetation related – water flux of forest stands in the temperate lowland of Flanders. The underlying reason of the research was to develop a ...methodology for assessing the impact of forests on the hydrologic cycle in comparison to agriculture. The tested approach for calculating the water use by forests was based on the application of the soil water balance model WAVE. The study involved the collection of data from 14 forest stands, the calibration and validation of the WAVE model, and the comparison of the water use (WU) components – transpiration, soil and interception evaporation – between forest and cropland. For model calibration purposes simulated and measured time series of soil water content at different soil depths, period March 2000–August 2001, were compared. A multiple-site validation was conducted as well. Actual tree transpiration calculated with sap flow measurements in three forest stands gave similar results for two of the three stands of pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), but WAVE overestimated the actual measured transpiration for a stand of poplar (Populus sp.). A useful approach to compare the WU components of forest versus cropland is scenario analysis based on the validated WAVE model. The statistical Profile Analysis method was implemented to explore and analyse the simulated WU time series. With an average annual rainfall of 819 mm, the results reveal that forests in Flanders consume more water than agricultural crops. A 30 years average of 491 mm for 10 forests stands versus 398 mm for 10 cropped agricultural fields was derived. The WU components, on yearly basis, also differ between the two land use types (transpiration: 315 mm for forest and 261 mm for agricultural land use; soil evaporation: 47 mm and 131 mm, for forest and cropland, respectively). Forest canopy interception evaporation was estimated at 126 mm, while it was negligible for cropland.
Storage water use is an indirect consequence of the interplay between different meteorological drivers through their effect on water flow and water potential in trees. We studied these microclimatic ...drivers of storage water use in Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) growing in a temperate climate. The storage water use was modeled using the ANAFORE model, integrating a dynamic water flow and – storage model with a process-based transpiration model. The model was calibrated and validated with sap flow measurements for the growing season of 2000 (26 May–18 October). Because there was no severe soil drought during the study period, we were able to study atmospheric effects. Incoming radiation and vapour pressure deficit (VPD) were the main atmospheric drivers of storage water use. The general trends of sap flow and storage water use are similar, and follow more or less the pattern of incoming radiation. Nevertheless, considerable differences in the day-to-day pattern of sap flow and storage water use were observed. VPD was determined to be one of the main drivers of these differences. During dry atmospheric conditions (high VPD) storage water use was reduced. This reduction was higher than the reduction in measured sap flow. Our results suggest that the trees did not rely more on storage water during periods of atmospheric drought, without severe soil drought. The daily minimum tree water content was lower in periods of high VPD, but the reserves were not completely depleted after the first day of high VPD, due to refilling during the night. Nevertheless, the tree water content deficit was a third important factor influencing storage water use. When storage compartments were depleted beyond a threshold, storage water use was limited due to the low water potential in the storage compartments. The maximum relative contribution of storage water to daily transpiration was also constrained by an increasing tree water content deficit.
Based on literature and six country studies (Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Netherlands, Sweden, Slovakia) this paper discusses the compatibility of the EU 2020 targets for renewable energy with ...conservation of biodiversity.
We conclude that increased demand for biomass for bioenergy purposes may lead to a continued conversion of valuable habitats into productive lands and to intensification, which both have negative effects on biodiversity. On the other hand, increased demand for biomass also provides opportunities for biodiversity, both within existing productive lands and in abandoned or degraded lands. Perennial crops may lead to increased diversity in crop patterns, lower input uses, and higher landscape structural diversity which may all have positive effects on biodiversity.
In production forest opportunities exist to harvest primary wood residues. Removal of these forest residues under strict sustainability conditions may become economically attractive with increased biomass demand.
An additional biomass potential is represented by recreation areas, road-side verges, semi-natural and natural areas and lands which have no other use because they have been abandoned, polluted or degraded.
Whether effects of cropping of biomass and/or removal of biomass has positive or negative impact on biodiversity depends strongly on specific regional circumstances, the type of land and land use shifts involved and the associated management practices in general. However, it is clear that in the six countries studied certain types of biomass crops are likely to be more sustainable than others.
► We study six EU countries for compatibility of renewable energy and biodiversity. ► Biomass demand for bioenergy may lead to conversion of valuable habitats. ► Land based biomass harvesting has biodiversity effects that vary across Europe. ► Different effects are valid for biomass production in varying land resource types. ► Biomass from urban green and recreation areas is promising resource.
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