According to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005), ecosystem services are the benefits people obtain from ecosystems. They state that “the human species, while buffered against environmental changes by culture and technology, is fundamentally dependent on the flow of ecosystem services.” The MEA defines four types of ecosystem services:
Figure 1.3 from the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment Ecosystems and Human Well-being: Synthesis report "depicts the strength of linkages between commonly-encountered categories of ecosystem services and components of human well-being, and includes indications of the extent to which it is possible for socioeconomic factors to mediate the linkage. For example, the ability to purchase a substitute for a degraded ecosystem service offers a high potential for mediation. The strength of the linkages and the potential for mediation differ in different ecosystems and regions. In addition to the influence of ecosystem services on human well-being depicted here, other factors influence human well-being including other environmental factors as well as economic, social, technological and cultural factors. In turn ecosystems are affected by changes in human well-being." Source: Corvalan C, Hales S, McMichael A (2005) Ecosystems and Human Well-being: Synthesis. Millennium Ecosystem Assessment WHO, Geneva.
A good source of information on ecosystem services can be found at “The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity ” website.
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Use the interactive map on this website to explore connections between ecosystem services in the watershed and benefits your health and well-being.