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A web application to support the quantification and valuation of ecosystem services

A web application to support the quantification and valuation of ecosystem services
A web application to support the quantification and valuation of ecosystem services
Assessing the impacts of policies on a wide range of ecosystem services can support the development of cost-effective policies that establish win–win situations across different environmental domains. To explore the quantity and value of ecosystem services, the web-based application “nature value explorer” was developed. The application allows to estimate the impact of land use and land cover change on regulating and cultural ecosystem services in Flanders, Belgium. To ensure the applicability in day-to-day decision making as part of environmental impact assessments, user requirements were investigated prior to tool development. Finding the optimal balance between accuracy and complexity on the one hand and flexibility and user-friendliness on the other hand was an important challenge. To date, the nature value explorer has been successful in drawing the interest of policy makers and has been used several times to support decisions in infrastructure projects as well as in nature restoration projects in Flanders. This paper discusses the user requirements, the main tool characteristics, potential policy applications and future improvements. Three case studies illustrate the functionalities of the tool in day-to-day decision making. The tool can be consulted on http://www.natuurwaardeverkenner.be.
0195-9255
65-74
Broekx, Steven
4689651f-6f29-4ff1-bd83-c1c2450faf8b
Liekens, Inge
71ad389d-8f8f-4849-bef8-2c9183665dd4
Peelaerts, Wim
a1396f21-474d-489b-ad7f-b33427fbd89b
De Nocker, Leo
7eee5db0-eddf-4fa4-83ff-0b04fd82306e
Landuyt, Dries
15a7940a-9eef-4ecf-8331-f3871d57fc7c
Staes, Jan
af99cabf-b784-4268-82ec-8dd30e4de09e
Meire, Patrick
9a09348f-4dc8-4e78-9086-d5e69f7c708e
Schaafsma, Marije
937ac629-0fa2-4a11-bdf7-c3688405467d
Van Reeth, Wouter
59addd2b-7957-496f-b7a4-c851919397d5
Van den Kerckhove, Olivier
ffc83124-e4c4-4877-b130-fd1372af5c5b
Cerulus, Tanya
c1f7dc1b-6da0-4d59-8869-55383079bb2a
Broekx, Steven
4689651f-6f29-4ff1-bd83-c1c2450faf8b
Liekens, Inge
71ad389d-8f8f-4849-bef8-2c9183665dd4
Peelaerts, Wim
a1396f21-474d-489b-ad7f-b33427fbd89b
De Nocker, Leo
7eee5db0-eddf-4fa4-83ff-0b04fd82306e
Landuyt, Dries
15a7940a-9eef-4ecf-8331-f3871d57fc7c
Staes, Jan
af99cabf-b784-4268-82ec-8dd30e4de09e
Meire, Patrick
9a09348f-4dc8-4e78-9086-d5e69f7c708e
Schaafsma, Marije
937ac629-0fa2-4a11-bdf7-c3688405467d
Van Reeth, Wouter
59addd2b-7957-496f-b7a4-c851919397d5
Van den Kerckhove, Olivier
ffc83124-e4c4-4877-b130-fd1372af5c5b
Cerulus, Tanya
c1f7dc1b-6da0-4d59-8869-55383079bb2a

Broekx, Steven, Liekens, Inge, Peelaerts, Wim, De Nocker, Leo, Landuyt, Dries, Staes, Jan, Meire, Patrick, Schaafsma, Marije, Van Reeth, Wouter, Van den Kerckhove, Olivier and Cerulus, Tanya (2013) A web application to support the quantification and valuation of ecosystem services. Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 40, 65-74. (doi:10.1016/j.eiar.2013.01.003).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Assessing the impacts of policies on a wide range of ecosystem services can support the development of cost-effective policies that establish win–win situations across different environmental domains. To explore the quantity and value of ecosystem services, the web-based application “nature value explorer” was developed. The application allows to estimate the impact of land use and land cover change on regulating and cultural ecosystem services in Flanders, Belgium. To ensure the applicability in day-to-day decision making as part of environmental impact assessments, user requirements were investigated prior to tool development. Finding the optimal balance between accuracy and complexity on the one hand and flexibility and user-friendliness on the other hand was an important challenge. To date, the nature value explorer has been successful in drawing the interest of policy makers and has been used several times to support decisions in infrastructure projects as well as in nature restoration projects in Flanders. This paper discusses the user requirements, the main tool characteristics, potential policy applications and future improvements. Three case studies illustrate the functionalities of the tool in day-to-day decision making. The tool can be consulted on http://www.natuurwaardeverkenner.be.

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More information

Published date: April 2013
Organisations: Faculty of Natural and Environmental Sciences, Geography & Environment

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 368359
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/368359
ISSN: 0195-9255
PURE UUID: 339ff914-e846-4265-8c8f-4da7673d3b29
ORCID for Marije Schaafsma: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-0878-069X

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Date deposited: 12 Sep 2014 11:22
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 03:51

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Contributors

Author: Steven Broekx
Author: Inge Liekens
Author: Wim Peelaerts
Author: Leo De Nocker
Author: Dries Landuyt
Author: Jan Staes
Author: Patrick Meire
Author: Wouter Van Reeth
Author: Olivier Van den Kerckhove
Author: Tanya Cerulus

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