This case study proposes a replicable methodology that can be used to identify and map green infrastructure elements at the landscape level, based on the notions of ecological connectivity, multi-functionality of ecosystems, and maximisation of benefits both for humans and for natural conservation. The method is applied in a continental scale analysis covering the EU-27 territory, taking into account the delivery of eight regulating and maintenance ecosystem services and the requirements of large mammals’ populations.
The approach implies, first, the quantification and mapping of the natural capacity to deliver ecosystem services and, secondly, the identification of core habitats and wildlife corridors for biota. All this information is integrated and finally classified in a two-level green infrastructure network. The methodology is replicable and flexible—it can be tailored to the objectives and priorities of the practitioners and it can be used at different spatial scales for research, planning, or policy implementation.
The best performing areas for ecosystem services and/or natural habitat provision cover 23 percent of Europe and are classified as the core green infrastructure network. Another 16 percent of the study area with relatively good ecological performance is classified as the subsidiary green infrastructure network. There are large differences in the coverage of the green infrastructure network among countries, ranging from 73 percent of the territory in Estonia to 6 percent in Cyprus. A potential application of these results is the implementation of the EU Biodiversity Strategy, assuming that the core green infrastructure network might be crucial to maintain biodiversity and natural capital and, thus, should be conserved; while the subsidiary network could be restored to increase both the ecological and social resilience. This kind of green infrastructure analysis could also be included in the negotiations of the European Regional Development Funds or the Rural Development Programmes.
Related Case Studies
This report evaluates how closely the outcomes of first global stocktake align with Malaysia’s current NDCs and other climate policies for mitigation and adaptation.
This report presents a state-of-the-art contribution of information to decision-makers in Laos who have an interest in achieving sustainable growth consistent with the 2019 National Green Growth Strategy.
This is part two of the publication resulting from the Second Policy Forum on Natural Capital Accounting for Better Decision Making, which was co-hosted by the World Bank, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands (MFA), and United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) in 2017. It compiles seven case studies of natural capital accounting in policy-making: two each on Australia and the Pacific, as well as one each for New Zealand, Peru, and Uganda.
This report was produced in the context of the Knowledge Innovation Project on an Integrated system of Natural Capital and ecosystem services Accounting (KIP INCA), which aims to develop a set of experimental accounts at the EU level, following the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting - Experimental Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA-EEA). It assesses and accounts for two ecosystem services: outdoor recreation (on a daily basis) and crop pollination. Each service is assessed biophysically using the ESTIMAP toolbox, and then translated into monetary units using valuation methods consistent with the System of National Accounts.