1) Agriculture is the largest industry globally but poses risks to ecosystems if ecosystem services are not incorporated into decision making. 2) The document outlines methods to quantify and value ecosystem services provided by agricultural landscapes and peri-urban areas. 3) Case studies are presented showing how ecosystem services in agricultural fields and peri-urban areas can be inventoried, monetized, mapped with GIS, and incorporated into decision support systems to guide more sustainable land use planning and management.

1. Future Proofing Peri-urban Agriculture:
Methods to Quantify and Value Ecosystem Services
Dr Harpinder Sandhu
School of the Environment, Flinders University of South Australia
Harpinder.Sandhu@flinders.edu.au
Beyond the Edge: Australia's First Peri-Urban Conference, October 1, 2013

2. Key global issues
• Population increasing
• Food demand will double by 2050
• Loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services
• Climatic variability and change

3. Ecosystem Services
• Nature’s services –
Gretchen Daily, 1997
• Nature article by
Costanza et al. (1997)
US $ 33,000,000,000,000 p.a.
Gross global production:
US $ 18,000,000,000,000 p.a.

4. Trends of Natural Capital and Ecosystem Services

5. Agriculture poses risks to Ecosystems
1.89
1.66
Drivers of Ecosystem Change
236
1.5
135
10.1
0.74
87
0.5
6.55
20
3.75
3
1900
1950
2000
2020
2050

6. • 3-4% to the national GDP
• 60% of total area
• 65% of natural resources
• Need to incorporate ES into decision making
The largest industry on the planet
1.3 billion people, $4 trillion in global GDP (6 %)

7. How do we turn things around?

8. Ecosystem Services in Agricultural Landscapes
Sandhu et al. 2010 Env Sc Policy, Sandhu et al. 2012 Ecol. Econ., Sandhu et al. 2013

9. Relevance of ES to different agricultural industries
Low relevance
Medium relevance
High relevance
August 2010
Sandhu et al. 2012 Ecol. Econ.

10. Monetary value of Ecosystem Services
Inventory and characterize targeted goods and services
Market Values
(i.e., water markets)
Primary Economic
Studies
Value Transfer
Apply values to Site
Depict and interpret results

11. Canterbury and Surrounding Region

12. Ecosystem Service Value Calculation
Value of Ecosystem Services ($ ha-1 per year):
n
V ( ES i )   A( LUi )  V ( ES ki )
k 1
Where A(LUi) = Area of land use/cover type (i)
and V(ESki) = Annual value per unit area for ecosystem service type (k)
generated by land use/cover type (i).

13. Economic value from field experimentation
Table 1 - Summary of mean economic value of ecosystem services in organic and
conventional fields.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Ecosystem services
Biological control of Pests
Mineralization of plant nutrients
Soil formation
Food
Raw materials
Carbon accumulation
Nitrogen fixation
Soil fertility
Hydrological flow
Aesthetic
Pollination
Shelterbelts
Total economic value of ES
Non-market value of ES
Economic value in $ ha-1yr-1
Organic fields Conventional fields
50
0
260
142
6
5
3990
3220
22
38
22
20
40
43
68
66
107
54
21
21
62
64
880
200
4600
3680
1480
670
Sandhu et al. 2008 Ecological Economics

14. Example Results: GIS Mapping by Parcel

15. Putting it all together
Server
Project Website
and
Economic Analysis
User
ArcIMS®
System
Valuation
Database
Project Team
Sharepoint
Collaboration
Data Input

16. Web-based Map Server: Farm Parcels and Field
Research
http://ecovalue.uvm.edu/evp/modules/nz

17. GIS map showing total economic value of ES for arable
land in Canterbury based on conventional farming
Legend
Conventional agriculture
Non-market ES ($US)
0
1 - 100,000
100,001 - 200,000
200,001 - 400,000
400,001 - 600,000
600,001 - 800,000
800,001 - 1,000,000
1,000,001 - 2,000,000
2,000,001 - 3,000,000
3,000,001 - 4,200,000
Sandhu et al. 2008 Ecological Economics

18. Application of ES concept in
peri-urban areas
• To generate better social, environmental and economic
outcomes from peri-urban areas
(integrate land–use planning and NRM planning)
• To guide decision support system
(incorporate ES into planning and decision-making relating
to resource allocation in peri-urban development)

19. Decision making in peri-urban areas
Direct drivers of
ecosystem change

Natural

Biological

Land use
change
Decision Making
Policy Options
Management
Options
Indirect drivers of
ecosystem change

Economic

Social

Political

Cultural
Ecosystem Services




Provisioning services
(food, water, wine )
Regulating services
(clean air, water)
Cultural services
(recreation, aesthetics)
Supporting services
(nutrient cycling, soil
health, pollination)
Urban and Peri-Urban Areas
impacts
dependenc
e








Habitat
Personal safety
Social cohesion
Freedom of choice
Health
Education
Governance
Economic opportunities