Ecosystem Services
Introduced| English | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ecosystem services/ˈiːkəʊsɪstəm ˈsɜːvɪsɪz/ | the free benefits people get from nature, such as food, clean water, pollination and recreation |
| provisioning/prəˈvɪʒənɪŋ/ | provisioning |
| regulating/ˈreɡjʊleɪtɪŋ/ | regulating |
Nature's free gifts
- Nature does an enormous amount of work for us, for free.
- It grows our food, cleans our water, and controls our climate.
- These benefits are called ecosystem services.
- We rarely notice them — until they are gone.
Provisioning: products we harvest
- Ecosystem services 生态系统服务 are the benefits people get from nature.
- Provisioning 供给 services are the products we take from ecosystems.
- Food, timber, fresh water, and medicines are all provisioning services.
- These are the services we most obviously depend on.
The four kinds of ecosystem services
Ecosystem services are…
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Ecosystem services are the many free benefits — food, clean water, climate control — that nature provides.
Regulating: nature keeps things stable
- Regulating 调节 services are ways nature controls conditions for us.
- A wetland filters and purifies water.
- Bees and other insects pollinate our crops.
- Forests store carbon and help regulate the climate.
Which is a provisioning service?
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Provisioning services are products we harvest — food, wood, water, medicine.
Nature controlling floods, water quality, or climate is a ____ service.
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Regulating services are ways nature controls conditions — flood control, pollination, climate.
Cultural and supporting services
- Cultural services are the enjoyment and meaning we get from nature.
- Hiking, birdwatching, and beautiful landscapes are cultural services.
- Supporting services (like soil formation) make all the others possible.
- Together, these services keep both nature and people healthy.
Sort the ecosystem services
Sort each benefit nature gives us into its type of ecosystem service.
Ecosystem services would be very expensive to replace with technology.
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Nature provides these services for free; replacing them (like pollination) would cost enormous sums.
Select all true statements about ecosystem services.
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Ecosystem services are enormously valuable, not worthless. The other three are correct.
Ecosystem services are worth a fortune, even though nature gives them free. If bees stopped pollinating crops, farmers would have to pollinate by hand at staggering cost. Never treat these services as worthless just because no one sends a bill.
A wetland as a water treatment plant:
- A natural wetland soaks up floodwater and filters out pollutants.
- It cleans the water for free, as it flows through.
- Drain the wetland, and a city may have to build an expensive treatment plant to do the same job.
Ecosystem services are the benefits people get from nature. Provisioning services are harvested products (food, wood, water); regulating services control conditions (pollination, flood control, climate); cultural services provide enjoyment; and supporting services underpin them all. These free services are hugely valuable.