Evaluation Techniques of the Loss of Marine Ecosystem Services Caused by Sea Reclamation Project Based on Three Methods

Based on the effect of marine environment caused by sea reclamation and Technical Directives for Marine Ecological Capital Assessment(GB/T 28058-2011), the indexes of the loss of coastal ecosystem services led by sea reclamation were built. The lost value of sea reclamation was calculated using three methods, namely, economic evaluation, emergy analysis and biodiversity experiential formula. The three methods were applied in the new sea reclamation in Taxia, Fuding City, Fujian Province, and the total ecosystem lost value was 6.720 million CNY/year, 8.092 million CNY/year, and 1.333 million CNY/year, respectively. Compared with other relevant researches, this paper analyzed feasibility and applicability of the three methods, so as to include project external cost into the project economic profi t and loss analysis in the evaluation of environmental infl uence, and to provide technical support for the sustainable economic development of coastal zones.

Ecosystem services of the Baltic Sea:An assessment and mapping perspective

The Baltic Sea is essential for marine ecosystem services(MES)provision and the region’s socio-economic dy-namics.It is considered one of the busiest and most polluted regional seas in Europe.In recent years a collective effort in enforcing European and regional environmental policies and directives(e.g.Water Framework Direc-tive 2000/60/EC,2000;Marine Strategy Framework Directive 2008/56/EC,2008;Maritime Spatial Planning Directive 2014/89/EU,2014)has been carried out.Ecosystem Services assessment and mapping is integrated into these directives.An increasing number of scientific studies,projects,and other works were developed in this context,generating a vast body of knowledge.Despite all efforts to improve the Baltic Sea’s environmental status,the targets established were not fulfilled.It is also important to analyze if current methodological approaches for assessing and mapping MES are robust enough to provide the needed results.This perspective paper analyses the status of assessment and mapping methodologies.The results showed that most of the studies were focused on qualitative assessments,with limited validation and reliability.Although the number of robust and quantitative works is increasing,more are needed.It is vital to carry out quantitative assessments to inform decision-makers better and standardize MES practices across the Baltic Sea.