EnviCom WG 195

An Introduction to Applying Ecosystem Services for Waterborne Transport Infrastructure Projects.

authored by

Al Confrancesco, Elmar Fuchs, Sabine E. Apitz, Annelies Boerema, Arjen Boon, Gosse de Boer, Jochen Hack, Dave Hopper, Martin Krebs, Ine Moulaert , Katherine Chambers

Abstract

We manage the environment to obtain water, land, and food. Ecosystem services (ES) are defined as the benefits people obtain from ecosystems. The ES concept provides a framework for evaluating the costs and benefits of natural resource management. It can be used to evaluate, justify, or optimise decisions on how land- and waterscapes are managed, for a range of sectors, including the waterborne transport infrastructure (WTI) sector. However, although some promising project examples exist, PIANC (2016) concluded that there were a number of aspects of the ES concept which needed to be tailored to the WTI sector, and that practical guidance was required. To this end, EnviCom Working Group 195 – An Introduction to Applying Ecosystem Services for Waterborne Transport Infrastructure Projects was formed.

This report is a basic introduction into the understanding and the application of the ES concept in WTI projects, illustrating how the application of ES concepts may benefit the day-to-day work of WTI designers, planners, operators, and managers. The report is not a practical guidance on the application of ES in the WTI sector.

External Organisation(s)

US Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC)
German Federal Institute of Hydrology (BfG)
SEA Environmental Decisions, Ltd.
University of Antwerp (UAntwerpen)
Avans University of Applied Sciences
Royal Haskoning DHV Nederland B.V.
Technische Universität Darmstadt
New South Wales Government - Trade and Investment
Wasserstraßen- und Schifffahrtsamt Ems-Nordsee (WSA Ems-Nordsee)
Jan de Nul Group

Type

Other report

Publication date

12.04.2021

Publication status

Published

Sustainable Development Goals

SDG 15 - Life on Land