Payment for Ecosystems Services in Catalonia, Spain. A review of experience and potential applications

Spanish Journal of Rural Development

Endereço:
Escola Politécnica Superior de Lugo. Campus Universitario s/n 27002 Lugo. España
Lugo / ES
27002
Site: http://www.sjruraldevelopment.org
Telefone: (34) 982823278
ISSN: 2171 1216
Editor Chefe: Ignacio J. Díaz-Maroto Hidalgo
Início Publicação: 31/08/2009
Periodicidade: Trimestral
Área de Estudo: Multidisciplinar

Payment for Ecosystems Services in Catalonia, Spain. A review of experience and potential applications

Ano: 2011 | Volume: 2 | Número: Especial
Autores: Russi, D., Corbera, E., Puig-Ventosa, I., Cazorla-Clariso, X.
Autor Correspondente: Russi, D. | [email protected]

Palavras-chave: Payments for Ecosystem Services, biodiversity, land stewardship contracts, forest reserves, Catalonia

Resumos Cadastrados

Resumo Inglês:

Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) are an innovative environmental policy instrument that aims to reward natural resource managers in return for maintaining or improving the provision of ecosystem services. A wide variety of PES projects and programmes have been implemented in recent years, mostly in developing countries, and the possibility of extending the application of this instrument in Europe is increasingly considered. In this paper, we discuss the key definitional and operational principles of PES and present two initiatives developed in Catalonia that can be partially characterised as PES, namely private forest reserves and land stewardship agreements. They are financed by the public administration and environmental foundations, and allow the conservation of mature forests and valuable ecosystems. We also discuss the opportunities and challenges involved in developing new PES schemes focused on the prevention of forest fires through extensive cattle grazing and the development of small-scale watershed schemes involving private water bottling companies. We conclude that PES is a promising environmental policy instrument because it allows mobilising additional resources for environmental protection by involving private companies and foundations whilst raising environmental awareness.