General informations
Description
Biodiversity provides a wide range of ecosystem services (provisioning, regulation and maintenance, cultural services) which are essential for the human well-being. Among the others, these services play an important role in regulating the climate, thus making a key contribution to climate change mitigation and adaptation. At the same time human activities are responsible for growing pressures and impacts on biodiversity and ecosystems; climate changes are expected to massively intensify major threats, further leading to:<ul><li>changes in species abundance and distribution, also as a consequence of modification and loss (e.g. due to sea level rise) of habitats;</li><li>changes in phenology which may lead to loss of synchrony between species;</li><li>changes in community composition;</li><li>changes in ecosystem processes, functions and services;</li></ul>Conserving biodiversity and maintaining the nature’s capacity to deliver goods and services is a priority at the global scale. Given the links above described, biodiversity and ecosystem service conservation cannot avoid addressing climate change effects. Indeed, this does not only provide the way to reduce climate change impacts on biodiversity, but also contributes to improve the adaptation capacity of the human society through ("https://climate-adapt.eea.europa.eu/eu-adaptation-policy/sector-policie…;) ecosystem-based approaches.Resilient ecosystems and the services they provide depend on complex, dynamic relationships between species and the environment, which are characterized by numerous non-linear processes. In addition, different influencing factors, such as the potential climate change impacts and the future evolution of socio-economic pressures, together with their uncertainties, must be taken into account when dealing with biodiversity and habitats management. For these reasons, it is advisable to choose a dynamic, adaptive management approach for the protection of biodiversity, ecosystems and the services they provide. The need to move from a static conservation perspective to an adaptive management approach is remarked also by the ("https://climate-adapt.eea.europa.eu/metadata/guidances/guidelines-on-cl…;) Guidelines on climate change and Natura 2000. The Natura 2000 network includes about 27,000 sites and covers a total surface of more than 1 million of km<sup>2</sup>. The adoption of an adaptive management of natural habitats is essential for these areas and the wider territory they are part of.Adaptive management of ecosystems and socio-ecological systems is an iterative process in which management actions are followed by targeted monitoring. It is an ongoing learning process, aiming to increase the adaptive capacity of impacted habitats and endangered species of plants and animals. In the context of climate change, adaptive management involves: (i) the analysis of knowledge of potential climate impacts and associated uncertainty, (ii) the design of actions to cope with such impacts, (iii) the monitoring of climate-sensitive species, habitat, ecosystem services and processes to evaluate management effectiveness, and (iv) the redesign and implementation of improved (or new) management actions. For an effective adaptive management of natural systems under climate change conditions, the following approaches and actions shall be taken in consideration:<ul><li>Understand that natural processes are dynamic and that species are expected to respond individually to climate change effects. Thus, habitat management needs to be flexible, adaptive and specific.</li><li>Respond to changing conservation priorities (due to climate change) and learn from experiences at local, regional, national and international levels by adapting conservation targets in the different conventions, conservation mechanisms and conservation plans.</li><li>Mainstream the principles of adaptive management of natural habitats within other management plans and land use strategies to enable or support the natural development of climate resilient ecosystems and promote the services they can provide also in the perspective of climate change adaptation.</li><li>Engage relevant stakeholders, to illustrate and discuss consequences of different management options for species and ecosystems, highlighting effects on ecosystem services as well. An early and transparent stakeholder engagement can increase the acceptance of actions part of adaptive management on natural habitats, as for example fisheries restriction, restoration of forests or changes in mountain pasture management (e.g. changes in mowing time).</li><li>Establish targeted monitoring of climate change impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services (e.g. assessing species abundance, migration processes, changes in phenology, etc.) and integrate results of monitoring into management processes in order to continually improve management decisions.</li><li>("https://climate-adapt.eea.europa.eu/help/share-your-info/general/improv…;) Improve the ecological networks through habitat restoration and creation considering simultaneously the current and future conservation areas as well as the potential future threats caused by climate change and other human induced pressures. As response to climate change, some species will move from their current location to others, thus the restoration or creation of protected areas, new habitats, and corridors between patches of habitats should be promoted. In this regard, the concept of green and blue infrastructure support the improvement of ecosystem connectivity, especially in urban and sub-urban areas.</li><li>Aid gene flow; promoting genetic variability may be vital to enhance species adaptive capacity.</li></ul>Considering the possibility of implementing species translocation (introduction, re-introduction or restocking) and/or ex-situ conservation. However, it shall be noted that species translocation needs to be based on an in depth evaluation of (long-term) risks, social acceptance and legal constraints. The establishment of accompanying monitoring programme is of particular importance for this measure.