Water management is facing a growing number of challenges in many river basins worldwide, as the equal distribution of the available water resources is increasingly influenced by several, uncertain climatic and anthropic pressures. Within the current and projected water scarcity and drought scenario, such issue represents even a greater challenge in those basins that have been massively regulated in the XX century, as water managers are asked to find balanced policies to stay ahead with multiple, interdependent and ever-increasing water-related requirements. In this context, water conflict has become a recurring problem, with the freshwater ecosystems becoming the sole providers of unbearable human water needs and experiencing a severe alteration of their natural renewability and ecological integrity. In fact, the concern of sustaining the freshwater ecosystems has evolved throughout the years, coming to the fore since the 1990s under the concept of "ecosystem services", defined as the multiple benefits that people obtain from ecosystems. With a high number of challenges still ahead for implementing such paradigm in real-world water management practices, few investigations inspect the long-term evolution of highly regulated basins, being vulnerable freshwater systems characterized by a profusion of ecosystem services in a context of complex management policies and changing anthropic and climatic pressures. We focus our attention on the highly interconnected Garda-Mincio system (Northern Italy), further broadening the results to the regulated basins of the European perialpine region. First, to examine the modification of the freshwater systems from their pristine to their regulated conditions, we carried out an extensive collection of daily hydro-meteorological data by consulting public online sources as well as digitizing historical data contained in hand-written documents. The resulting database, which represents a valuable source of long-term daily hydro-meteorological data for the Garda-Mincio system, additionally underscored the complexity of constructing and maintaining a consistent and up-to-date database within an inter-regional context. The collected data were then adopted to investigate the climatic and anthropogenic drivers that have progressively influenced water availability, the provision of the changing water demands and the trade-offs with the existing water ecosystem services over the last two centuries. Statistical analyses were performed to outline the evolution of the annual and seasonal trends of Lake Garda water levels and outflows over the period 1888-2020, discussing the role of the Salionze Dam operational rules (completed in 1951) as well as the influence of the main water needs of the downstream Mincio River basin (i.e. hydropower production, irrigation and fluvial ecosystem sustenance). The role of hydro-meteorological factors was assessed by implementing a water balance model for Lake Garda, the largest lake in Italy, over the period 1928-2020, performing uncertainty and sensitivity analyses on specific water balance components (i.e. over-lake evaporation and basin evapotranspiration). We then focus our analyses on the management of the hydraulic infrastructures that regulate the first and highly water-stressed stretch of the Mincio River downstream Lake Garda, i.e. the Salionze Dam and the Pozzolo-Marenghello infrastructures, where both high and low flow conditions reveal the inability of the current operational rules to support the new variety of water abstractions while maintaining appropriate environmental flow conditions and flood protection. These analyses were carried out through in-situ measurements and numerical simulations, updating the aging rating curves of the existing hydraulic infrastructures. Drawing on the Garda-Mincio system, we inspected the evolution of the freshwater regimes within the European perialpine lakes framework, discussing the outcomes to describe which common factors drove management policies in the area. Eventually, we discuss our outcomes recommending future sustainable and adaptive water management policies in the area.

I takt med att befolkningen i Stockholmsregionen ökar så ökar även exploateringstrycket på grönytorna i regionen. Ekologisk kompensation har pekats ut som ett verktyg som kan användas för att minska förlusten av biologisk mångfald och ekosystemtjänster i samband med att grönområden exploateras. Syftet med detta arbete har varit att studera hur kommunerna i Stockholmsregionen arbetar med ekologisk kompensation samt vilka möjligheter det finns för att utföra kompensationsåtgärder på golfbanor. Utöver det så har även golfbanornas roll i ett eventuellt system med kompensationspool utforskats. Arbetet har främst bestått av en enkät- och intervjustudie som har kompletterats med en litteraturstudie. Sex stycken kommuner svarade på den utskickade enkäten och ytterligare fyra kommuner deltog i varsin intervju. Två stycken golfklubbar har även deltagit och besvarat ett antal frågor. Baserat på resultaten så drar författarna slutsatsen att golfbanor kan, under rätt förutsättningar, vara recipienter för en rad olika åtgärder för ekologisk kompensation. Exempel på åtgärder som utförts på golfbanor för att bland annat bidra till den biologiska mångfalden har identifierats under arbetet, som exempelvis anläggning av dammar för lekande groddjur. Inga säkra slutsatser kan dras om huruvida golfbanor kan delta i kompensationspooler då det ännu är oklart hur ett sådant system skulle se ut i Sverige. / The population growth in the Stockholm region presents challenges for planners, such as increased exploitation pressure on green spaces in the region. Ecological compensation has been identified as a measure to mitigate damages and minimize net loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services in urban areas. The purpose of this report has been to study to what extent municipalities in the Stockholm region incorporate ecological compensatory actions as well as to unravel any potential in utilizing golf courses as recipients when ecological compensations are to be done. Additionally, the possibilities for golf courses to enroll in compensation pools has been examined. Primary method for this report has been interviews and questionnaires, and has been complemented with a literature study. Six municipalities answered the questionnaire and four municipalities respectively two golf clubs participated in interviews. Based on the results it is concluded that golf courses could be the recipient of various projects of ecological compensation under certain conditions. Such compensatory actions are then dependent on local circumstances. Cases where golf courses are subjects for strategic ecological improvements are described, e.g. construction of ponds that support local amphibian fauna. No conclusions could be drawn regarding whether golf courses could participate in compensation pools due to legal uncertainties on how such a system could be established in Sweden.

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Die fortlaufenden Veränderungen von Landnutzung und Landschaftsstruktur in Europa und weltweit beeinflussen zunehmend die Fähigkeit der Landschaft, Ökosystemleistungen (Versorgungs-, Regulierungs- und kulturelle Leistungen) bereitzustellen, und führen zum Verlust historisch gewachsener Kulturlandschaften. Dabei haben Geschwindigkeit und Intensität dieser Veränderungsprozesse seit den 1960er Jahren deutlich zugenommen und die Verfügbarkeit und Qualität von Ökosystemleistungen signifikant verändert. In den in dieser Arbeit untersuchten Agrarräumen hat sich zum Beispiel das Erosionsrisiko (im Sinne eines Verlustes an natürlichem Erosionsschutz als Indikator für Regulierungsleistung) durch die Ausräumung der Landschaft und Bildung großflächiger Agrarflächen wesentlich erhöht und das natürliche Ertragspotential (Indikator für Versorgungsleistung) wurde durch zunehmende Bodendegradation gemindert. Das Risiko von Biodiversitätsabnahme (Indikator für kulturelle Leistung) ist durch Habitatverlust und zunehmender Homogenisierung der Standorte sowie durch veränderte Bewirtschaftungspraktiken (Technisierung und Chemisierung) stark angestiegen. Dabei kommt der Biodiversität eine Schlüsselrolle bei der Nahrungsmittelproduktion, bei Nährstoff- und Wasserkreisläufen oder dem Erosionsschutz sowie der Gesundheitsfürsorge (z. B. Erholung) zu. Andererseits konnten durch Meliorationsmaßnahmen und unter Einsatz neuer Bewirtschaftungspraktiken die Getreideerträge (Indikator für Versorgungsleistung) seit Beginn des 20. Jahrhunderts verdoppelt werden. Zielsetzung der vorliegenden Arbeit ist es, anhand von zwei ausgewählten Untersuchungsgebieten räumlich explizit und quantitativ Veränderungen in der Landnutzung und der Landschaftsstruktur und die Auswirkungen dieser Veränderungen auf ausgewählte bodenbezogene Ökosystemleistungen für den Zeitraum von 1750 bis 2018 zu analysieren. Damit soll ein Beitrag geleistet werden, historische und heutige Landnutzungsänderungen im Kontext gesellschaftspolitischer und ökonomischer Rahmenbedingungen zu verstehen und hinsichtlich ihrer Auswirkungen auf eine nachhaltige Landnutzung, auf die Erhaltung der Biodiversität sowie auf die Vermeidung von Landschafts- und Bodendegradation zu bewerten und entsprechende Handlungsempfehlungen ableiten zu können.:Zusammenfassung II Abstract IV Danksagung VI Inhaltsverzeichnis VII Abbildungs- und Tabellenverzeichnis VIII 1 Einführung 1 1.1 Einfluss von Landschaftsveränderungen auf Ökosystemleistungen 1 1.2 Rekonstruktion historischer Landschaftszustände seit 1750 als Ausgangspunkt einer historisch-ökologischen Landschaftsanalyse 5 1.3 Von der Landschaftsanalyse zur Bewertung von Ökosystemleistungen 15 2 Ergebnisse und Diskussion 18 2.1 Veränderung der Landschaftsstruktur und treibende Kräfte 18 2.2 Veränderung der Ökosystemleistungen 25 2.3 Methodische Herausforderungen bei historischen Analysen 33 3 Schlussfolgerung 35 Literatur 37 Anhang X A1: Changes in landscape structure and ecosystem services since 1850 analyzed using landscape metrics in two German municipalities. X A2: Land use change in an agricultural landscape causing degradation of soil based ecosystem services XXIV A3: Changes of landscape structure and soil production function since the 18th century in northwest Saxony XXXVI A4: Landschaftsdynamik und Produktionsfunktion im Kontext gesellschaftlicher und ökonomischer Veränderungen seit dem 18. Jahrhundert im Raum Taucha-Eilenburg L A5: Erklärung zur Autorenschaft LXXXVI A6: Bibliographische Informationen LXXXIX / Ongoing changes in land use and landscape structure in Europe and worldwide are increasingly affecting the ability of the landscape to provide ecosystem services (provisioning, regulation and cultural services). Furthermore, they lead to the loss of historically cultural landscapes. In the process, the speed and intensity of these change processes have increased markedly since the 1960s and significantly affecting the availability and quality of ecosystem services. In the agricultural areas studied in this paper, for example, the risk of erosion (indicator of regulating service) has increased substantially due to the clearing of the countryside and formation of large-scale agricultural areas, and the natural yield potential (indicators of provisioning service) has been reduced by increasing soil degradation. The risk of biodiversity (indicator of cultural service) decline has greatly increased due to habitat loss and increasing homogenisation of sites, and changes in farming practices (mechanisation and chemicalisation). In this context, biodiversity plays a key role in food production, nutrient and water cycles or erosion control, as well as health care (e.g. recreation). On the other hand, improvement measures and the use of new farming practices have doubled cereal yields (indicators of provisioning service) since the beginning of the 20th century. The objective of this paper is to spatially and quantitatively analyse changes in land use and landscape structure and the effects of these changes on selected soil-related ecosystem services for the period from 1750 to 2018, using two selected study areas. The aim is to contribute to understanding historical and present-day land use changes in the context of socio-political and economic framework conditions and to evaluate them with regard to their effects on sustainable land use, on the conservation of biodiversity, and on the prevention of landscape and soil degradation, and to be able to derive respective recommendations for action.:Zusammenfassung II Abstract IV Danksagung VI Inhaltsverzeichnis VII Abbildungs- und Tabellenverzeichnis VIII 1 Einführung 1 1.1 Einfluss von Landschaftsveränderungen auf Ökosystemleistungen 1 1.2 Rekonstruktion historischer Landschaftszustände seit 1750 als Ausgangspunkt einer historisch-ökologischen Landschaftsanalyse 5 1.3 Von der Landschaftsanalyse zur Bewertung von Ökosystemleistungen 15 2 Ergebnisse und Diskussion 18 2.1 Veränderung der Landschaftsstruktur und treibende Kräfte 18 2.2 Veränderung der Ökosystemleistungen 25 2.3 Methodische Herausforderungen bei historischen Analysen 33 3 Schlussfolgerung 35 Literatur 37 Anhang X A1: Changes in landscape structure and ecosystem services since 1850 analyzed using landscape metrics in two German municipalities. X A2: Land use change in an agricultural landscape causing degradation of soil based ecosystem services XXIV A3: Changes of landscape structure and soil production function since the 18th century in northwest Saxony XXXVI A4: Landschaftsdynamik und Produktionsfunktion im Kontext gesellschaftlicher und ökonomischer Veränderungen seit dem 18. Jahrhundert im Raum Taucha-Eilenburg L A5: Erklärung zur Autorenschaft LXXXVI A6: Bibliographische Informationen LXXXIX

<p>  </p> <p>The role of trust and risk tolerance has received renewed attention in the field of environmental conservation and management as scholars are increasingly interested in integrating various social, economic, political, cultural, and psychological understandings, concepts, and theories into environmental conservation and natural resource management. This dissertation has two foci. The first focus is on examining the role of trust in the development and maintenance of collaborative environmental conservation programs and factors influencing trust (Chapters 2 and 3) and the second focus is on examining drivers of risk tolerance in the context of human-wildlife conflict (Chapter 4). Specifically, Chapter 2 focuses on the development and maintenance of NGO-municipal collaborations in an incentive-based environmental conservation program in Bolivia, where an NGO coordinated with four municipal governments in the initiation and implementation of the Watershared program. With a particular focus on the role of trust, I examined how municipal and NGO staff interact to negotiate, fund, and develop Watershared, their motivations to initiate such partnerships, factors that influence the maintenance of such partnerships, and how staff within these organizations envision their future collaborations. I collected and analyzed data from 15 semi-structured interviews with municipal decision makers and conservation practitioners in the implementing NGO and data from participant observation of several Watershared events and NGO meetings, utilizing an integrated Institutional Analysis Design (IAD) framework. My results suggest that trust and interpersonal relationships built upon shared values and goals and the program history in the region were important factors shaping NGO-municipal collaborations. At the same time, my results show that the NGO and municipal partners had different visions of the future of the program, particularly who would be responsible for program funding and implementation, and different organizational capacities that may influence their abilities to maintain their collaborations over time. Together, these results demonstrate the importance of understanding local dynamics in developing and maintaining NGO-municipal collaborations, particularly the role of adaptability and interpersonal relationships and the challenges related to goal misalignments over time. In Chapter 3, I investigated trust of Watershared participants and non-participants towards various organizations and the collaborating partners of Watershared, particularly the forms of trust present and the factors influencing their trust. By collecting and analyzing data from 1,030 household surveys of Watershared participants and non-participants in 72 communities in the Department of Santa Cruz, Bolivia, my results suggest that factors influencing trust in NGOs vs municipal governments differed even as the type of trust held in both entities was the same. Specifically, that community embeddedness and program participation significantly influenced trust in NGOs while perceived fairness and equality within communities and experience of political instability influence program participants’ trust in local municipalities. Overall, these results demonstrate the utility of a multi-level trust lens in developing informed understandings of trust across organizations while highlighting opportunities for natural resource professionals to enhance trust across organizations. Finally, Chapter 4 of my dissertation moved away from research in Bolivia to examine risk tolerance and trust in a different context due to my strong interest in human-wildlife conflict. Specifically, this chapter focuses on determining the factors that drive tolerance in livestock producer-black vulture conflicts in the midwestern United States. By collecting and analyzing data from 222 surveys of livestock producer in Indiana and Kentucky, I examined the economic, psychological, and social drivers of tolerance of black vultures. The results show that economic cost (e.g., livestock loss) was not a significant factor influencing risk tolerance; rather, wildlife value orientations such as utilitarian or mutualist beliefs, previous experience with black vultures, and intangible costs (i.e., emotions associated with wildlife) were significant drivers of tolerance. This chapter highlights the importance of incorporating non-economic factors in both understanding tolerance and developing policies and programs that reduce human-wildlife conflict. Overall, my dissertation examined trust, collaboration, and risk tolerance in two distinct contexts. Together, my results demonstrate the importance of integrating understandings of trust and risk tolerance with other economic, social, and psychological theories in developing a holistic approach to promoting collaborative natural resource management to address increasingly complex environmental conservation challenges.</p> <p>  </p>

There is an abundance of ready-made tools for assessing the economic value of green infrastructure. Each with more or less unique design components and method approaches concerning quantifying and monetizing green infrastructure. Use of a single ready-made tool to support decisions and justify funding of inclusion of multifunctional green infrastructure in urban development may, due to different tools’ various designs and method approaches, risk excluding acknowledgement of relevant ecosystem services. This literature study embodies the logic of comparison by using content analysis method to explore possibilities of producing more comprehensive economic assessments of green infrastructure. This through contrasting content and design features of two such tools: Benefits Estimation Tool, and Green Infrastructure Valuation Toolkit. In addition, it analyses and discusses potential problems and opportunities that may arise when complementing tool A with methods or design features from tool B, and vice versa. Findings suggest that some few methods are similar enough not to constitute a complementary foundation between the tools, but that a combined use of some specific quantification and valuation methods may increase an assessments’ comprehensiveness. Findings also suggest that in combining the tools’ methods inaccuracy and uncertainty of an assessment are likely to increase. The study discusses tool-related problems regarding uncertainty, assessment of social benefits, and perception of value. It concludes that even though mutual complementarity is possible to achieve and in doing so more aspects of GI will be addressed, combining valuation tools in the pursuit of increased assessment comprehensiveness will likely generate problems in terms of assessment inaccuracy. The study may provide aid for developers of green infrastructure valuation tools and for practitioners conducting economic green infrastructure assessments or cost-benefit analyses. / Det finns en uppsjö färdigdesignade verktyg syftade till att bedöma det ekonomiska värdet av grön infrastruktur. Varje med mer eller mindre unika designkomponenter och metodsammansättningar gällande kvantifiering och värdeuppskattning av grön infrastruktur. Användandet av enbart ett sådant verktyg för att skapa beslutsgrund och rättfärdiga investering för multifunktionell grön infrastruktur i en stadsmiljö kan, på grund av olika verktygs varierande design och metodsammansättningar, riskera utesluta relevanta ekosystemtjänster. Den här litteraturstudien tar avstamp i en så kallad jämförande logik genom att använda den vetenskapliga metoden innehållsanalys för att undersöka möjligheterna att skapa mer omfattande ekonomisk bedömning av grön infrastruktur. Detta genom att kontrastera innehåll och design av två sådana verktyg: Benefits Esitmation Tool och Green Infrastructure Valuation Toolkit. Dessutom analyserar och diskuterar studien potentiella problem och möjligheter som kan uppstå när verktyg A kompletteras med metoder eller designkomponenter från verktyg B, eller vice versa. Undersökningsresultaten antyder att mellan de två verktygen är vissa metoder så lika att ingen komplimenterande grund kan utrönas, men att ett kombinerat användande av några specifika kvantifierings- och värdeuppskattningsmetoder kan öka omfattningen av en ekonomisk bedömning av grön infrastrukturs värde. Resultaten antyder också att genom att öka omfattningen av den sådan bedömning brister bedömningens precision och rimligen ökar även dess osäkerhet gällande uttryck av ekonomiskt värde. Studien diskuterar verktygsrelaterade problem gällande osäkerhet, bedömning av sociala fördelar, och förnimmelse av värde. Den drar slutsatsen att ömsesidig komplettering av verktygen och flertalet nya aspekter av grön infrastruktur till trots är det sannolikt att ett kompletterande av verktyg skapar problem gällande bedömningens precision. Studien kan bistå med hjälp till utvecklare av bedömningsverktyg för grön infrastruktur och för tjänstemän som genomför en ekonomisk bedömning eller lönsamhetsanalys av gröninfrastruktur.

Just like in the rest of the world, the urban population in Sweden is increasing each year, which means that cities are becoming increasingly densified and natural green areas are claimed and used for built environment. As a result, biodiversity in cities is often low and inhabitants risk facing losses of ecosystem services of various kinds. As a counterforce to these challenges linked to urbanization, urban agriculture has become an increasingly popular and growing phenomenon in Sweden in recent years. Researchers have begun to recognize the potential of urban agriculture to address the issues of urban green spaces, food security and social interaction between different cultures in cities.  Despite the growing interest in urban agriculture, there seems to be a lack of empirical studies examining the potential of urban agriculture to contribute ecosystem services to cities. The aim of this thesis is thus to investigate and map ecosystem services from urban agriculture systems and perform a resilience analysis to assess the opportunities and challenges associated with the management and development of ecosystem services from urban agriculture. To do this, a case study was performed on two different types of urban farms located in the Stockholm region. The study was delimited to look at regulating, provisioning, and cultural ecosystem services from urban agriculture for commercial use in Stockholm. Moreover, the study applied a qualitative and semi-quantitative research method where the collection of data material was based on a literature study, semi-structured qualitative interviews, and observations. A resilience analysis of the empirically collected data material was performed using seven principles as a framework. These principles have been presented in previous research and are shown to have important links to the management of ecosystem services.  The results of the study show that commercial urban agriculture in Stockholm has great potential to contribute with ecosystem services to the city as the two investigated cases contribute with regulating, provisioning, and cultural services of various kinds. The studied outdoor farm was shown to contribute with 26 different ecosystem services, while the studied indoor farm in greenhouse was shown to contribute with 9. Furthermore, the study indicates that the two studied cases are, at present, not independent of external systems as they, among other things, require some inputs to maintain respectively cultivation activities. From a resilience perspective, the study indicates that many activities that are currently carried out in the studied urban farms contribute to strengthening the resilience of the produced ecosystem services. Examples of this are that they actively work for knowledge development, participate in research projects, integrate systems and risk thinking and involve a varied range of actors in their businesses. However, the study also suggests that challenges to strengthen resilience exists and look different in the two different urban farms. For the outdoor farm, it is indicated that the biggest challenges are related to financial aspects, as this is an obstacle to launching more ideas related to agriculture activities and thus also an obstacle to increasing the diversity of ecosystem services. For the indoor farm in greenhouse, on the other hand, challenges related to infrastructure and the dependence on a stable electricity supply to strengthen resilience through diversity of ecosystem services are emphasized. Finally, it can be stated that cooperation between actors at different levels is an important factor for the development of urban agriculture and for the resilience of the ecosystem services produced. / Precis som i resten av världen ökar den urbana befolkningen i Sverige varje år, vilket innebär att städerna blir alltmer tätbebyggda och grönområden tas i anspråk för att ge plats åt bebyggd miljö. Till följd av detta är den biologiska mångfalden i städer oftast låg och den urbana människan riskerar att gå miste om ekosystemtjänster av olika slag. Som motkraft till dessa utmaningar kopplade till urbanisering har stadsodling kommit att bli ett alltmer populärt och växande fenomen i Sverige under de senaste åren. Forskare har börjat erkänna potentialen för stadsodling att ta itu med frågorna om urbana grönområden, livsmedelssäkerhet och social interaktion mellan olika kulturer i städerna.  Trots det ökande intresset för stadsodling tycks det finnas en brist på empiriska studier som undersöker stadsodlingens potential att bidra med ekosystemtjänster till städer. Syftet med detta examensarbete är således att undersöka och kartlägga ekosystemtjänster från stadsodlingssystem samt utföra en resiliensanalys för att bedöma de möjligheter och utmaningar som är förknippade med förvaltning och utveckling av ekosystemtjänster från stadsodling. För att göra detta utfördes en fallstudie på två olika typer av stadsodlingar belägna i Stockholmsregionen. Studien avgränsades till att undersöka reglerande, försörjande och kulturella ekosystemtjänster från stadsodling för kommersiellt bruk i Stockholm. Vidare tillämpade studien en kvalitativ och semi-kvantitativ forskningsmetod där insamling av datamaterial baserades på en litteraturstudie, semistrukturerade kvalitativa intervjuer och observationer. En resiliensanalys av det empiriskt insamlade datamaterialet utfördes genom att använda sju principer som ramverk. Dessa principer har presenterats i tidigare forskning och visats ha viktiga kopplingar till förvaltning av ekosystemtjänster.  Studiens resultat visar att kommersiell stadsodling i Stockholm har stor potential att bidra med ekosystemtjänster till staden då de båda undersökta fallen bidrar med reglerande, försörjande och kulturella tjänster av olika slag. Den studerade utomhusodlingen visades bidra med 26 olika ekosystemtjänster, medan den studerade inomhusodlingen i växthus visades bidra med 9 stycken. Vidare indikerar studien att de båda undersökta fallen i dagsläget ej kan vara oberoende av externa system då de bland annat kräver en del insatsmedel för att upprätthålla respektive odlingsverksamhet. Utifrån ett resiliensperspektiv indikerar studien att många aktiviteter som idag utförs i de undersökta stadsodlingarna bidrar till att stärka resiliensen av de producerade ekosystemtjänsterna. Exempel på detta är arbete för kunskapsutveckling, deltagande i forskningsprojekt, integrerade system- och risktänkanden samt involverande av flertalet aktörer. Däremot antyder studien även att utmaningar för att stärka resiliensen dess mer finns, och ser olika ut i de två olika odlingssystemen. För utomhusodlingen indikeras att de största utmaningarna är relaterade till finansiella aspekter, då detta är ett hinder för att sjösätta fler idéer relaterade till odlingsaktiviteter och därmed även ett hinder för att öka mångfalden av ekosystemtjänster. För inomhusodlingen i växthus, å andra sidan, framhävs utmaningar relaterade till infrastruktur och beroendet av stabil elförsörjning för att stärka resiliensen genom mångfald av ekosystemtjänster. Slutligen kan konstateras att samarbete mellan aktörer på olika nivåer är en viktig faktor för utvecklingen av stadsodling och för resiliens hos de producerade ekosystemtjänsterna.

This research investigated hydrologic connectivity, the intricate network of water pathways linking waterbodies, and its implications for biodiversity exchange in floodplains. Chapter 1 provides an exhaustive literature review encompassing factors influencing hydrologic connectivity, assessment approaches, scales, challenges, and management tools. Existing research often focuses on single scales and short-term periods, revealing a need for comprehensive multi-scale and extended temporal analyses. The absence of standardized definitions and methodologies in this field is also considered. Chapter 2 presents an innovative approach quantifying eight key connectivity metrics using remote sensing and GIS within the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley (LMAV). This adaptable method assesses connectivity between oxbow lakes and varying stream sizes, revealing spatial variability within the LMAV and enhancing scientific understanding of connectivity dynamics while ensuring portability. This research is crucial for effective ecosystem management and targeted conservation efforts, particularly regarding invasive species like the bigheaded carps (Hypophthalmichthys spp.).

Klimatförändringar, en ökande urbanisering samt en degraderad biologisk mångfald är utmaningar som gör att våra samhällen behöver anpassas och ställa om genom hållbara lösningar. Naturen kan hjälpa oss med flera av dessa utmaningar, tack vare det som kallas ekosystemtjänster (EST). EST är de nyttor, i form av tjänster och produkter, som naturen tillhandahåller människan vilka bidrar till vårt välmående och vår välfärd. Genom att lyfta fram ett EST-perspektiv i planering och beslutsfattande kan hållbara lösningar främjas för att möta framtidens behov, och för detta har miljöbedömningar identifierats som lämpliga verktyg. Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur väl ett EST-perspektiv i dagsläget integreras i miljöbedömningar, samt vilka utmaningar och förbättringsmöjligheter det finns för arbetet framgent. Detta har undersökts med konsultens roll i fokus. Metoden har involverat en litteraturstudie, en dokumentgranskning där miljöbedömningar för detaljplan har granskats, samt en mindre intervjustudie. Resultaten tyder på att konsulten har stor möjlighet att initiera ett EST-perspektiv i miljöbedömningar, och eventuellt även ett ansvar. Dock har ett antal utmaningar identifierats som gör att EST-perspektivet till stor del blir projekt- och kundberoende. En första utmaning är att termen ekosystemtjänster inte finns med i lagtext, vilket gör att den generella uppfattningen är att det inte finns tydligt ställda krav på att inkludera EST i miljöbedömningar. Detta gör i sin tur att ett EST-perspektivet sällan efterfrågas, varken av beställare eller Länsstyrelsen. På grund av detta läggs inte tillräckliga resurser på detta arbete. En andra utmaning är att det i dagsläget inte finns något standardiserat arbetssätt för att systematiskt arbeta med EST i miljöbedömningar. Arbetet framgent behöver därför fokusera på att ta fram ett sådant arbetssätt, så att EST kan integreras i miljöbedömningar på ett effektivt och träffsäkert sätt, och därigenom bidra till mervärden för miljöbedömningen genom ett holistiskt perspektiv. Denna studie har tagit fram ett antal rekommendationer för hur detta arbetssätt skulle kunna utformas. / Climate change, an increasing urbanization and a degraded biodiversity are challenges that force our cities to adapt to new conditions, by implementing sustainable solutions. Nature can help us handle these challenges by something called ecosystem services (ES). ES are benefits provided by the ecosystems - through services and products - which contribute to human well-being. By adopting an ES perspective in planning and decision-making we can promote sustainable solutions to meet the future needs. Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) have been identified as suitable tools for this. The aim of this study is to examine how well an ES perspective is integrated in environmental assessments today, and to identify challenges and improvements for this work. This has been examined with the role of the consultant in focus. The methods of the study include a literature review, a document analysis where SEAs for detailed development plans are reviewed, and an interview study. The results indicate that the consultant has a large possibility to initiate an ES perspective into the EIA and SEA processes, and possibly also a responsibility of doing so. Furthermore, it has been shown that ES can contribute to added value to the environmental assessments through a holistic perspective. However, several challenges have been identified which makes the ES perspective dependent on the conditions of the project as well as the client’s ambitions. A first challenge is that the term ‘ecosystem service’ is not included in legislation. Because of this ES are seldomly asked for, neither from the clients nor the county administrative board, which are two important actors for setting the scope of the assessment. Consequently, not enough resources are allocated to the work of integrating an ES perspective. Another challenge is that there is no standardized method of systematically implementing an ES perspective into the assessments. Thus, future work needs to focus on developing this methodology, in order to integrate ES into the assessments in an effective and accurate way. The study presents a set of recommendations on how to develop the future work.