P a g e |1 Title: Assessment of European Ecosystem pressures Concept, Data, and Methodology Type of Document: Final Report – task 18413_Ecosystem_pressure Prepared by: Dania Abdul Malak (UMA) Date: 24.07.2014 Project Manager: Markus Erhard Universidad de Malaga ETCSIA PTA - Technological Park of Andalusia c/ Marie Curie, 22 (Edificio Habitec) Campanillas 29590 - Malaga Spain Telephone: +34 952 02 05 48 Fax: +34 952 02 05 59 Contact: etc-sia@uma.es 1 P a g e |1 Document History Version Date Author (s) 0 24-07-2014 Dania Abdul Malak Remarks 1 P a g e |2 CONTENTS 1 Link to EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020 ..................................... 3 2 Goal of the task .............................................................................. 4 3 Assessment of Ecosystem pressures ......................................... 5 3.1 Indicators on pressures ........................................................................... 7 3.1.1 Habitat change...................................................................................................................... 8 3.1.1 Climate change ..................................................................................................................... 8 3.1.2 Overexploitation ................................................................................................................... 9 3.1.3 Invasive alien species .......................................................................................................... 9 3.1.4 Pollution and nutrient enrichment ...................................................................................... 9 3.2 General concept ..................................................................................... 22 4 First Results and Outlook ........................................................... 24 2 P a g e |3 1 LINK TO EU BIODIVERSITY STRATEGY TO 2020 In order to implement Target 2 Action 5 of the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020, the assessment of European ecosystems needs to draw on a wide range of adequate available data for a spatially explicit mapping as outlined in the MAES report (Maes J. et al., 2013). Following the DSIPR analytical framework, ETC-SIA identified specific key information to focus at for the working areas covered by EEA within the MAES WG as dashed in red in figure 1. ETC-SIA´s 2013 report Towards a PanEuropean Ecosystem Assessment Methodology (task 222_5_2) 1 and the MAES 2nd technical report2 addressed comprehensively the key drivers of change (e.g. land/sea use and management), and the major pressures (air pollution, eutrophication, climate change etc.) altering the states of ecosystems. These pressures, highlighted in figure 1, are the main focus of this task as they affect biodiversity and modify European ecosystems (Figure 1). Source: ETC-SIA 2014 Figure 1. illustrates the approach used by EEA in its progress on the DPSI (dashed) for assessing the biodiversity functionality and shows the main focus of this report on assessing pressures on ecosystem . (ETC-SIA 2014). 1 The methodology and datasets used for the elaboration of the Pan-European ecosystem map are available in ETC-SIA (2013) final report of task 222_5_1 on Ecosystem mapping. 2 http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/knowledge/ecosystem_assessment/pdf/2ndMAESWorkingPaper.pdf 3 P a g e |4 2 GOAL OF THE TASK The final delivery of this task on Ecosystem pressure is a series of reports and datasets on the main inout data use, methodologies, and indicators developed to assess the pressures on major European ecosystems. The series of reports includes on general report (Report 1), five ecosystems’ specific reports (reports 2 to 6 covering major ecosystem types) and 2 thematic reports (reports 7 and 8). More specifically, the reports cover the following: 1: The current report linking this task with the overall MAES work and providing an overview of the concepts used to assess pressures related to each ecosystems type, the type of data used, as well the as the methodology used to develop the indicators. This report aims at setting the main concepts, methodology and data used in the development of the indicators on ecosystem pressures. This report focuses of developing indicators on the main pressures affecting European ecosystems as defined by MAES. 2: Report 2 addresses the development of the major pressures on woodland and forest ecosystems in Europe, 3: Report 3 addresses the development of an indicator on the condition of agro-ecosystems in addition to indicators on the major pressures on agro-ecosystems in Europe, 4: Report 4 addresses the main datasets, approaches, and proposed approaches for the development of Indicators to assess major pressures on grasslands and scrublands ecosystems in Europe, 5: Report 5 suggests an approach to be used to assess the major pressures on wetland ecosystems in Europe and provides indicators on major pressures. 6: Report 6 develops the approach, data, and indicators to be used to assess the major pressures on coastal and marine ecosystems in Europe. 7. Report 7 focuses on the development of indicators on land use and land management related pressures in agricultural as well as in forest ecosystems. 8. Report 8 focuses on the development of indicators on nutrient enrichment and pollution related pressures on agricultural, grassland, heathland and forest ecosystems. The indicators produced and provided separately are a list of ecosystem specific indicators on the major pressures identified as most influencing in each Pan European ecosystem type. The indicators developed have different levels of reliability as they are data driven and depend on the reliability of input data used in their development. Each report provides a section on the main constraints of these indicators and outlook on proposed steps for their improvement or comprehensiveness. The indicators developed are the keystone to enable the assessment of impacts on the functional traits of biodiversity in Europe. 4 P a g e |5 3 ASSESSMENT OF ECOSYSTEM PRESSURES Ecosystems contain a multitude of living organisms that have adapted to fill a particular physical environment. Anything that causes a change in the physical characteristics of the environment has the potential to change the ecosystem. Any activity that removes or adds organisms can change the ecosystem. Things causing change to an ecosystem are called drivers. The drivers of change modify the health and structure of ecosystems changing the habitat and the species health, structures and composition (biodiversity) these ecosystems host decreasing their resilience. The Millennium assessment identified the most important five drivers of change that unequivocally influence ecosystem processes as being habitat change, climate change, invasive species, land use management, and pollution and nutrient enrichment (Nelson, G., 2005) causing the major pressures on ecosystems. As a result of this spatial and temporal dependence of drivers, the forces that appear to be most significant at a particular location and time may not be the most significant over larger (or smaller) regions or time scales. The pressures exerted impact ecosystem biodiversity differently. Some pressures are widespread such as air and water pollution that can travel thousands of kilometres and affect biodiversity far away from their sources such as acid rain, low air quality, and eutrophication. Other pressures such as overgrazing, agricultural intensification and timber extractions have more localised impacts such as the local partial or total loss of biodiversity. A variety of factors combine to put pressure on ecosystems and the biodiversity they host, and most of these factors can be traced by human activity. Effects of human activity seriously alter many basic ecosystem dynamics. These pressures are exerted differently on different ecosystem types. Under each driver, a series of datasets are identified to be included in the development of indicators on pressures. Table 1 provides a list of pressures caused by the major drivers of ecosystem change and affecting ecosystem types. In Europe where land take, land fragmentation and land use changes are direct pressures affecting all types of ecosystem whereas other pressures are specific to certain ecosystems such as the building of dams in rivers blocking water flow or deep sea resource exploitation in marine ecosystems. Drivers produce different types of pressures on ecosystems impacting the distribution and density of species in addition to the structure and functions of habitats. It is to note that the relations are not 1:1 and different drivers can exert similar pressures on ecosystems namely, habitat change and overexploitation lead to productivity loss in different ecosystem types. Under each driver of change, different pressures can exert negative effects on ecosystem functioning, to provide an example; habitat change affects the structure and health of biodiversity causing changes in ecosystem extension and in the health of the biodiversity. Major pressures caused by the main drivers of change are identified (table 1) and need to be measured in order to assess their effect on the ecosystem functional capacity. Based on a threshold setting, the level or degree of the identified pressures can be set as very low, low, medium, and high or very high. In order to measure these pressures, the development of indicators is essential. An indicator quantifies and simplifies phenomena and helps us understand complex realities by providing an indication about changes in a system. Ecosystem Major drivers of ecosystem change type Habitat changes Climate Change Exploitation Invasive species Pollution and Nutrient Enrichment 5 P a g e |6 Forest Land-use change: Ecosystem Degradation overexploitation of Fast-growing conversion to timber and non- alien species agriculture, wood products Nitrogen enrichment urbanisation Changes in forest Fires Felling Heavy metals Fragmentation due Extreme events, Recreation and Air pollution and to roads, land use drought, frost, tourism environmental changes - forest fires, floods, isolation storms pattern contamination Land take Eutrophication and acidification, ozone, Game and Critical levels of ozone overgrazing Grasslands Landscape Extreme events, Agricultural Expansion of fragmentation Fires intensification invasive alien Fertilizers species Land abandonment Overharvesting Nutrient run-off Land take High irrigated land Critical levels of ozone use habitat loss Heathland Land-use change and scrub Agro Overgrazing Heavy metals Extreme events, Lack of appropriate Phytophthora Fires site management disease Landscape Recreational & fragmentation urban disturbance Nitrogen enrichment Critical levels of ozone Land take Water drainage Land abandonment Heavy metals Land take ecosystem Extreme events, Loss in cropland Expansion of Fertilizers and Fires productivity invasive alien pesticide species Landscape Agriculture fragmentation intensification Critical levels of ozone Agricultural Nutrient enrichment intensification Wetland Land take Fragmentation Extreme events, Blocking and Introduction of drought, floods extraction of the predatory water inflow fishes Over-exploitation Non predatory of groundwater fish Eutrophication Pesticides resources 6 P a g e |7 Drainage for Overfishing agriculture Plant species as Acid rain Hydrocotyle ranunculoides and Azolla filiculoides Water extraction Heavy metals Critical levels of ozone Reed harvest Changes in Reed harvest also rainfall for biofuels, Plastic helofytenfilter Freshwater Modification of Extreme events, ecosystem watercourses Drought Water extraction Channeling Overfishing River regulation Fish farm Fish farm Pollution Acid rain regime Fragmentation Gravel extraction Ozone lexes (dams) Marine Coastal land take Sea water level ecosystem (tourism rise Offshore activities Expansion of Eutrophication invasive alien development) species Over-fishing Heavy metals Exploitation of oil Fertilizers and and gas pesticides Aquaculture Chemical pollution production from industries and shipping Table 1 The drivers of ecosystem change and the major pressures they exert on biodiversity (ETC-SIA, 2013). 3.1 INDICATORS ON PRESSURES This section provides information (tables) about the indicators selected to be used to pressures under each driver of change in each type of ecosystem. It addresses the input dataset needed to create the indicators and assesses the relevance of the indicator selected in evaluating the pressure. A range of relevance is assigned to the indicators based on their applicability to assess the pressure exerted on the ecosystem in question. HR stands for High Relevance and is assigned to indicators that are considered very relevant to be used in the ecosystem assessment such as the SEBI indicator 009 on exceedence of nutrient critical loads for eutrophication due to the deposition of nitrogen that is very relevant to provide the trends of changes in the level of nutrients within European ecosystems over time. MR stands for Medium Relevance and refers to indicators that can be used in the assessment but that the data used for the development of the indicator is not validated such as data indicators on pests and diseases 7 P a g e |8 generated from measured data in plots within Europe that are extrapolated to the whole area and their reliability to the whole space is questionable. LR stands for Low Relevance and is used whenever the indicators are already available and fully developed but that prior validation suggests that the indicator is not very reliable to be used for its purpose in the assessment, such as the case of the SEBI 010, indicator on invasive alien species in Europe. Under each type of driver of change, an overview on the datasets available at Pan-European scale capable to be used for the development of indicators to provide a precise indication (if datasets are of High relevance (HR)) or a proxy (if the datasets are of Medium or low relevance) on the pressures caused on different European ecosystem types is presented in the following sections. 3.1.1 Habitat change Habitat change is the pressure on a habitat causing its loss or degradation. It is considered the major cause of biodiversity loss and as the result of many direct and indirect pressures leading to total or partial destruction or removal of a habitat and its replacement by another habitat type. The main effects of habitat change decrease habitat quality by increasing soil erosion and soil degradation. Furthermore, habitat change modified the structure of the habitat as well as its health increasing the vulnerability of populations of animals and plants to local extinction due to hampered migration and dispersal due to destruction, fragmentation or degradation of habitat being the primary threat to the survival of wildlife in Europe. The main drivers of habitat degradation and loss are land take mainly due to urban expansion and urban sprawl. Habitat change affects different ecosystems in Europe as roughly half of its land area is farmed, most forests are exploited, and natural areas are increasingly fragmented by other land use, urbanization and infrastructural development (EEA, 2010). A good amount of relevant information to develop indicators on pressures resulting from habitat change is available supporting the development of ecosystem specific indicators on the change in extension of ecosystems and change in conservation status of species. Indicators to assess the level of fragmentation are also available and accessible including the landscape fragmentation map of EEA. A list of the main input data to be used and the most relevant indicators related to habitat change are synthesized in table 2 where a level of relevance of the indicator to be used in different types of ecosystem is assigned together with a temporal indication of the indicator. 3.1.1 Climate change Climate is an integrated part of nature and thus directly or indirectly affects all other parts of biodiversity. Climate change has caused advancement in the life cycles of many European animal groups, namely climatic warming and has pushed them to move northwards and uphill including frog and fish spawning, birds nesting, the arrival of migrant birds and butterflies and earlier spring phytoplankton blooms (EEA, 2012). Extreme situations resulting from climate change events such as floods, droughts, and fires change the health and characteristics of habitats and the species present. Several indicators are available from the various European institutes and projects, but the quality of indicators is heterogeneous. The ESPON Climate project has developed a series of climate change indicators. The indicator on the regional sensitivity to climate change provides information about the level of environmental (protected natural areas, soil organic carbon content, and the propensity of soil erosion and forest fires), economic (climate sensitive economic sectors namely forestry, agriculture, tourism, and energy production), physical (settlements, roads, railways, airports, harbors, refineries, and thermal power plants) and social sensitivity to climate change (location, age group distribution, density and size of urban areas) effects in Europe. As the ecosystem assessment addresses mainly impacts on biodiversity, the use of the indicators developed on the environmental sensitivity of European regions to climate change can be used in the assessments of terrestrial 8 P a g e |9 and firewater ecosystems. For certain ecosystems, some additional relevant information can be used to produce ecosystem specific indicator such as the EFFIS database of JRC that provides a historical datasets on forest fire density that can be accessed through prior petition. Table 3 provides a synthesis of the main input data to be used and the most relevant indicators related to climate change where a level of relevance of the indicator to be used in different types of ecosystem is assigned together with a temporal indication of the indicator. 3.1.2 Overexploitation Overexploitation is the result of unsustainable management practices and over-exploitation of natural resources. This occurs whenever harvesting exceeds reproduction of wild flora and fauna (i.e. it exceeds sustainable or optimum yields) and continues to be a major threat on biodiversity. Overexploitation of resources such as overgrazing of grasslands, overharvesting in forest ecosystems, and overfishing in freshwater and marine ecosystems are major pressures on ecosystems. Information available to assess the pressures on ecosystems resulting from unsustainable human management activities is heterogeneous; a good amount of information is available to address terrestrial ecosystems, specially agro-ecosystems and woodlands. The reliability of information available to assess overfishing in European Seas is scarce and not reliable as it is reported using different methods in different Seas. In order to assess the effects of overexploitation on biodiversity, some information is available to assess the effects of these activities on reducing biodiversity such as the abundance of species in ecosystems. Table 4 provides a synthesis of the main input data to be used and the most relevant indicators related to exploitation where a level of relevance of the indicator to be used in different types of ecosystem is assigned together with a temporal indication of the indicator. 3.1.3 Invasive alien species Invasive alien species replace habitats of native species leading to change in their distribution and health. Invasive alien species may drive local native species to extinction via competitive exclusion, niche displacement, or hybridisation with related native species. Therefore, alien invasions may result in extensive changes in the structure, composition and global distribution of the biota of sites of introduction, leading ultimately to the homogenisation of the fauna and flora and the loss of biodiversity. This pressure affects all the ecosystem types in Europe and the resulting pressures need to be included in the ecosystems assessment. At the European level, Chytrý, et al., 2009 developed a map representing the level of invasion of Alien plants in Europe. The level of potential invasion of plant species can be estimated from this map based on the knowledge from habitats (related to the CLC classes) that welcome alien species based on the level of neophytes in vegetation plots that correspond to individual CORINE land cover classes. This information is relevant to be used as a risk assessment map of invasions from alien plant species. Table 5 provides a synthesis of the major data and their relevance in providing indicators on pressure resulting from alien species invasion in different types of ecosystems. 3.1.4 Pollution and nutrient enrichment Pollution and nutrient enrichment occur when excessive harmful components are introduced into an ecosystem exceeding the capacity of ecosystems to maintain its natural balance particularly the effects of nutrient loading including excess nutrients, pesticides, microbes, industrial chemicals, metals and pharmaceutical products — end up in the soil, or in ground- and surface water (MEA, 2005, EEA 2010 b). Pollution and nutrient enrichment change the characteristics of soils changing the biodiversity (habitats and species) they contain causing biodiversity loss and ecosystem dysfunction and in altered plant and animal communities, loss of species, and other harmful ecosystem changes. SEBI 009 indicator on critical load exceedance for nitrogen is used to assess the trends in pressures from critical load exceedances of N as outcomes of major pressures such as habitat conversion, pollution, invasive species, climate change, overexploitation and underlying drivers. The critical load of nutrient is defined as 'the highest deposition of nitrogen as NOX 9 P a g e | 10 and/or NHY below which harmful effects in ecosystem structure and function do not occur according to present knowledge'. Table 6 provides a synthesis of the major data and their relevance in providing indicators on pressure resulting from pollution and nutrient enrichment in different types of ecosystems. 10 P a g e | 11 HABITAT CHANGE Pressure Woodlan Indicator Datasets Cropland Grassland d and forest Habitat quality according to Habitat Directive & Natura 2000 Conservation status of habitats of European conservation importance Heathland Wetland and shrub s Rivers and lakes Marin e Reference year Article 17, article 12 coverage trends, assessment conclusion (FV, U1,…) HR HR HR HR HR HR HR 2001-2006 HR HR HR HR HR HR HR 2001-2006 HR HR HR HR HR HR HR 2006 HR HR HR HR HR HR HR 2006 HD and BD reporting obligation. N2000 HR HR HR HR HR HR HR 2006 2012 LEAC tools HR HR HR HR HR HR ND 2006 N 2000level of hab. conservation, threat level (H,M,L) Article 17, article 12 population trends, Species quality acc. to Habitat Directive & Conservation status of species assessment conclusion (decreasing, stable, Natura 2000 of European conservation decreasing) importance N 2000level of sp. conservation, threat level (H,M,L) Ecosystem size Surface Pan-European ecosystem map (EEA, ETCSIA) Ecosystem quality (if data only available at level of ecosystem type) Ecological quality Pan-European ecosystem condition map status/surface (Ha) (EEA, ETC-SIA) Human activity related to habitat change pressure Changes in land use Degrees of impact of human managed areas vs. conservation Assessment of LU change Changes in land use 1990, 2000, Land use change CLC 1990, 2000, 2006, and upcoming 2012 MR MR MR MR MR MR ND 2006, 2012 (upcoming) 11 P a g e | 12 Changes in land use Phenological changes – change appreciation in specific 2001-2012, 16- HANTS NDVI 2000- 2012 HR HR HR HR ND ND ND Species threat and trends IUCN European assessments HR HR HR HR HR HR HR 2008 - 2011 Bird species threat and trends Birdlife international database HR HR HR HR HR HR HR 2008 - 2011 HR HR HR HR ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND MR MR ND ND HR ND ND ND ND HR ND ND ND ND ND ND 2000-2006 HR ND ND ND ND ND ND 1997-2011 ecosystems day period Changes in species distribution and number Changes in species distribution and number Level of fragmentation Landscape fragmentation map (EEA), Grid size; Grid density; Distance Forest fragmentation (JRC), to other grids Land accounts, land use change (in time), 2006, 2009, 2012 land take Physical characteristics WFD, ecological quality status / altered e.g. structure of rivers habitats could be used as proxy for (meandering, etc.) River Fragmentation pressures from river fragmentation, EEA major damsloss of accessibility to 1860, 1910, 1960, 2010 migratory species due to dams in major European river basins Fragmentation Forest fragmentation or forest Forest Landscape in Europe: Pattern, connectivity change Fragmentation and Connectivity Loss in soil quality 1990 – 2000 – 2006 Annual per capita and total national losses Loss of agriculture/ soil quality of cropland productivity potential in EU (related to management) countries expressed in wheat yield equivalents (2000 – 2006). Farming sustainability Organic farming IRENA 7 12 P a g e | 13 Pressure on biodiversity HNV farmland being an in farmland estimation of the distribution patterns on the basis of land IRENA 26 HR ND ND ND ND ND ND 2000 CSI14, Land take indicator HR ND ND ND ND ND ND 2006 HR HR HR HR ND ND ND ND MR MR ND ND ND ND 1950 - 2010 HR - cover and biodiversity data. Land take proportion Land abandonment/lack Land take Surface /NUTS 2 affected of management Risk of farmland abandonment (JRC)probability of occurrence, land use change (in time) Land cover formation /loss in time per km2 1990 -20002006-2012 CLC Land cover flows (1990-2000-20062012) Pests and diseases Area damaged flora/fauna EFI , forest inventories Ocean Acidification Changes in ocean ph. Nceas Table 2 lists the main pressures threatening ecosystems caused by habitat change and the measures used to assess their effects. 13 P a g e | 14 Climate change Pressure Indicator Datasets Regional sensitivity Level of degradation due to Environmental sensitivity to climate to CC effects climate change change - ESPON climate coastal storm Change in exposure to coastal storm surge events (ESPON CC) Floods Inundated areas due to coastal storms Woodla Heathla nd and nd and forest shrub HR HR HR HR HR ND ND ND ND MR MR MR 2071-2100 ND ND ND ND HR HR ND 2071-2100 HR HR HR HR ND ND ND 2000-2100 HR HR HR HR ND ND ND 2071-2100 ND ND ND ND ND ND HR 1981-2011 Croplan Grasslan d d HR Wetlan ds River Coast s and l lakes Mari Reference ne year ND 2010 Human induced floods (e.g. climate change, Change in exposure to river flooding, canalisation) Fires – extreme events Human induced fires (e.g. climate change, human Pot. impacts on forest fires (ESPON CC), related) Average forest fire density (n. fires/yr./1km2) Fires History data – Forest frequency (area affected by recurrent fires/time) Drought – extreme Induced droughts (e.g. events climate change, overexploitation) Increase in sea Increase in sea surface surface T temperature between EFFIS), Seasonal severity index (JRC-) SSR future projection (2071-2100) (JRC) Pot. Impacts of climate change on soil organic carbon content ESaTDOR – ESPON (NOAA-OI-SST) MR European Ecosystem Assessment Concept, Data, and Methodology 14 P a g e | 15 Sea level change Predicted sea level change (mm / year) EEA- hydrodynamics and Sea level rise ND ND Table 3 lists main drivers of change threatening ecosystems and the measures used to assess their effects. European Ecosystem Assessment Concept, Data, and Methodology 15 ND ND ND ND HR HR 2005 P a g e | 16 Human exploitation Pressure Indicator Datasets Excess harvesting of C accounts on timber extraction (ETC- animals or plants SIA), Proportion of total population harvested Croplan Grasslan d d Woodla Heathla nd and nd and forest shrub Wetlan ds River Coast s and al lakes Mari Reference ne year ND 2000-2010 ND 2006 HR 2008-2009 ND 2000-2010 ND 1990-2005 ND 2000-2006 ND 2000 ND 2000-2010 ND FAO fishstat, proportion of fish stocks outside safe biological limits (EEA), HR HR HR ND ND ND MR HR HR ND ND ND Utilization rate of forests (NFI) annual felling as % of annual increment (Over-/under)grazing Average grazed biomass / HNV farmland, HNV forest area time indicator ND Excess harvesting of marine fish Excess harvesting of timber MR Overfishing Overexploitation of timber and non-wood products Non-sustainable forest management Forest fragmentation Loss of core forest area Pan-European map on growing stock Regional fish stock assessments ND ND ND ND ND ND C accounts on timber extraction ND ND MR ND ND ND SEBI indicator 17 ND ND HR ND ND ND ND ND HR ND ND ND Status of marine fish stocks (CSI032) ND ND Change in forest connectivity Forest MSPA (25m) - JRC ND Growing stock and above-ground woody biomass for coniferous and ND ND ND HR ND ND ND broad leaved forests Pressure on agriculture, forest and grassland ND Carbon accounts on grazing livestock MR MR MR ND ND ND ecosystem European Ecosystem Assessment Concept, Data, and Methodology 16 P a g e | 17 Age differentiation (flora) Average age; age groups; max. age of forest Agricultural productivity / year ND Ancient forest data ND HR ND ND ND ND Carbon accounts – arable land MR ND ND ND ND ND ND ND Several years ND 2000-2010 ND IRENA 7 Area under organic Share of agricultural land under farming organic farming. HR ND ND ND ND ND ND Mandatory delivery from 2008 Agriculture intensification Monodominance High irrigated land usage HR ND ND ND ND ND HD – species diversity ND ND 1990 - 2006 HR 2000-2012 ND 2009 ND 2000-2012 ND 2006 HR MSFD - Biological diversity, Species abundance WFD – conservation status of species HR HR HR HR HR HR HR ND ND ND ND ND HR ND ND ND ND ND in fresh, coastal and transitional waters, Monodominance Biodiversity friendly farming practices Crop yield management of crops, fertilizer input Maximum yield category/ Average crop values [by crop type] in pixel time in tonnes/ km2 (ETC-SIA) Intensive crop production – land CAPRI Arable crop index diversity ND CAPRI irrigation share (JRC) Irrigation share ND ND Irrigation share (EEA) – CLC 212 Irrigation share – permanent HR ND ND ND ND ND HR ND ND ND ND ND HR HR HR HR ND ND irrigation structures (FAO) Loss in soil Vulnerability to loss in soil Natural capacity to support farming functionality functionality practices (JRC) Soil erosion Vulnerability to soil erosion Database of Hydraulic Properties of European Soils (HYPRES) European Ecosystem Assessment Concept, Data, and Methodology 17 ND ND ND ND Several years P a g e | 18 Soil hardening Loss in soil drainage capacity Aridification Soil hardness/compactness Soil water content Water flow efficiency -> drainage Distortion hydrological cycle Susceptibility of soil compaction in Europe (JRC) (low high) Soil data (ISRIC-WISE) soil drainage class WFD water flow capacity HR HR HR HR ND ND HR HR HR HR ND ND ND ND ND ND HR HR EEA major damsloss of accessibility, General status hydrological cycle ND ND ND ND ND 2006 ND 1700-2000 ND Several years HR 2004-2008 HR 2002-2009 HR 2006 HR 2008 ND WFD % of classified water bodies impacted by hydromorphological ND ND ND ND HR HR HR HR HR HR ND ND pressures FW, transitional, coastal waters Loss of soil organic Level of soil organic carbon Topsoil organic carbon content content content (OC_TOP) – (t/ha) Intensity of maritime Density of shipping lanes, freight transport by Direction, cruise traffic (NCEAS -Eurostat – GISCO) Intensity of marine use Catch intensity shipping ND ND ND ND ND ND ND Total catch in ICES and CFCM fishing regions in Europe Martitime impact on Population density population impacted by maritime activities: Marine aquaculture Marine aquaculture production production relative to ND ND Total catch in ICES and GFCM fishing regions of Europe Share of the population of the EU regions living in maritime service areas (Eurostat). ND ND ND ND ND ND HR ND ND ND ND ND ND ND Volume (tonnes) per km ND ND ND ND ND ND coastline length Table 4 lists the main pressures resulting from human exploitation and their threats on ecosystems and the measures used to assess their effects. European Ecosystem Assessment Concept, Data, and Methodology 18 P a g e | 19 Invasive species Pressure Indicator Invasive alien species Datasets Cropla Grassla nd nd Woodla Heathla nd and nd and forest shrub Wetlan ds Rivers Coas and tal lakes Marin Reference e year LR Number of invasive alien Invasive alien species in Europe (SEBI species/ country 010) LR LR LR LR LR LR Proportion of alien species; invasion of Alien plants in Europe pressure on native species (Chytrý, et al., 2009) Marine alien species <19002008 ND Alien species in Europe level of Invasive alien species LR MR MR MR MR ND ND ND 1970-2008 MR EEA is working currently developing 2 Invasive alien species (marine) MAS between 1960´s and 2012 about 2 indicators on marine alien species (MAS) trends in: 1) MAS (showing decadal cumulative ND ND ND ND ND ND HR 1960s 2012 n. of species per MSFD region 2) pathways of MAS (showing total n. of species per major pathway of primary introduction Presence of alien Several indicators on Number of alien species in terrestrial, species presence (number) of alien freshwater and marine ecosystems in species in terrestrial, Europe - European Alien Species freshwater and marine Information Network (EASIN) ecosystems (terrestrial, freshwater, marine) Number of invasive species Number of invasive species per grid by shipping (10km2) (NCEAS –ESaTDOR (ESPON)) Marine Invasive species HR HR HR HR HR HR HR HR 1000-2014 HR - MR ND ND ND ND ND ND Table 5 lists the main indicators available to assess the pressures caused by invasive species threatening ecosystems and the measures used to assess their effects. European Ecosystem Assessment Concept, Data, and Methodology 19 P a g e | 20 Pollution and nutrient enrichment Pressure Indicator Datasets Soil nutrient N, P accounts (ETC-SIA) : change in enrichment N/P deposition in ecosystems in time N,P content (kg/h/year Croplan Grasslan d d Woodla Heathla nd and nd and forest shrub Wetlan ds River Coast s and al lakes Mari Reference ne year ND 2000-2010 HR 2000-2010 HR HR HR HR HR ND ND ISRIC-WISE N content Nitrogen enrichment HR SEBI indicator 009 Pesticides content critical load exceedance for nitrogen HR HR HR HR HR HR Exceedance of pesticides in soils LR ND ND ND ND ND HAIR2010 - Harmonized Environmental Indicators HR depending ND for Pesticide Risk Heavy metals Heavy Metals (Changes in content soil metal content are model based) Ozone levels data Concentration of NM components in arable land and grassland (ETC-SIA) HR HR HR ND ND ND ND natural vegetation, soils, surface and ND 2000 – 2050 HR damage assessment to forests, crops, Critical levels of ozone on input HR HR HR HR HR HR HR HR HR HR ND ND HR HR HR HR HR HR ND groundwater Soil salinization Salinity Air pollution Soil salinization map of Europe (JRC) concentration Concentration of NO2/ Air Directive quality conc. NO2/ NH3/ SO2 NH3/ SO2 HR ND 2009 HR HR European Ecosystem Assessment Concept, Data, and Methodology 20 P a g e | 21 Hazardous Hazardous substance levels substances in biota, sediments, and sea HR EEA waterbase / WFD ND ND ND ND ND ND Total kg of contaminants per year ND ND ND ND ND ND Total kg of pesticides per year ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND HR HR HR 1998-2010 HR 2006 water Inorganic marine pollution Organic pollution Volume of contamination Volumae of organic contaminants Maritime accident density Marine pollution Emission of heavy metals Proxy to pollution in the Sea Oil spill pollution Number of accident density in the seas around the EU (EMSA) Location and quantity of the major oil spill incidents (EMSA /ITOPF) Emissions of mercury and Based on E-PRTR reporting of 2007 cadmium to water data - MS reporting (Art 7) 21 HR MR HR HR MR 2009 HR 2012 MR 2007 MR Table 6 lists the main drivers of change threatening ecosystems and the measures used to assess their effects. European Ecosystem Assessment Concept, Data, and Methodology HR 3.2 GENERAL CONCEPT A methodology to develop indicators on single pressures and on cumulative pressures accounting for their interactions is set in this section. Single indicators on ecosystem pressures can be developed based on quantitative (such as Volume of nutrients/km2) or qualitative (level of specific exploitation) input datasets. In order to transform data to indicators, certain criteria need to be identified on the effect of certain actions on ecosystems. These criteria will support defining ranges of data that can be used to estimate ranges of pressures and to identify classes or level of pressure on ecosystems. Once these ranges are defined, they are then transformed into a qualitative pressure gradient ranging for example from very low to very high pressure or from 1 to 5 (Figure 3). In line with this reasoning, and following the gap analysis that highlighted the main areas where indicators to support the development of the assessment were not available (Abdul Malak, et al., 2013), EEA is developing specific indicators to support the assessment of ecosystems whenever gaps exist. Furthermore, it is developing a meta-analysis to support the identification of knowledge base on the potential impacts of changes and pressures on the wellbeing of biodiversity. As ecosystems are normally subjected to different types of environmental threats and to human pressures and that individual pressures do not act independently, the interaction of pressures in an ecosystem needs to be considered. This interaction is complex and supported by little research so far. As this interaction is not necessarily the sum of individual pressures, certain decisions need to be taken, mainly by thematic experts and stakeholders on a certain weighing of each pressure included in the analysis. In order to do so, first single pressures need to be normalized in order to be comparable among each other’s. These single pressures included in a cumulative pressure assessment need then to be set and their level of influence in the cumulative pressures assessment needs to be set, ideally through expert consultation. Based on an agreed weighing of normalized single pressures, a final cumulative pressures indicator is calculated providing a qualitative ranging between very low to very high (or 15) as shown in figure 3. Document1 22/25 European Topic Centre Spatial Information and Analysis Layer C Layer 3 Layer B Input datasets Layer 2 Layer A (vol./area) Thresholds P1 Layer A , B, C R1,… Rx (vol./area) Layer III Layer II Layer 1 Layer I (% occupation) (events/area) Thresholds P2 Thresholds P3 Layer 1,2,3, Layer I,II,III R1,… Rx (%occupation) R1,… Rx (events/area) SP1 SP2 SP3 [1-5] [1-5] [1-5] 1 2 Single pressures (SP) 3 2 4 3 4 2 4 4 1 5 1 5 1 2 5 very low pressure Low pressure medium pressure high pressure very high pressure 1 Cumulative pressures (CP) || || Weight of SP (expert judgment) CP [1-5] 3 4 1 5 Figure 2. Approach used for the development of single pressure and cumulative pressure indicators based on input datasets to assess the major pressures affecting ecosystems under each driver of change Document1 23/25 European Topic Centre Spatial Information and Analysis 4 FIRST RESULTS AND OUTLOOK In terms of data availability and development of indicators to support Pan-European ecosystem assessment, this report synthesizes for each ecosystem type, the most suitable datasets identified and evaluated to be used in the development of pressure and threats indicators building on a previous ETC-SIA report. 1 Figure 2 provides a methodology to develop single pressures and threat indicators based on the input datasets selected. Based on single pressures indicators, figure 2 as well provides the way to assess cumulative pressures. This step needs to be developed together with thematic experts in order to identify the weight of each single pressure in the cumulative pressure indicator. It is to note that the series of reports develop on this approach to develop single pressure indicators, and some attempts towards cumulative pressure indicators. The outcomes of the cumulative pressures are to provide an overview of the applicability of the approach, but as no expert judgment agreement has been done, the results of the cumulative pressures presented in the reports need to be considered as a first attempt and future efforts need to be set to validate the results through expert consultations. 1 The methodology and datasets used for the elaboration of the Pan-European ecosystem map are available in ETC-SIA (2013) final report of task 222_5_1 on Ecosystem mapping. Document1 24/25