DEPARTMENT FOR
ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS News Release (461/07) issued by
The Government News Network on 11 December 2007
An action plan
which sets a new direction for government policy on the natural
environment has been published by Defra today.
The Ecosystems Approach Action Plan signals a move away from
separate natural environment policies on wildlife, water, soil,
and air quality towards a more joined-up approach taking account
of the natural environment as a whole.
Central to the action plan is the idea that living things and
their physical environment depend on each other - changes in one
part of our environment can have consequences, positive and
negative, on another.
This new approach also seeks to ensure that the full range of
benefits that a healthy natural environment provides -
'ecosystem services' - are fully recognised in policy
and decision-making in Defra and across Government. This
highlights the fact that the environment supports economic and
social development. To guide policy-makers and economists in
valuing these environmental benefits, Defra has produced an
Introductory Guide to Valuing Ecosystem Services.
Joan Ruddock, Minister for Climate Change, Biodiversity and Waste said:
"This new approach highlights the link between
environmental, social and economic wellbeing. Significant
progress has been made in tackling environmental pollution and
degradation. We have achieved improvements in air and water
quality, halted the decline in farmland birds and improved the
condition of many of our nationally important wildlife sites, but
there are still many pressures on the natural environment.
"This Action Plan sets out a new direction for protecting
and enhancing the natural environment. It is intended to help us
deliver a number of important benefits, including better-informed
decisions, more efficient use of resources, and a greater
awareness of the value of our natural environment."
The Action Plan is intended to deliver a number of important benefits:
* more effective delivery of our environmental outcomes
* better-informed decisions that take full account of
environmental impacts
* better prioritisation and more efficient use of our resources
* more effective communications and greater awareness of the
value of the natural environment and ecosystem services
* enable Defra and delivery partners to better respond to
changing pressures, including climate change
Notes for Editors
1. A copy of the 'Ecosystems Approach Action Plan' and
'Guide to Valuing Ecosystem Services' can be found at http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-countryside/natres/eco-actionp.htm
2. The Action Plan has been developed with key partners and
stakeholders including Natural England, the Environment Agency and
the Forestry Commission.
3. The Action Plan identifies 37 actions for Defra, its partners
and stakeholders. Priority areas for action include:
* Promoting joined-up working within Defra and the Defra network
to deliver environmental outcomes more effectively
* Identifying opportunities for mainstreaming an ecosystems approach
* Case studies which demonstrate the benefits of taking an ecosystems
approach
* Developing ways of valuing ecosystem services
* Developing a robust evidence base
4. An ecosystem is a natural unit of living things (animals
including humans; plants; and micro-organisms) and their physical
environment. The living and non-living elements function together
as an interdependent system - if one part is damaged it can have
an impact on the whole system.
5. Ecosystems can be terrestrial, marine, inland, coastal, rural
or urban and vary in scale. On the continental level examples
include rainforests, deserts and coral reefs, however closer to
home they can be different types of habitats (e.g. woodlands,
grassland, marshes, heathland, rivers, peat bogs, rocky shores) or
in the urban environment parks, gardens, rivers and streams. Many
ecosystems overlap and interact.
6. The ecosystems approach considers the environment as a whole -
bringing together land, water, air, soil and biodiversity,
recognising that their specific linkages provide a wide variety of
services and benefits that are not specific to any one part.
7. The Action Plan represents significant progress in the
government response to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, the
first global assessment of the natural environment, which warned
that degradation in ecosystems will be a significant barrier to
achievement of the Millennium Development goals. http://www.millenniumassessment.org
8. This new approach will help to deliver the new natural
environment Public Service Agreement which, for the first time,
sets out responsibilities across government for protecting and
enhancing the natural environment. The PSA aims 'To secure
a diverse, healthy and resilient natural environment, which
provides the basis for everyone's well-being, health and
prosperity now and in the future; and where the value of the
services provided by the natural environment are reflected in decision-making'
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