General framework for ecosystem assessment for measures to adapt and mitigate the effects of climate change

Abstract

The effects of climate change are becoming more intense in the last decades. Moreover, according to many official reports, climate changes are directly affecting ecosystems and their services. To assess the impact of climate change on ecosystems, various methods are being used in order to identify changes and interactions with other pressures such as degradation or fragmentation. Adaptation and mitigation measures on the effects of climate change generally include land use changes and land use practices. In order to assess the effectiveness of adaptation and mitigation measures, the services provided by ecosystems and their status are monitored. The paper presents the general framework for evaluating adaptation and mitigation measures and it is based on research from reference works that generally recommend how to evaluate adaptation and mitigation measures. A local adaptation of the mitigation and adaptation framework is presented, by identifying methods for assessing state indicators and ecosystem services. Depending on the availability and accuracy of the data, are proposed methods structured on different levels of detail such as: statistical data, field measurements, modeling software. The application of the proposed methods was verified in a case study: Divici Pojejena wetland, for which detailed methods of assessing the state and services of ecosystems were used.