Enhancing services provision in urban greenspaces through tourism promotion: The case of the private patios in Central America

Abstract

The provision of environmental services from ecosystems is a growing area of research encouraged by the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment of the United Nations. Nevertheless, the experiences of services evaluation from the perspective of ecology are still scarce. In many traditional Central American towns, patios provide a considerable provision of services for human wellbeing, both for the important surface that they occupy and for the naturalness that they maintain. In the present work we studied the provision of environmental services from patios in León (Nicaragua). Forty patios of different characteristics (from colonial to indigenous roots) were selected by a stratified sampling design. The study shows the importance of goods supply (mostly fruits), microclimatic regulation,recreational values and support for wildlife (birds, iguanas and native useful plants). A progressive fragmentation of dwelling space is affecting all services provision, especially fruits and wildlife, with lesser incidence in microclimatic regulation and recreational values. The incorporation of tourism based on patios as a developing tool is discussed in the context of services evaluation. This new function, which has been incorporated in the management of some pPlot patios, can stimulate owners to preserve the original valuablecharacteristics of patios, and at the same time, consolidate the provision of other more strategic and basic services for the whole community.