Ecosystem services and ethics

Abstract

A major strength of the ecosystem services (ESS) concept is that it allows a succinct description of how humanwell-being depends on nature, showing that the neglect of such dependencies has negative consequences onhuman well-being and the economy. As ESS refer to human needs and interests, values are to be consideredwhen dealing with the concept in practice. As a result we argue that in using the concept there is a need to beclear about what different dimensions of value are involved, and be aware of ethical issues that might be associatedwith the concept. A systematic analysis of the ethical implications associated to the ESS concept is still lacking. Weaddress this deficiency by scrutinising value dimensions associated with the concept, and use this to explore themassociated ethical implications. We then highlight how improved transparency in the use of the ESS concept cancontribute to using its strengths without succumbing to possible drawbacks arising from ethical problems. Theseproblems concern the dangers that some uses of the concept have in obscuring certain types of value, and inmaskingunevenness in the distribution of costs and benefits that can arise in the management of ESS.© 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.