Institutions, Ecosystems, and Sustainability (Ecological Economics Series (International Society for Ecological Economics).)

✍ Scribed by Robert Costanza, Bobbi Low, Elinor Ostrom, James Wilson

• Publisher: CRC Press
• Year: 2000
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 286
• Edition: 1
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

In the latter part of the 20th century, humans are doing a particularly poor job of managing natural resources in a sustainable way over the long term. Institutions, Ecosystems, and Sustainability focuses on long-term, sustainable natural resource management practices at the local, national, and international levels. The authors suggest that a major cause of the "sustainability problem" - regulatory policies for large areas that often threaten the sustainability of both natural resources and previously effective governance problems - lie in "scale" problems. Large scale ecosystems are not simply larger versions of smaller systems, and micro-scale ecosystems are not merely microcosms of large scale systems. The driving forces and feedback mechanisms operate at different levels and exhibit distinct patterns of their own.Traditional management practices that do well at the local level cannot be expected to do equally well in handling activities organized at the continental or global scale. Even more importantly, when local systems are superseded by national or international management practices, local ecosystems frequently suffer.The challenge is to match ecosystems and governance systems in ways that maximize the compatibility of these systems. This book builds upon this fundamental principle. Particularly valuable is the use of simulation exercises to explore the consequences of social institutions and a discussion of the progress being made in developing a broad global data base to test hypothesis about the relationship between ecosystems and social institutions, and to investigate ways to repair the damage already caused by scale mismatches.Features

✦ Table of Contents

1566703891......Page 1
Preface......Page 6
About the Editors......Page 8
Contributors......Page 10
Acknowledgments......Page 12
Contents......Page 14
Section one: Introduction......Page 16
1 Ecosystems and human systems: a framework for exploring the linkages......Page 18
1.1 Frameworks, theories, and models......Page 19
1.2 Sustainability......Page 20
1.3 Hierarchy and scale problems......Page 22
1.4 Uncertainty, limited information, and misplaced certainty......Page 24
1.5 Conflicts of interest......Page 25
1.6 Sustainable ecosystems and human systems......Page 26
1.7 Human-ecosystem relationships: a framework......Page 28
1.7.1 Stocks......Page 29
1.7.2 Flows......Page 31
1.7.3 Controls......Page 32
1.7.4 Attributes......Page 33
1.7.5 Interactions......Page 34
1.8 Complex systems and dynamic models......Page 35
2 Dynamic systems modeling......Page 36
2.1 Purposes of models......Page 37
2.2.1 High-generality conceptual models......Page 38
2.2.3 High-realism impact analysis models......Page 39
2.3 Resolution and predictability......Page 40
2.4 Models for consensus building......Page 42
Section two: Models......Page 46
3 Human-ecosystems interactions: a basic dynamic integrated model......Page 48
3.1.1 Ecosystem sector......Page 50
3.1.2 Human-ecosystem interaction sector......Page 51
3.2 Rules and sustainability in a single-ecosystem model......Page 52
3.2.2 Growth and harvest rates with ecological perturbations......Page 53
3.2.3 Harvest rules and stochastic ecological perturbations......Page 54
3.3 Spatial heterogeneity......Page 55
3.3.2 Impact of cheating......Page 58
3.4 Discussion and conclusions......Page 60
4 Scale misperceptions and the spatial dynamics of a social–ecological system......Page 74
4.1 The model......Page 76
4.2 Testing hypotheses......Page 84
4.3 Conclusions......Page 88
5 Sustainability, equity, and efficiency of irrigation infrastructures......Page 92
5.1 Evaluative criteria......Page 94
5.2 Growth pattern: crop-water relationships......Page 96
5.3 Stage I model: the engineering planning stage......Page 97
5.3.2 Interaction......Page 99
5.4 An overview of major assumptions......Page 101
5.5 Stage II model: the operational stage......Page 102
5.6 Achieving optimal performance in an operational phase: the benchmark......Page 104
5.7.1 Water availability varies......Page 107
5.7.2 Depreciation higher......Page 108
5.7.3 Farmers' decision: how much to irrigate......Page 109
5.7.4 The threat of free riding......Page 110
5.8 Investment in irrigation institutions......Page 112
5.8.1 Sustainability and efficiency......Page 115
5.8.2 Equity, sustainability, and efficiency: the head-tail syndrome......Page 117
5.9 Conclusion......Page 121
5.10.1 Crop water relations......Page 124
5.11.1 Key assumptions used in Model I......Page 126
5.12.1 Key assumptions used in Model II......Page 127
Modification in Model II for head-tail syndrome......Page 132
List of variables......Page 133
6 An introduction to mathematical models in fisheries ecology......Page 134
6.2 Exponential growth......Page 135
6.3 Logistic growth......Page 136
6.4 Periodic and chaotic populations......Page 138
6.5 More general growth rates......Page 140
6.6 Simple harvesting......Page 141
6.6.1 Constant harvest rate......Page 142
6.6.2 Population-size-dependent harvest......Page 143
6.7.1 Constant price, sole owner......Page 144
6.7.2 Constant price, open access......Page 145
6.8.1 Perfect foresight: optimal control......Page 147
6.8.2 Myopic adaptation: open access......Page 148
6.8.3 Including delays......Page 149
6.8.4 Nanofish problem......Page 150
6.8.5 Myopic adaptation, sole owner......Page 151
6.9.1 Gause competing species model......Page 153
6.9.2 Constant total fishery carrying capacity......Page 155
6.10.1 Single population......Page 156
6.11 Multiple locations and multiple harvesters......Page 159
6.11.2 Open access......Page 161
6.12 Comparing solution strategies......Page 162
Section three: Models and empirical studies in the real world......Page 164
7 Simulation of the market for Maine lobster......Page 166
7.2 The management/regulatory problem......Page 167
7.4 Initial specification of the model......Page 168
7.5 Qualitative criteria for checking the performance of the model......Page 172
7.6 Level of aggregation......Page 174
7.7 Verifying the model structure......Page 175
7.8 Testing the model with out-of-sample data......Page 179
7.9 Structural changes - the market for frozen product......Page 180
7.10 Summary......Page 182
8.1 A three-step modeling process......Page 184
8.2.1 U.S. iron and steel production......Page 186
8.2.2 Louisiana coastal wetlands......Page 188
8.2.3 South African fynbos ecosystems......Page 191
8.2.4 Patuxent River watershed, Maryland......Page 192
8.3 Conclusions......Page 193
9 Case study: Patuxent River watershed, Maryland......Page 194
9.1 The Patuxent watershed: history and current setting......Page 197
9.2.1 Watershed-based studies......Page 200
9.2.2 The Patuxent Landscape Model......Page 201
9.2.3 Geographic and time-series data......Page 203
9.2.4 Unit model......Page 207
9.2.5 Spatial model......Page 214
9.2.6 Economic land use conversion model......Page 216
9.2.7 Linked ecological and economic models......Page 217
9.3.2 Model performance index......Page 218
9.3.3 Unit model calibration......Page 219
9.3.4 Spatial hydrology calibration......Page 223
9.4 Scenarios......Page 230
9.4.2 1990 vs. 1997 vs. buildout......Page 234
9.4.3 Best management practices......Page 238
9.4.5 Hypothetical scenarios......Page 239
9.4.6 Summary of scenario results......Page 240
9.4 Discussion......Page 243
9.4.1 Future work......Page 244
Section four: Conclusions......Page 246
10 Future directions......Page 248
10.1.1 Using our framework to understand diverse socio-ecological systems......Page 249
10.1.2 The analysis of possible worlds: future directions......Page 250
10.1.3 Mismatches between ecological conditions and decision making......Page 251
10.2.1 Low-transfer environments (all "L" cells)......Page 254
10.2.2 High-transfer environments (all "H" cells)......Page 256
10.3.2 Lisbon principle 2: scale-matching......Page 257
10.3.6 Lisbon principle 6: participation......Page 258
10.4 Last reflections......Page 259
References......Page 262
Index......Page 276
Back cover......Page 286