生态系统服务研究虽然起步相对较晚,但在最近的十多年里却取得了长足的发展。通过述评生态系统服务研究的进展与挑战,本文得出了以下几点结论:(1)生态系统服务在生物圈中无处不在,但学术界对它们的认识却不尽相同。为了使得生态系统服务这一概念能够在生态保育和人类福祉评估中发挥重要作用,需要根据研究目的和管理决策的要求对其作出清楚的界定,并且根据所研究的生态系统服务的相关特征对其进行恰当的分类。(2)生态系统服务是人类福祉的源泉,它们具有复杂性、空间尺度、公私物品特征和收益依赖性。认识生态系统服务的这些基本特征是测度、模拟、评价和管理生态系统服务的重要前提。(3)生态系统服务的需求、供给与使用是联系生态系统与人类福祉的不可或缺的重要环节,它们事关生态保育和社会公平等重大问题;为了制定科学的生态系统服务管理决策,需要对它们开展跨学科、跨部门、跨地域的综合研究。(4)生态系统服务具有包括效用价值和非效用价值在内的多重价值属性。在制定生态系统服务管理决策的过程中,各种价值会在一个共同、但并非总是公平的决策平台上相互交叉、补充与制衡。因此,生态系统服务的价值评估应当构建与使用多准则的综合价值评估体系。
Despite its recency as a research area, ecosystem service research has developed over the last decade into a signiifcant area of science. In this paper we review recent advances and challenges in ecosystem service research. Our review ifnds that (i) Ecosystem services are ubiquitous in biosphere. But they are treated differently among scientific communities. In order for the concept of ecosystem services to make a large and meaningful contribution to conservation and human wel-being, it needs to be clearly deifned and put into a framework so that it is both ift for a given research purpose and operational for management decisions. In addition, there is not one classiifcation scheme for al purposes. Ecosystem services should be classiifed based upon both the characteristics of ecosystem services of interest and a context for which the concept of ecosystem services is being mobilized. (i ) As sources of human wel-being, ecosystem services have several key ecological and economic characteristics such as complexity, spatial scales, public-private goods aspect and benefit dependence. Understanding these characteristics is a prerequisite for measuring, modeling, valuing and managing ecosystem services. (iii) Human demands for ecosystem services and the supply and use of them are three necessary linkages between ecosystems and human well-being. They are of great importance to such vital issues as ecological conservation and social equity. In most cases, integrated studies involving multi-disciplines, multi-sectors and multi-districts on those three linkages should be carried out to support sound ecosystem service management decisions. And (iv) ecosystem services have multiple value attributes including utilitarian values and non-utilitarian values. In the processes of making decisions concerning the use of ecosystem services, al kinds of values are usual y played out on a common and not always level playing ifeld. They intersect and interact in various ways, and may complement or counter-balance each oth