Ecosystem Functions and Services

Humans are intimately tied to their surrounding environment.  Ecosystems provide important goods and services that benefit humans including clean water, clean air, flood protection, recreation, and many others.  These services can be difficult to quantify and value from a socio-economic perspective.  Researchers at Leetown Science Center are working with social scientists and economists to evaluate methods to quantify ecosystem services in aquatic systems so that stakeholders can apply these concepts to water management.