Rangeland ecosystem services: shifting focus from supply to reconciling supply and demand

• Published in: Frontiers in ecology and the environment Vol. 13; no. 1; pp. 44 - 51
• Main Authors: Yahdjian, Laura, Sala, Osvaldo E, Havstad, Kris M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 01.02.2015
• Subjects: ecosystem services; ecosystems; humans; rangelands; society; stakeholders; supply balance; sustainable land management
• ISSN: 1540-9295; 1540-9309
• DOI: 10.1890/140156

Ecosystem services have been extensively studied in terms of their production, spatial extent, and valuation. Human reliance on ecosystem services is a function of the capacity of ecosystems to supply these services and the societal demand for these benefits. Considerably more attention has been placed on the supply of services compared with their demand. Sustainable land management depends on reconciling supply of and demand for ecosystem services among different stakeholders. The emphasis is now shifting from the supply to the attaining of a balance between supply and demand. Here we illustrate the demand for rangeland ecosystem services, describe current changes in societal demand, and present a specific provisioning service to exemplify the dynamic nature of reconciling ecosystem service supply and demand.