Tightly compacted cities can increase flooding risk for local residents, but sprawling, suburban development can lead to major losses in carbon stored by the land and agricultural production. These are the conclusions of a study which explored the effects of different urbanisation patterns on vital ecosystem services.

Researchers have reviewed early warning systems (EWS) for water hazards, such as flash flooding, landslides, river flooding and coastal flooding. They conclude that EWS continue to provide valuable information to allow emergency services and local communities prepare for water-related natural hazards. However, there are a number of challenges to address to gain the most benefit from EWS.

Cultural and institutional barriers, coupled with a lack of confidence about whether and how to use it, mean that the European Flood Awareness System (EFAS) has yet to be fully integrated into national flood warning systems, according to a recent study.

The reduction in summer storms in the western Mediterranean could be partly caused by land use change on coasts and mountain slopes, a new study reports. This lack of storms causes water vapour to build up above the region and may lead to heavy rainfall and flooding in central Europe.

The Large Scale Grazing Systems (LSGS) of the EU are governed by legislation at regional, national and European levels. New research investigates an LSGS in Spain and suggests that the area’s traditional mix of sheep and cereal farming needs improved, better co-ordinated regulatory support to survive.

Continental-scale early flood warning systems in Europe can provide significant monetary benefits by reducing flood damage and associated costs. Specifically, a new study found that the return from the European Flood Awareness System (EFAS) and available flood damage data has the potential to be as high as approximately 400 euros for every one euro invested.

Research into ecosystem services has flourished considerably since the publication of UNEP's Millennium Ecosystem Assessment in 2005, notably the ongoing Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) project, which is making a compelling case for promoting conservation by estimating the economic benefits of ecosystems to human welfare and the economic cost to society of ecosystem decline. This thematic issue provides a snapshot of the latest research in the most recent chapter of ecosystem services' story. It aims to help guide future conservation and sustainable development policies.

Biodiversity and ecosystems provide many critical life support functions and benefits for human wellbeing, security and economic growth, including food, clean water, recreational services and climate regulation. Despite its significant values, biodiversity worldwide is being lost, in some areas at a rapid rate. Given these losses, there is an urgent need for firstly, greater application of policies and incentives to promote the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and ecosystem services, and secondly, a more efficient use of available finance in existing biodiversity programmes. PES is a flexible, incentive-based mechanism that has potential to deliver in both of these areas. This Thematic Issue of Science for Environment Policy explores research which can help guide effective Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) schemes. Under PES agreements, a user or beneficiary of an ecosystem service provides payments to individuals or communities whose management decisions and practices influence the provision of ecosystem services.

Companies that adopt the environmental management system ISO 14000, designed to help reduce businesses’ environmental impacts, generally back this up with sincere investment in environmentally-friendly practices, research suggests. Researchers found that adoption of the ISO 14000 was not ‘greenwash’, but reflected a move towards more sustainable practices in both European and North American companies.

A set of indicators has been devised to assess the vulnerability of energy systems to climate change and suggest possible adaptation measures that could be taken in response.

Environmental impact studies which are conducted early on in the development of wave and tidal-power schemes allow the schemes' technology to be adapted to consider their impacts on marine ecosystems, according to a recent study which reports on a Swedish research wave park.

Tiny organisms called phytoplankton, which are crucial components of marine ecosystems, have been slowly disappearing over the last century, according to researchers. The decline is worrying because it may have profound effects on marine life, fisheries and carbon cycling. The study suggests the decline in phytoplankton could be linked to climate change.

Vegetated coastal ecosystems, such as mangroves, marshes and seagrasses, are an important carbon sink and their destruction increases greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. A new study estimates that 0.15-1.02 Pg (petagrams) of CO2 are being released annually from degradation of these valuable ecosystems, resulting in economic losses of US$6-42 billion (€4.68 to 32.81 billion) per year.

Some scientists have suggested that, when all potential inefficiencies are accounted for, local food distribution systems may be less sustainable than globalised systems. However, new research examining the behaviour of participants in local food networks in France suggests that they can be as energy efficient as globalised systems.

In a recent experiment in Norway, electrical appliance stores increased their sales of energy-efficient tumble driers when consumers were made aware of their cheaper lifetime operating costs by shop staff and a new product labelling system.

Climate change is a particular threat to island nations and effective adaptation is vital. A new analysis examines current adaptation measures in tropical Oceania and identifies guidelines for implementing resilient, ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA). Among its recommendations, local communities should be fully involved in planning adaptation measures.

Denmark aims to develop an energy system based only on renewable energy sources by 2050. Energy saving buildings are an essential part of this plan, according to new research, which investigates how excess heat production from net zero energy buildings (NZEBs) can benefit district heating systems and reduce reliance on combustible fuels.

Several barriers to upgrading existing social housing with innovative energy systems (IES) have been identified by a study of eight large-scale renovation projects in the Netherlands. These include a lack of trust between stakeholders, opposition from tenants on grounds of increased costs or delays, or poor experience with previous energy projects.

Agricultural intensification can significantly affect soil ecosystems and the services they provide, new research suggests. Examining soils across Europe, the study demonstrates that high intensity arable land uses have lower diversity and biomass of soil organisms than lower intensity arable or permanent grassland, affecting the carbon and nitrogen cycles in the environment.

Despite the substantial impacts warming and drought can have on soil bacteria and fungi, these are not sustained if external conditions re-stabilise, a new study suggests. Small-scale experiements in five countries across Europe to show that even if warming and droughts continued for over a decade, there were no lasting effects on key properties of soils, such as growth rates, when the soils were allowed to re-stabilise in a laboratory over seven days.

The world’s ocean ecosystems will suffer warming, increased acidity, low oxygen and reduced primary food supply as a result of rising CO2 and this is likely to have dramatic environmental and social impacts, a new study concludes. It predicts that the most vulnerable low-income countries, where 870 million people are dependent on marine ecosystems, would be affected if CO2 emissions are not tackled.

Most emissions of nitrous oxide (N2O) are linked to the use of nitrogen (N) fertiliser in agriculture, highlighting a need for agricultural management practices that reduce emissions while maintaining agronomic productivity. A new study has assessed the long-term impact of conventional tillage (CT — where soil is prepared for agriculture via mechanical agitation) and no-tillage (NT) systems on soil N2O emissions and crop productivity in rain-fed Mediterranean conditions. The findings show that, over a period of 18 years, mean yield-scaled (i.e. per unit grain yield) soil N2O emissions (YSNE) were 2.8 to 3.3 times lower under NT than CT. The researchers therefore recommend NT as a suitable strategy by which to balance agricultural productivity with lower soil N2O emissions in rain-fed Mediterranean agroecosystems.

Vastly increasing amounts of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) are being produced in Europe. Researchers have taken an in-depth look at how Spain has dealt with its electronic waste over recent years, and provide some guidance to other countries developing their own management practices.

Plastic debris is a serious environmental concern, as a physical pollutant as well as a chemical pollutant when it breaks down in the marine environment. A new study has now shown that plastics can also concentrate other pollutants, with significantly higher concentrations of toxic pollutants adhering to soft, rubbery plastics, rather than hard, glassy plastics.

A new method of processing food waste into fertiliser has been outlined in a recent study. The process uses a digester system with microorganisms to break down organic waste into fertiliser. The resultant fertiliser was used in a low-energy greenhouse to produce a range of food crops. The method is a potential way to utilise food waste and reduce the energy consumption of food production as part of a circular economy.

How best to integrate the ecosystem services concept into regional planning? A recent study provides a practical example for an area in Germany that is faced with an increased risk of soil erosion under climate change. Researchers used a decision-support system incorporating ecosystem services to show that measures to reduce soil losses could also support a number of other services.

The decline of urban populations and abandonment of buildings and land could provide an opportunity to promote ecosystem services, a new study suggests. The researchers examined the relationships between the use of abandoned land and ecosystem services, providing insight into the pros and cons of different urban planning policies.

Simple characteristics of plant species - such as height or leaf size - can be used to predict the ecosystem services provided by the green roofs they grow on, a new study suggests. The researchers suggest that their method could be used to screen the thousands of potential plant species in order to optimize green roof design.

Most modern societies depend on fossil fuels (oil, gas and coal) as sources of energy for development and growth. Switching to renewable energy sources, such as photovoltaic (PV) systems, is necessary for sustainable development in the future. A new study suggests that it is currently much more efficient to use fossil fuels to develop PV power plants than to combust the same amount of fossil fuels in conventional thermal power plants: thus the sooner PV systems are developed, the sooner society will reduce its reliance on fossil fuels.

The solar system could be thrown into disaster when the sun dies if the mysterious 'Planet Nine' exists, according to research from the University of Warwick.

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Ecosystems in the Catalan coastal system in Spain are worth €2,573 million per year to local citizens, according to new research. By placing a value on ecosystems the research has provided insight into integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) in the area.

Payments for ecosystem services (PES) are one of a number of policy options available to support the provision of ecosystem services. Based on the characteristics of ecosystem services, a recent study has developed a framework for deciding when payments are a suitable tool for delivering ecosystem services.

Some 'intangible' ecosystem services, such as the aesthetic and cultural value, as well as the recreational use of land, are particularly difficult to price. New research has proposed three explorative methods to value these more intangible services using landscape evaluation, statistics on level of recreational use and the price of real estate in the area.

A new tool allows European businesses to see how, through informed decision-making, conserving the ecosystems they depend on is not only environmentally responsible, but can also increase profits, reduce risk and boost the value of their product or services.

A new study has developed a system to assess the potential of ecosystems to supply ecosystem services in the EU-25 plus Switzerland and Norway. It is one of the first to use historical and projected data on land use change at a continental scale to estimate the provision of ecosystem services and to assess possible trade-offs between them.

There is increasing policy demand for the ‘scaling-up’ of ecosystem service valuations to a national or regional level, but available methods for doing this are limited. A new study has proposed a new scaling-up methodology and tested it by assessing the impact of climate change on European wetlands.

Valuations of water quality as an ecosystem service often fail to include related services like recreation or human health, and do not consider the effects of water quality changes due to management. Researchers have now developed a template for valuation that considers multiple services and links management actions to changes in water quality and ultimate economic value.

Researchers have developed a new approach for identifying regions that are most suitable for expanding ecosystem services. This could be used to help inform spatial planning decisions. By modelling ecosystem services’ opportunity costs in relation to agricultural revenue, the study provides a map of suitable areas of ecosystem service expansion in Eastern Europe.

Ecosystem services, such as coastal protection or water supply, form an integral part of ecosystem-based adaptation to climate change. However, preserving and restoring ecosystems and their services relies on the economic system that supports these efforts. Ecosystem services will not be best protected by the classic market framework, new research suggests.

The use of important ecosystem services, such as carbon storage or hunting, can be estimated through ecosystem accounting methods, a new study demonstrates. The researchers tested models that could help policymakers to understand the capacity of ecosystems to generate ecosystem services, and how these services are used over time.

A framework to value marine and coastal zone ecosystem services, which acknowledges but transcends monetary value, has been proposed by researchers. Using this approach, coastal managers can integrate the different values placed on ecosystem goods and services by various stakeholders to assess how these values affect planning decisions.

A process to help identify and value cultural ecosystem services has been developed by researchers and is demonstrated in a recent Black Sea case study. This highlighted the value of anchovies to Turkish identity: respondents to a survey said that they would be willing to pay 135 Turkish lira (€49) per year in order to fund environmental management that protects this culturally important species.