The reduction of a short-term profit at local scales caused by regulations can result
in increasing long-term profit at larger spatial scales because self-regulated biodiversity and food webs may lead to higher output of ecosystem services, e.g. products
of fishing.
Keywords Mires · Bogs · Fens · Swamps · Running waters · Still waters · Threats
1 Introduction
Because of the outstanding meaning of water for health, food production, industry
and technical processes, traffic, transportation including elimination of waste the use
and quality of the water is a central theme of the earliest recorded forms of
environmental laws (Dellapenna and Gupta 2013). Past and present regulations are
related to the fair distribution, use and control of water quality. With respect to
benefits on the one hand and to the number of killed and harmed people on the other
water is by far the most important environmental factor (Wisner et al. 2004; Moss
2008; Ziegler and Groenfeld 2017).
During recent years, the discussion about carbon dioxide as greenhouse gas and
climate change increased. The role of the storage of carbon dioxide in wetlands,
especially in the peat of bogs and mires, is discussed in the last 20 years, together
with a warning to drain or convert more peatlands into farmland, as they do not only
emit carbon dioxide but also methane and nitrous oxide (e.g. Höper 2007; Kayranli
et al. 2010). Covering only 3% of the world’s terrestrial landscapes, wetlands store
more carbon than forests, which cover more than 30% of the surface (Dixon et al.
1994; Joosten et al. 2012). However, drained and damaged wetlands emit 6% of the
climate active gases, and this c. a quarter of all land emissions (Joosten et al. 2012).
In the last years the discussion on the economic aspects of biodiversity, including
all types of habitats and also the wetlands, found an interesting focus on ecosystem
services. The various aspects of ecological, environmental, societal and economic
value of wetlands worldwide are described by Maltby and Acreman (2011). These
include water retention also for drinking water use, for irrigation in dry areas and for
flood control, as well as providing habitats for different species, also species for
agricultural use, such as water buffalos. In Germany the discussion lead to calculation of financial value (Ökosystemdienstleistungen, Grunewald and Bastian 2012).
Due to the authors, the value of a square meter of bogs and similar habitats in Europe
ranges about 200 €.
However, despite the meaning of water for humans and despite an inherent
economic value of wetlands the relating habitats are impacted and destroyed like
other habitat types. How is this possible? One explanation for the obvious contradiction between the meaning of water for humans and the ignorance towards water
habitats might be the fact that the mean residence time of water in the atmosphere is
extremely short (9 days) so that the purity of rainwater almost everywhere on earth is
high. The marine environment covers 71% of the Earth’s surface while wetlands
312
M. Lindner and C. Hobohm
in increasing long-term profit at larger spatial scales because self-regulated biodiversity and food webs may lead to higher output of ecosystem services, e.g. products
of fishing.
Keywords Mires · Bogs · Fens · Swamps · Running waters · Still waters · Threats
1 Introduction
Because of the outstanding meaning of water for health, food production, industry
and technical processes, traffic, transportation including elimination of waste the use
and quality of the water is a central theme of the earliest recorded forms of
environmental laws (Dellapenna and Gupta 2013). Past and present regulations are
related to the fair distribution, use and control of water quality. With respect to
benefits on the one hand and to the number of killed and harmed people on the other
water is by far the most important environmental factor (Wisner et al. 2004; Moss
2008; Ziegler and Groenfeld 2017).
During recent years, the discussion about carbon dioxide as greenhouse gas and
climate change increased. The role of the storage of carbon dioxide in wetlands,
especially in the peat of bogs and mires, is discussed in the last 20 years, together
with a warning to drain or convert more peatlands into farmland, as they do not only
emit carbon dioxide but also methane and nitrous oxide (e.g. Höper 2007; Kayranli
et al. 2010). Covering only 3% of the world’s terrestrial landscapes, wetlands store
more carbon than forests, which cover more than 30% of the surface (Dixon et al.
1994; Joosten et al. 2012). However, drained and damaged wetlands emit 6% of the
climate active gases, and this c. a quarter of all land emissions (Joosten et al. 2012).
In the last years the discussion on the economic aspects of biodiversity, including
all types of habitats and also the wetlands, found an interesting focus on ecosystem
services. The various aspects of ecological, environmental, societal and economic
value of wetlands worldwide are described by Maltby and Acreman (2011). These
include water retention also for drinking water use, for irrigation in dry areas and for
flood control, as well as providing habitats for different species, also species for
agricultural use, such as water buffalos. In Germany the discussion lead to calculation of financial value (Ökosystemdienstleistungen, Grunewald and Bastian 2012).
Due to the authors, the value of a square meter of bogs and similar habitats in Europe
ranges about 200 €.
However, despite the meaning of water for humans and despite an inherent
economic value of wetlands the relating habitats are impacted and destroyed like
other habitat types. How is this possible? One explanation for the obvious contradiction between the meaning of water for humans and the ignorance towards water
habitats might be the fact that the mean residence time of water in the atmosphere is
extremely short (9 days) so that the purity of rainwater almost everywhere on earth is
high. The marine environment covers 71% of the Earth’s surface while wetlands
312
M. Lindner and C. Hobohm