Incentives for Ecosystem Services (IES) in the Himalayas: A ‘Cookbook’ for Emerging IES Practitioners in the Region

to water production in mountain regions. Very small temperature changes can lead to very large changes in water volume, both in the short term (such as extreme events) and across seasons (for example if precipitation that in past years has fallen as snow and been stored in the snowpack/glaciers, instead falls as rain and flows downstream immediately). Water quantity and quality

can change quickly as a result of what happens to it along the watershed. Thus, land-use practices (such as bulldozing for sand extraction, and consequent erosion along banks), land cover (deforestation or re-planting) and water-soil-forest interactions (such as trees along rivers and creeks that can cool water and provide fish habitat) are all of interest to ecosystem service analysis.

MOUNTAIN ECOSYSTEM GOODS AND SERVICES

Weather formation

Indicators of global changes

Recreation sport and tourism

Water storage

Natural pastures

Diversity of habitats, unique ora and fauna

Health services and medicinal plants

Spiritual and cultural materials and experiencies

Fishing and boating

CO 2

Hydropower potential

Genetic resources, wild fruit-nut forests

Traditional knowledge and products

Regulation of erosion and landslides, carbon storage, watershed protection

Mineral resources

Food products

Water provision

Figure 2. Mountains provide a number of ecosystem goods and services for both upstream communities and downstream users.

10

Incentives for Ecosystem Services (IES) in the Himalayas