Supplementary material
Appendix 1 – Document version of the online questionnaire.
Ecosystem services in regional spatial planning
Welcome!
The main goal of this questionnaire is to investigate what are the factors that influence the integration of the concept of ecosystem services in regional spatial planning processes.
This questionnaire is targeted at presidents, vice-presidents, service directors, division chiefs and practitioners of all regional spatial planning authorities, which are or have been involved in regional spatial planning processes.
The results of this questionnaire will provide a valuable contribution for an ongoing PhD research in CENSE – Center for Environmental and Sustainability Research (Universidade Nova de Lisboa) and the Lab of Landscape Ecology (Humboldt University in Berlin), entitled “Assessing the effects of spatial plans on ecosystem services at regional scale”.
Please read each question carefully. The questionnaire takes about 15 minutes to respond and is divided in four distinct sections:
Section 1 – Framing
Section 2 – Ecosystem services
Section 3 – Ecosystem services and regional spatial planning
Section 4 – Additional information and follow-up of results
Responses to this questionnaire are anonymous and will be exclusively used for scientific research ends.
Thank you for your cooperation!
1 – Framing
1.1. In which regional spatial planning authority do you work?
ÿ CCDR Norte
ÿ CCDR Centro
ÿ CCDR Lisboa e Vale do Tejo
ÿ CCDR Alentejo
ÿ CCDR Algarve
ÿ Secretaria Regional do Ambiente e dos Recursos Naturais (Região Autónoma da Madeira)
ÿ Secretaria Regional do Ambiente e do Mar (Região Autónoma dos Açores)
1.2. In which regional spatial plan(s) are or were you involved?
ÿ PROT Norte
ÿ PROT Centro
ÿ PROT Oeste e Vale do Tejo
ÿ PROT Área Metropolitana de Lisboa
ÿ PROT Alentejo
ÿ PROT Algarve
ÿ POTRAM (R.A. Madeira)
ÿ PROT Açores
1.3. In which phase(s) of the regional spatial planning process do or did you work / follow?
ÿ Elaboration of terms of reference
ÿ Elaboration of characterization and diagnostic studies
ÿ Elaboration of plan proposal (e.g. definition of strategic goals and options, guiding standards, territorial model)
ÿ Following of the strategic environmental assessment process
ÿ Plan implementation after approval
ÿ Participation in follow-up, monitoring and evaluation body
ÿ Other(s). Which ones:
2 – Ecosystem services
In this section of the questionnaire you will be asked some questions about ecosystem services. It is important that you respond without purposely consulting information on ecosystem services. In case receiving this questionnaire has already triggered such consultation, please answer without using its results.
2.1. How well do you know the concept of “ecosystem services”?
ÿ Very well
ÿ Quite well
ÿ Fairly well
ÿ Slightly well
ÿ Not at all
2.2. If you did not respond “Not at all” to the previous question, how would you define what ecosystem services are?
Open response
2.3. How well do you know the following concepts?
Very well / Quite well / Fairly well / Slightly well / Not at allEnvironmental services
Natural capital
Ecosystem functions
Landscape functions
Green economy
2.4. How well do you know the following initiatives?:
Very well / Quite well / Fairly well / Slightly well / Not at allMillenium Ecosystem Assessment
Ecossistemas e Bem-Estar Humano
The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB)
3 – Ecosystem services and regional spatial planning
For this section of the questionnaire, the most popular definition of ecosystem services is presented, following the Millenium Ecosystem Assessment[1]:
Ecosystem services are the benefits people obtain from ecosystems. These include provisioning services such as food, water, timber, and fiber; regulating services that affect climate, floods, disease, wastes, and water quality; cultural services that provide recreational, aesthetic, and spiritual benefits; and supporting services such as soil formation, photosynthesis, and nutrient cycling.
3.1. How do you rate the degree of integration of the concept of ecosystem services in the regional spatial plan you are or were involved?
ÿ Very high
ÿ High
ÿ Fair
ÿ Low
ÿ Very low /Inexistent
ÿ Do not know / Do not answer
3.2. How do you rate the degree of integration of the concept of ecosystem services in the strategic environmental assessment of the above mentioned regional spatial plan?
ÿ Very high
ÿ High
ÿ Fair
ÿ Low
ÿ Very low /Inexistent
ÿ Do not know / Do not answer
3.3. How do you rate the contribution of each of the following factors, for the integration of the concept of ecosystem services in the above mentioned regional spatial plan?
Factors / Very positive / Positive / Null / Negative / Very negative / Do not know / Do not answer / Not applicableGeneralized knowledge, within the institution, of the concept of ecosystem services
Guidance from higher hierarchical bodies of the institution
Technical skills of the staff
Financial resources
Proposals from the external team or consultants in plan design
Proposals from the Mixed Coordination Commission
Guidelines from the national scale to the regional scale
Recommendations from the Strategic Environmental Assessment
Outcomes of public consultation
Availability of baseline data
Availability of studies (e.g. academic, technical reports)
Others. Which ones?
3.4. Do you consider important to integrate the concept of ecosystem services in regional spatial planning?
ÿ Very important
ÿ Quite important
ÿ Fairly important
ÿ Slightly important
ÿ Not at all important
ÿ Do not know / Do not answer
3.5. If you did not respond “Not at all important” or “Do not know / Do not answer” to the previous question, in which stages / components of the planning process do you consider important to integrate the concept of ecosystem services in regional spatial planning?
Very important / Quite important / Fairly important / Slightly important / Not at all important / Do not know / Do not answerElaboration of terms of reference
Definition of the vision and main strategic goals of the plan
Elaboration of characterization and diagnostic studies
Definition of strategic options of territorial basis of the plan
Definition of the guiding standards of the plan
Definition of the follow-up, monitoring and evaluation of the plan
Characterization of baseline situation, within the Strategic Environmental Assessment
Assessment of effects, within the Strategic Environmental Assessment
Recommendations of the Strategic Environmental Assessment
Monitoring program set out by the Strategic Environmental Assessment
Other(s). Which one(s)?
4 – Additional information and follow-up of results
4.1. In which division / department do you work?
Open response
4.2. What position do you hold?
Open response
4.3. What is your academic background?
Degree / Degree designation / Conclusion dateOpen response / Open response / Open response
Open response / Open response / Open response
Open response / Open response / Open response
Open response / Open response / Open response
4.4. How many years of professional experience do you have:
4.4.1. In total?
Open response
4.4.2. Working in regional spatial planning?
Open response
4.5. Additional observations / comments about the questionnaire (optional):
Open response
4.6. Do you wish to receive updates on the aggregated results of this questionnaire and other project results?
ÿ Yes
ÿ No
4.7. Do you wish to participate in eventual future initiatives of the project?
ÿ Yes
ÿ No
4.8. In case you responded “Yes” to questions 4.6. or 4.7. please provide an e-mail address
Open response
Thank you very much for your cooperation!
Would you like to know more about ecosystem services?
Click here to access an informative brochure by the European Commission
Appendix 2 – Additional results of the questionnaire.
Figure 3 – Responses to “In which phase(s) of the regional spatial planning process do or did you work / follow?”.
Figure 4 – Responses to “How well do you know the concept of “ecosystem services”?”. / Figure 5 – Content analysis of ES definitions given by planners (see section 3 of the article for a description of each variable).
Figure 6 – Responses to “How well do you know the following concepts?”. / Figure 7 – Responses to “How well do you know the following initiatives?”. MA – Millennium Ecosystem Assessment; MA (Portugal) – Portuguese sub-global assessment of MA; TEEB – The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity.
Figure 8 – How planners rate the degree of integration of the ES concept in the RSP they were involved with and corresponding SEA. / Figure 9 – Responses to “In which division / department do you work?”.
Figure 10 – Responses to “What position do you hold?”.
Table 1 – Responses to “What is your academic background?”.
Field of study / FrequencyGraduation
Geography and Regional Planning / 4
Architecture / 4
Public relations / 1
Biology / 1
Forestry Engineering / 1
Sociology and Planning / 1
Aquatic Environment Sciences / 1
Economy / 1
Engineering / 1
Post-graduation
Territorial management / 1
Business management / 1
Coastal management / 1
Regional Development / 1
Natural resource planning and management / 1
Public management / 1
Building rehabilitation / 1
Spatial and environmental planning / 1
Figure 11 – Responses to “What is your academic background?” (continued). / Figure 12 – Responses to “How many years of professional experience do you have: (i) in total; (ii) working regional spatial planning?”
Figure 13 – Responses to “Do you wish to receive updates on the aggregated results of this questionnaire and other project results?” and “Do you wish to participate in eventual future initiatives of the project?”.
5
[1] The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) was called for by the United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan in 2000. Initiated in 2001, the objective of the MA was to assess the consequences of ecosystem change for human well-being and the scientific basis for action needed to enhance the conservation and sustainable use of those systems and their contribution to human well-being. The MA has involved the work of more than 1,360 experts worldwide. Their findings provide a state-of-the-art scientific appraisal of the condition and trends in the world’s ecosystems and the services they provide (such as clean water, food, forest products, flood control, and natural resources) and the options to restore, conserve or enhance the sustainable use of ecosystems.