**1. Introduction**

Human existence is dependent on nature [1]. The sustainable management of natural resources, based on a deep understanding of the complex mechanisms of the Earth's natural ecosystems, can make human survival possible [2]. These mechanisms become much more complicated when there is severe and constant anthropogenic impact, and therefore, an interdisciplinary approach has to be undertaken to improve the understanding, assessment, and maintenance of ecosystem services in urban-industrial areas.

environmental functioning (EvF), can provide that which is necessary for human existence and human well-being. The natural capital element alone is of value, but the most important is the proper interaction and relationships between the elements that provide the ecosystem services [13, 14]. To some extent, human activity is able to enrich these relationships, particularly in the highly populated urban and industrial areas. However, conversely, habitat degradation and the disturbance of resources associated with natural capital cause the decrease of

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As ecosystem services are defined as "the conditions and processes through which natural ecosystems, and the species that make them up, sustain and fulfill human life" [17], this concept is shaping human-environmental interactions [18] within the environmental and sustainable context and reveals an understanding of the concept of urban populations' dependence

The global increase in human population is leading to the increasing range of land-use activities, including the conversion of natural landscapes for human use or by changing the system of management practices on land that is already human-dominated. For example, large areas of the Earth's land surface have been transformed through intensive agriculture, natural resource excavation, expanding urbanization and industrialization, and so on. Often such human activities are changing the world's ecosystems and landscapes in drastic ways, and intensive research has revealed that the pressure of land use throughout the globe has influenced the environment, ranging from modification in the composition of the atmospheric gases to the extensive modification of the Earth's ecosystems [22]. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment revealed that 60% of ecosystem services have been put under risk because natural

The environmental processes and functions take place in various ecosystems regardless of the level of the naturalness of that particular ecosystem, including in urban and post-industrial ecosystems, and that in these less natural ecosystems, the type and strength of inter-relations, synergies, and processes that exist may vary widely [12]. As a result, there is an increasing awareness that is leading to the development of more effective management strategies, which consider the challenge of reducing the negative environmental impacts of increased land use and growing demand as well as maintaining the economic and social needs and benefits [24],

The issue of ecosystem services in urban-industrial areas has to be of particular consideration

**i.** the majority of the world's population lives in urban-industrial areas, and two-thirds of

**ii.** urban-industrial areas comprise a small part of the Earth's terrestrial habitats, but they are responsible for a significant role in global carbon emissions, energy, and resource

**iii.** the densely populated areas greatly contribute to environmental transformations, causing biodiversity loss, ecosystem degradation, and climatic change on an almost global

the world's population is expected to be living in urban areas by 2050 [25];

resources have been affected by exploitation and unsustainable use [23].

ecosystem services in some places [15, 16].

on elements of [19–21].

especially in urban-industrial areas.

for several reasons:

consumption [26];

scale [23, 27, 28].

In the twentieth century, it is argued that the Earth has entered the Anthropocene epoch [3]. It is in this epoch that human influence has become the dominant driver of changes to the global Earth systems [3]. The main characteristic of the Anthropocene epoch is that human influences are shifting the natural conditions beyond their limits, and beyond the natural conditions, humans need for their own existence [4]. Everard [5] states that we have to co-create a symbiotic future of natural forces (soil, water, air, and living organisms) with human forces (innovations, development, and human well-being) [6].

When discussing ecosystem services, it is important to consider natural capital as the key provider of natural assets from which ecosystem services are derived. Often the terminology regarding natural capital and ecosystem services is used interchangeably, and this complicates the understanding of this complex subject [7]. Natural capital can be considered as the stock, or natural assets, within an ecosystem or an area. The natural assets can include the biotic elements, such as the ecological communities and the soils (with living organisms and soil organic matter, etc.), and the abiotic elements, such as land, minerals, water, and air. The natural capital can then provide or generate ecosystem services through environmental production and processes over time [7].

The natural capital of any one area or ecosystem can vary according to different parameters, for example [8]:


Ecosystem services that are derived from natural capital through environmental processes and functions can also differ depending on the area or ecosystem involved [8]. It is the processes and functional relationships between natural capital and ecosystem services that directly or indirectly influence human life, which produces human benefit [9–12]. Therefore, the variety of the Earth's ecosystems, including the environmental properties (EvP) and the environmental functioning (EvF), can provide that which is necessary for human existence and human well-being. The natural capital element alone is of value, but the most important is the proper interaction and relationships between the elements that provide the ecosystem services [13, 14]. To some extent, human activity is able to enrich these relationships, particularly in the highly populated urban and industrial areas. However, conversely, habitat degradation and the disturbance of resources associated with natural capital cause the decrease of ecosystem services in some places [15, 16].

**1. Introduction**

170 Ecosystem Services and Global Ecology

Human existence is dependent on nature [1]. The sustainable management of natural resources, based on a deep understanding of the complex mechanisms of the Earth's natural ecosystems, can make human survival possible [2]. These mechanisms become much more complicated when there is severe and constant anthropogenic impact, and therefore, an interdisciplinary approach has to be undertaken to improve the understanding, assessment, and

In the twentieth century, it is argued that the Earth has entered the Anthropocene epoch [3]. It is in this epoch that human influence has become the dominant driver of changes to the global Earth systems [3]. The main characteristic of the Anthropocene epoch is that human influences are shifting the natural conditions beyond their limits, and beyond the natural conditions, humans need for their own existence [4]. Everard [5] states that we have to co-create a symbiotic future of natural forces (soil, water, air, and living organisms) with human forces

When discussing ecosystem services, it is important to consider natural capital as the key provider of natural assets from which ecosystem services are derived. Often the terminology regarding natural capital and ecosystem services is used interchangeably, and this complicates the understanding of this complex subject [7]. Natural capital can be considered as the stock, or natural assets, within an ecosystem or an area. The natural assets can include the biotic elements, such as the ecological communities and the soils (with living organisms and soil organic matter, etc.), and the abiotic elements, such as land, minerals, water, and air. The natural capital can then provide or generate ecosystem services through environmental pro-

The natural capital of any one area or ecosystem can vary according to different parameters,

• the physical and chemical composition of the environment and biological diversity of the

• the variety, in space and time, of the mosaic of suitable habitats to provide conditions for the development for species, communities, or functional groups aiding the fulfillment of

Ecosystem services that are derived from natural capital through environmental processes and functions can also differ depending on the area or ecosystem involved [8]. It is the processes and functional relationships between natural capital and ecosystem services that directly or indirectly influence human life, which produces human benefit [9–12]. Therefore, the variety of the Earth's ecosystems, including the environmental properties (EvP) and the

• the establishment of the combination of particular species and/or functional groups;

• the abiotic factors that interact with the biotic factors in the above groups.

maintenance of ecosystem services in urban-industrial areas.

(innovations, development, and human well-being) [6].

duction and processes over time [7].

• the amount of an area covered by vegetation;

their roles in the ecosystem (ecosystem service);

for example [8]:

habitats;

As ecosystem services are defined as "the conditions and processes through which natural ecosystems, and the species that make them up, sustain and fulfill human life" [17], this concept is shaping human-environmental interactions [18] within the environmental and sustainable context and reveals an understanding of the concept of urban populations' dependence on elements of [19–21].

The global increase in human population is leading to the increasing range of land-use activities, including the conversion of natural landscapes for human use or by changing the system of management practices on land that is already human-dominated. For example, large areas of the Earth's land surface have been transformed through intensive agriculture, natural resource excavation, expanding urbanization and industrialization, and so on. Often such human activities are changing the world's ecosystems and landscapes in drastic ways, and intensive research has revealed that the pressure of land use throughout the globe has influenced the environment, ranging from modification in the composition of the atmospheric gases to the extensive modification of the Earth's ecosystems [22]. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment revealed that 60% of ecosystem services have been put under risk because natural resources have been affected by exploitation and unsustainable use [23].

The environmental processes and functions take place in various ecosystems regardless of the level of the naturalness of that particular ecosystem, including in urban and post-industrial ecosystems, and that in these less natural ecosystems, the type and strength of inter-relations, synergies, and processes that exist may vary widely [12]. As a result, there is an increasing awareness that is leading to the development of more effective management strategies, which consider the challenge of reducing the negative environmental impacts of increased land use and growing demand as well as maintaining the economic and social needs and benefits [24], especially in urban-industrial areas.

The issue of ecosystem services in urban-industrial areas has to be of particular consideration for several reasons:


The application of the concept of ecosystem services to urban and industrial environments has generated an increasing amount of research during the last decade [29–31]. Review papers on ecosystem services in urban and post-industrial environments have considered some specific issues such as water quality and resources [32]. Other studies on "the ecology of cities" [33–35] have considered the environmental balance between natural capital and ecosystem services in urban-industrial areas. Such studies have tended to focus on sustainable development in cities or the links between the urban areas and the rural landscape, with the suggestion that the links between the urban areas and the surrounding rural areas influence each other [35]. Often urban ecosystems include both the "gray" built-up infrastructure and the "green-blue" ecological infrastructure (parks, urban forests and woodlands, cemeteries, gardens, urban allotments, green roofs, wetlands, streams, rivers, lakes, and ponds) [36]. However, it is still a matter of discussion as to what extent peer-reviewed literature is able to currently provide the comprehensive and integrated research, which is capable of covering the diversity and interdisciplinarity of research approaches needed for a fuller understanding of urban-industrial ecosystem services [37].

It can be argued that in the urban-industrial environments, habitats and ecosystems have developed, which would not normally develop outside the urban-industrial areas or would become extinct elsewhere, including ecosystems developing initially on nutrient and mineral poor habitats. It is important to realize that apart from ecosystem services providing direct impact on human health and security, such as urban cooling, noise reduction, air purification, and runoff mitigation, there are also some services that are more difficult to assess. Nevertheless, these are important urban-industrial ecosystems at the initial stage of succession, with their unique microorganism-vascular plant relationships, and provide an important contribution into the overall ecological diversity.

According to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA) [23], "Ecosystem services are indispensable to the well-being of all people in all places." Ecosystem services can only be provided by ecosystems, which are functioning effectively. However, there is a good evidence base that outlines the importance of biodiversity to ecosystem functioning, but less research is focused on the direct relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem services. Binner et al. [7] suggest, with reference to urban areas, that there is an evidence gap in the understanding of biodiversity in urban woodlands and the benefits that are accrued. Many of the world ecosystems have been damaged or disturbed by human activity, and those changed ecosystems need to be restored and/or managed accordingly [38, 39]. Knowledge regarding those ecosystems modified, transformed, or created by human influence is very limited. It is important that these changed ecosystems are restored and/or managed, but because of the lack of knowledge about the details of their functioning (**Figure 1**), the restoration practice is very complex and often unsuccessful [40, 41].

One of the relatively well-understood ecosystem principles, which has been substantiated in many studies, is that biodiversity, and in particular functional diversity, strengthens ecosystem stability, ecosystem services, and productivity [42, 43]. In this respect, the worldwide decline in biodiversity, caused mostly by human influence and anthropogenic factors, has to be of global concern [44, 45]. Decline in biodiversity is a global issue that has to be managed

**Figure 1.** The basic inter-connected relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functions, including the diversity (species richness, relative abundances of species, genetic diversity, and diversity of functional trait variability of vegetation types), impact, and interaction (species ecological role, species impact on ecosystem function, species impact on ecosystem services, variability of ecosystems, variation at landscape scales, abiotic or non-living diversity, and

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It has also been reported that the mechanisms that regulate biodiversity are complex and incorporate many potential interactions and feedback loops, which may even accelerate the loss of biodiversity, and should not be disregarded. One example of an important unsolved feedback relationship concerns whether producer diversity is related to the presence of consumers

by local practice and within the local context [46, 47].

topography).

Even though there has been a sustained period of study, many of the mechanisms governing ecosystem functioning are still not fully understood. The general rule is that the relationships between the ecosystem elements are complex, and therefore, models have to be simplified, transformed, and translated into more accessible and informative formats for stakeholders and decision makers to incorporate the ecosystem principles into management practice. Improving management practice may facilitate the enhancement of ecosystem services for human well-being in urban-industrial sites.

Urban and Industrial Habitats: How Important They Are for Ecosystem Services http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.75723 173

The application of the concept of ecosystem services to urban and industrial environments has generated an increasing amount of research during the last decade [29–31]. Review papers on ecosystem services in urban and post-industrial environments have considered some specific issues such as water quality and resources [32]. Other studies on "the ecology of cities" [33–35] have considered the environmental balance between natural capital and ecosystem services in urban-industrial areas. Such studies have tended to focus on sustainable development in cities or the links between the urban areas and the rural landscape, with the suggestion that the links between the urban areas and the surrounding rural areas influence each other [35]. Often urban ecosystems include both the "gray" built-up infrastructure and the "green-blue" ecological infrastructure (parks, urban forests and woodlands, cemeteries, gardens, urban allotments, green roofs, wetlands, streams, rivers, lakes, and ponds) [36]. However, it is still a matter of discussion as to what extent peer-reviewed literature is able to currently provide the comprehensive and integrated research, which is capable of covering the diversity and interdisciplinarity of research approaches needed for a fuller understanding

It can be argued that in the urban-industrial environments, habitats and ecosystems have developed, which would not normally develop outside the urban-industrial areas or would become extinct elsewhere, including ecosystems developing initially on nutrient and mineral poor habitats. It is important to realize that apart from ecosystem services providing direct impact on human health and security, such as urban cooling, noise reduction, air purification, and runoff mitigation, there are also some services that are more difficult to assess. Nevertheless, these are important urban-industrial ecosystems at the initial stage of succession, with their unique microorganism-vascular plant relationships, and provide an impor-

According to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA) [23], "Ecosystem services are indispensable to the well-being of all people in all places." Ecosystem services can only be provided by ecosystems, which are functioning effectively. However, there is a good evidence base that outlines the importance of biodiversity to ecosystem functioning, but less research is focused on the direct relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem services. Binner et al. [7] suggest, with reference to urban areas, that there is an evidence gap in the understanding of biodiversity in urban woodlands and the benefits that are accrued. Many of the world ecosystems have been damaged or disturbed by human activity, and those changed ecosystems need to be restored and/or managed accordingly [38, 39]. Knowledge regarding those ecosystems modified, transformed, or created by human influence is very limited. It is important that these changed ecosystems are restored and/or managed, but because of the lack of knowledge about the details of their functioning (**Figure 1**), the restoration practice is

Even though there has been a sustained period of study, many of the mechanisms governing ecosystem functioning are still not fully understood. The general rule is that the relationships between the ecosystem elements are complex, and therefore, models have to be simplified, transformed, and translated into more accessible and informative formats for stakeholders and decision makers to incorporate the ecosystem principles into management practice. Improving management practice may facilitate the enhancement of ecosystem services for

of urban-industrial ecosystem services [37].

172 Ecosystem Services and Global Ecology

tant contribution into the overall ecological diversity.

very complex and often unsuccessful [40, 41].

human well-being in urban-industrial sites.

**Figure 1.** The basic inter-connected relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem functions, including the diversity (species richness, relative abundances of species, genetic diversity, and diversity of functional trait variability of vegetation types), impact, and interaction (species ecological role, species impact on ecosystem function, species impact on ecosystem services, variability of ecosystems, variation at landscape scales, abiotic or non-living diversity, and topography).

One of the relatively well-understood ecosystem principles, which has been substantiated in many studies, is that biodiversity, and in particular functional diversity, strengthens ecosystem stability, ecosystem services, and productivity [42, 43]. In this respect, the worldwide decline in biodiversity, caused mostly by human influence and anthropogenic factors, has to be of global concern [44, 45]. Decline in biodiversity is a global issue that has to be managed by local practice and within the local context [46, 47].

It has also been reported that the mechanisms that regulate biodiversity are complex and incorporate many potential interactions and feedback loops, which may even accelerate the loss of biodiversity, and should not be disregarded. One example of an important unsolved feedback relationship concerns whether producer diversity is related to the presence of consumers (top-down regulation) or related to the availability of resources (bottom-up regulation). The latest study suggests that the two relationships interact with each other [48–50] and seem to be habitat type dependent. However, whether and how biodiversity is related to ecosystem functional processes at higher trophic levels in different human transformed ecosystem types is arguable. It has been suggested [51, 52] that it is necessary to test if, in the complex communities with multiple trophic levels, diversity effects are governed by trophic interactions, including trophic processes, in order to gain a better understanding of functional diversity.

**2.1. Urban areas—ecosystem service potential**

Urban areas are more often related to high population density and high consumption, and these areas are more likely to be connected with a reduction in resource demand rather than the production of ecosystem services. However, the results in the recent studies indicate that cities, in general, can be important ecosystem service providers [59, 60]. The research of [61] presented unexpected results that indicate that cities are able to store a comparable amount of carbon per unit area as that found to be stored in tropical forests. The high biodiversity stored in the ruderal vegetation of urban sites (**Figure 2**) has been represented by Kompała-Bąba 2013 (modified [62]). Research has enabled the recognition, quantification, and performance of ecosystem service assessments in urban areas [60, 63–65]. The ecology of urban areas that support ecosystem services is unclear [37], and the biodiversity-ecosystem service relationship should be clarified as to what extent, and how, biodiversity influences ecosystem service provision. The

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**Figure 2.** The floristic diversity of vegetation of ruderal habitats expressed through the use of functional traits of species. Five functional groups of species in urban ruderal habitats are distinguished in relation to fertility and disturbance gradients: (A) comprised monocarpic and biennials that had a high seed weight and terminal velocity and that differed in relation to seed bank type and lateral spread; (B) and (C) groups comprised polycarpic species, which had many traits that are connected with competitive ability (high leaf area, canopy height, high seed number, and long-term seed bank), mainly nitrophilous ruderal and meadow species, which differ in relation to lateral spread, seed weight, and terminal velocity; (D) and (E) groups were mainly made up of species that possessed traits that enabled them to adapt to

disturbances or other forms of stress that differ in relation to life span (modified [62]).

Politicians, business managers, and decision makers are increasingly aware of the need for the sustainable management of natural capital. However, they do not have the tools to evaluate the influence of different decisions [53], and there is a lack of knowledge and understanding of how abiotic and biotic elements of natural capital interrelate in ecosystems to provide different services. In addition, there is a growing concern that human needs are becoming detrimental to biodiversity conservation priorities [54] and that utilizing natural capital resources, required for necessary ecosystem services, are decreasing due to species loss and habitat fragmentation [23]. Therefore, the contemporary task for scientists is to provide the managers and stakeholders, if possible, with manageable protocols to help them understand the very complex links, synergies, and generally nonlinear relationships in ecosystem function. To date, research has shown that one management strategy will not work across all spatial, temporal, or cultural situations.
