Demand and Supply of Air Quality Regulation Ecosystem Services

Abstract

Despite advancements in pollution control technology, air pollution and carbon emissions still drive global-scale health and climate impacts. Fortunately, our planet provides natural solutions to regulating the quality of the air in the atmosphere. These solutions include the deposition of gas and particulate pollution onto the surface of vegetation and the process of photosynthesis which converts carbon into biomass. To seek synergies between nature-based processes and technological systems, we must be able to account for the uptake rate of ecosystem services and compare it to the emissions related to human and industrial activity. In comparing the demand we place on ecosystem services with the available supply, sustainability becomes an absolute metric rather than relative. Approaches for valuating both the supply and demand of air quality regulating services are discussed in this chapter. Due to the inherent uncertainty that exists in nature, both spatial and temporal dynamics are considered and presented through both analysis and design applications. Further, the role of ecosystems in sustainable design is explored, including how system boundaries can expand to include landscapes in optimization programs. Although many challenges exist in the implementation of techno-ecological synergistic design, existing research highlights the value of ecological systems through their appreciation in value over time and simultaneous co-benefits.