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Provision of Agricultural Ecosystem Services

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  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Food and Agricultural Ethics

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Synonyms

Agricultural ecosystems; Conservation agriculture; Ecosystem services; Sustainable agriculture

Introduction

An ecosystem is a community of living organisms, including plants, animals, and microbes, plus the nonliving components of their environment, such as water and minerals, interacting together as a system or an ecological unit (e.g., a pasture or forest). Ecosystems may also be viewed as a form of natural capital, which provides flows of vital goods and services to humans (e.g., Daily 1997). These goods and services are called ecosystem services (ES) and are often defined as the “benefits people obtain either directly or indirectly from ecosystems” (MEA 2005). Many ES are critical to human survival (e.g., climate regulation and nutrient cycling), while others contribute to our well-being (e.g., nature recreation and rural lifestyles) (Kremen 2005).

Scientists and scholars have traditionally focused on natural ecosystems, such as wetlands and ponds, for ES provision (e.g.,...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA

    Heidi R. Stallman

  2. Department of Agricultural & Applied Economics, University of Missouri, 146 Mumford Hall, 65211, Columbia, MO, USA

    Harvey S. James Jr.

Authors
  1. Heidi R. Stallman
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  2. Harvey S. James Jr.
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Heidi R. Stallman .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Philosophy, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA

    Paul B. Thompson

  2. Department of Philosophy and Religion, University of North Texas, Denton, TX, USA

    David M. Kaplan

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Stallman, H.R., James Jr., H.S. (2014). Provision of Agricultural Ecosystem Services. In: Thompson, P.B., Kaplan, D.M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Food and Agricultural Ethics. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0929-4_137

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0929-4_137

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-007-0928-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-007-0929-4

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