Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
emphasises prudence in our relations with nature because our actions, if
they are not made subject to appropriate restraint, will tend to weaken the
ability of ecosystems to remain in states on which we and other members of
biotic communities depend.
In
Section 2.2
of this chapter, I consider how scienti
c understanding
of ecosystems has moved away from a perception of them as relatively
stable entities tending towards an optimal state if left undisturbed, and
which could be understood through the study of ecological processes
at different scales. They are now seen as dynamic, complex, adaptive
systems whose behaviour, whilst not necessarily chaotic, does not follow
a predictable path. Rather, they have a propensity to
ip into alternative
states when disturbed by natural or anthropogenic in
uences, which
may result in the system assuming a fundamentally different structure
and functions. As a consequence of both their inherent complexity
and the complexity of in
uences acting on them, the response of these
systems to disturbance is extremely dif
cult to predict. It is equally
dif
cult to anticipate the effect that changes in ecosystem functionality
may have on the global-scale processes, collectively referred to as the
Earth System, that create the conditions necessary for life on the planet.
However, it is recognised that there is a relationship between them and,
therefore, that ecological degradation could trigger change in Earth System
processes with potentially catastrophic consequences for the functioning of
all of the planet
s ecosystems.
I also consider the rami
'
cation of resilience as
the property of ecosystems that enables them to retain their structures
and functions in the face of disturbance.
1
The developing understanding
ofthenatureofthisproperty,andofhowhumanandnaturalimpacts
can combine to undermine and overwhelm it, has radical implications
for the way that law is used to protect the environment. It is not possible
to identify with precision the components of ecosystems in which resili-
ence lies and therefore to use legal protection of them as a sole means of
supporting ecosystem functionality. The complexity and dynamism of
ecosystems preclude the use of this approach in isolation. The adequacy
of resilience is also relative to the scale of the challenges that ecosystems
encounter. This entails that the goal of ecological governance should
be to reduce human pressures on resilience as far as possible in order
to enhance the ability of ecosystems to withstand whatever future
cations of the identi
1
Chapter 2,
Section 2.3
.
