Research Product

The Tampa Bay Ecosystem Services Demonstration Project (TBESDP) is a component of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Ecosystem Services Research Program. The principal objectives of TBESDP are (1) to quantify the ecosystem services of the Tampa Bay watershed, (2) to determine the value of ecosystem services to society, (3) to predict the supply of ecosystem services under future scenarios of population growth and climate change, and (4) to apply this knowledge through models and tools that will support better-informed environmental decisions. The scope and complexity of this project required intensive effort to establish priorities for the necessary supporting research. Research priorities were assessed by: (1) developing and refining conceptual models of major ecosystems in the Tampa Bay region, (2) gathering input from stakeholders about the relative importance and values of various ecosystem services, (3) preparing and reviewing a bibliometric analysis of the volume of scientific literature relevant to the ecosystems and services of interest, and (4) evaluating an integrated analysis of importance, value, and availability of scientific information. This analysis led us to focus on two research priorities, specifically seagrass-habitat functions as support for fishery production, and wetlands as regulators of water quality. Other services will be quantified mainly by applying existing models, data, and scientific literature