Ecosystem services find their federal footing: A history of the 2008 Farm Bill and 2012 Forest Planning Rule

Abstract

This paper provides a history of two important federal initiatives that call for ecosystem services analysis to support government decision-making: the Conservation Title of the 2008 Farm Bill and the 2012 US Forest Service's Forest Planning Rule. The history shows that an ecosystem services-based approach to resource management not only cleared the significant political, legal, and institutional hurdles associated with national legislation and regulatory reform, but also contributed directly to the reforms' success. However, the history also suggests that it may be difficult to more broadly replicate ecosystem services statutory and regulatory mandates across federal environmental programs.