Participatory Mapping at a Small Scale: Integrating Expert and Local Knowledge for Ecosystem Services Assessment in...

Ecosystem Services (ES) represent the benefits nature provides to people. This concept has been instrumental in guiding research and mapping methods over time. In this context, there is a lack of studies in the scientific literature on ecosystem services that consider landscapes linked to public policy data, such as Environmental Zoning. We mapped provisioning, regulating, cultural, and supporting types of ES in the Espinhaço Range Biosphere Reserve watersheds, Brazil. This study uses environmental and productive zoning data for participatory mapping involving experts and local actors. Through this participatory approach and using a weighted matrix based on scientific literature, we assigned scores to 11 landscape units according to each unit's perceived relevance in providing different ES categories. We calculated final averages from these scores, ranging from 1 (very low) to 5 (very high). We conducted data analysis using RStudio and QGIS software. The results showed a predominance of high relevance in ES supply across the landscape units, with the highest percentages found in regulating and supporting services (72%), followed by provisioning (60%) and cultural (59%) services. Spatial distribution analysis indicated that 70% of the studied regions had high overall relevance in ES provision, highlighting the significant potential of these areas to deliver ecosystem services. The high conservation status of the studied basins further reinforces this potential. Our findings indicate a clear need for more detailed investigations to better understand ES dynamics in these areas, especially with diversified methodologies considering ongoing environmental changes.