Bridging ecosystem services and territorial planning (BEST-P): a southern South American initiative

The Bridging ecosystem services and territorial planning (BEST-P) initiative is a research project focused on integrating the concept of Ecosystem Services (ES) into land use and territorial planning across southern South America. The project analyzes the biophysical and human dimensions of landscapes in the Rio de la Plata Grasslands, the Gran Chaco dry-forests, and the Valdivian forests to develop toolboxes for zoning and planning that balance production and conservation.

• In the semiarid Chaco, forest patches positively influence the drainage of agricultural fields, and spatial analysis is being used to determine landscape configurations that minimize groundwater recharge relative to the ratio of forests to crop lands.
• The replacement of forests with annual crops in the Chaco region leads to significant carbon losses, specifically 66 Mg C/ha from aboveground biomass and a 40% loss of carbon from the top 1 meter of soil, which negatively impacts erosion protection, water regulation, and climate.
• Research on land users in the Chaco indicates that 'productivist' landholders prefer deforestation for pasture, yet transitioning to a multifunctional regime could increase conservation outcomes by 30-50% without significantly reducing productivity.
• Pre-productivist landholders show a willingness to conserve forests, suggesting a potential for an endogenously motivated transition to multifunctional land use that could increase productivity by 35-65% without harming avian habitat, though this requires tailored regulations and incentives.
• The project developed a refined NDVI to estimate Net Primary Production (NPP) from photosynthetically active radiation absorbed (APAR), which allows for accurate forage production estimates in silvopastoral systems, even under forest canopies.
• Evidence showing that deforestation in one province affects the climate of another has been used to support moving illegal deforestation trials from provincial to federal courts in Argentina, potentially increasing the transparency of the Native Forests Act.
• Water harvesting infrastructure is significantly more prevalent and effective in Paraguay than in Argentina; Paraguay harvests nearly 5 mm/year of rainfall (mostly on pastures), while Argentina harvests less than 0.5 mm/year (mostly in forests).

APA

Paruelo, J. M., Laterra, P., Lara, A., Nahuelhual, L., Altesor, A., Filardo, V., Berbery, H., Bocco, G., & Auer, A. (2024). Bridging ecosystem services and territorial planning (BEST-P): a southern South American initiative. Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. https://iai.int/en/best-p-vinculos-entre-los-servicios-ecosistemicos-y-el-planeamiento-territorial-una-iniciativa-para-el-sur-de-sudamerica-crn-3095/

Chicago

Paruelo, José M., Pedro Laterra, Antonio Lara, Laura Nahuelhual, Alice Altesor, Verônica Filardo, Hugo Berbery, Gerardo Bocco, and Alejandra Auer. Bridging ecosystem services and territorial planning (BEST-P): a southern South American initiative. Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research, 2024. https://iai.int/en/best-p-vinculos-entre-los-servicios-ecosistemicos-y-el-planeamiento-territorial-una-iniciativa-para-el-sur-de-sudamerica-crn-3095/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Paruelo |first1=José M. |last2=Laterra |first2=Pedro |last3=Lara |first3=Antonio |last4=Nahuelhual |first4=Laura |last5=Altesor |first5=Alice |last6=Filardo |first6=Verônica |last7=Berbery |first7=Hugo |last8=Bocco |first8=Gerardo |last9=Auer |first9=Alejandra |title=Bridging ecosystem services and territorial planning (BEST-P): a southern South American initiative |publisher=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |date=22 September 2024 |url=https://iai.int/en/best-p-vinculos-entre-los-servicios-ecosistemicos-y-el-planeamiento-territorial-una-iniciativa-para-el-sur-de-sudamerica-crn-3095/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{paruelo2024bridging, author = {Paruelo, José M. and Laterra, Pedro and Lara, Antonio and Nahuelhual, Laura and Altesor, Alice and Filardo, Verônica and Berbery, Hugo and Bocco, Gerardo and Auer, Alejandra}, title = {{Bridging ecosystem services and territorial planning (BEST-P): a southern South American initiative}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, year = {2024}, month = sep, url = {https://iai.int/en/best-p-vinculos-entre-los-servicios-ecosistemicos-y-el-planeamiento-territorial-una-iniciativa-para-el-sur-de-sudamerica-crn-3095/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }