Natural capital concepts were developed from place based terrestrial systems and do not easily accommodate the diversity and dynamism of plankton communities. This brief report was requested to help visualise plankton through the lens of a natural capital framework; a framework which has not been historically developed to describe such a diverse and dynamic system.
The coastal, or ‘nearshore’, waters of England are a key part of the country’s natural capital, with plankton providing a diverse range of benefits to society through ‘supporting’, ‘provisioning’, ‘regulating’ and ‘cultural’ services.; together with infrastructural connections, biologica control and bioprosecting for novel materials.
