Analysis of selection procedures to determine priority areas for payment for water ecosystem services programs

The approach of ecosystem services has shown promise for the evaluation of interactions between ecosystems and society, integrating environmental and socioeconomic concepts which require interdisciplinary knowledge. However, its usefulness in decision making is limited due to information gaps. This study was therefore developed in order to contribute to the application of principles of ecosystem services in the decision-making for water resources management. It aims to identify procedures and methodologies used for decision-making in order to select priority areas to be included in projects or compensation programs for environmental services. To do so, we searched technical and scientific literature describing methods and experiences used to select priority areas. Key steps in the process of selecting priority areas were identified; then a survey was conducted of the procedures adopted for each key step considering the literature selected; and, finally, the information collected was analyzed and classified. Considering the study’s sample, we noted that the selection of priority areas was based on the direct use of predetermined criteria. The use of indicators and spatial analyses are practices still scarcely employed. We must highlight, however, that most of the analyzed documents did not aim to describe the process of selecting priority areas in detail, which may have resulted in some omissions. Although these conditions may limit the analysis in this study, the results presented here allow us to identify the main objectives, actions and criteria used to select priority areas for programs or compensation projects for environmental services