摘要：The theoretical framework of ecosystem services and that of resilience thinking are combined in an empiricalcase study of a social-ecological system. In the River Helge . catchment in southern Sweden, a slow increase in dissolved organiccarbon (DOC) results in brownification of the water with consequences on ecosystem services in the lower part of the catchmentof concern by local resource managers. An assessment of ecosystem service delivery was conducted to (1) identify plausibledrivers of brownification in the study site and assess future ecosystem service delivery for stakeholders in downstream areas.An analysis of the perspective of beneficiaries, using qualitative methods, was pursued to (2) evaluate the impacts ofbrownification on downstream stakeholders.Our analyses of drivers of brownification in combination with climate change projections suggests that Kristianstads VattenrikeBiosphere Reserve will experience extreme water flows much more frequently than the system is accustomed to today, and thatthese water flows will be highly affected by brownification. The combination of severe summer flooding and high water colorconstituted a new disturbance regime and thus requires new adaptive strategies by local stakeholders. A range of coping andadaptation strategies were displayed by the farmers but also a possible transformation strategy, i.e., abandonment of the seasonallyflooded meadows. Because hay making and grazing are central components in the active management of the KristianstadsVattenrike Biosphere Reserve, to discontinue this practice would have system-wide ramifications for the Biosphere Reserve.The vulnerability of fishing in the culturally significant "Eel Coast," part of the downstream area, was also exposed.We argue that for environmental monitoring of slow changing variables to make sense to local stakeholders, clear links toecosystem service benefits are required. The responsibility for this and thus for matching of social and ecological scales fallsheavily on regional managers. We further argue that resilience of a social-ecological system can be estimated by observing andanalyzing how local stakeholders respond to disturbances, i.e., by analyzing their response strategies
