A new approach to environmental monitoring in engineering projects – systemic monitoring of nature-based solutions in the Horizon 2020 MERLIN project [In Polish with English abstract]

The large-scale implementation of nature-based solutions (NbS) is one of the key pillars of the societal transformation required to address numerous contemporary challenges, including biodiversity loss. However, the wider adoption of NbS is still limited by the lack of robust evidence demonstrating their benefits for society, particularly in terms of climate change adaptation, flood risk reduction, drought resilience, and biodiversity restoration. This article presents a systemic approach to monitoring nature-based solutions, aimed at documenting the environmental and socio-economic benefits of NbS within the broader context of sustainable development policy and their potential impact on major sectors of the economy. By applying the monitoring framework in 18 pan-European case studies focused on freshwater ecosystem restoration, all implemented in accordance with the Global IUCN Standard for Nature-Based Solutions as the overarching framework, it is demonstrated how evidence derived from diverse and heterogeneous datasets can be integrated to confirm the effectiveness and outcomes of NbS. This, in turn, may support and accelerate their large-scale implementation.