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Mainstreaming ecosystem services in EU decision making processes requires a solid conceptual and methodological framework for mapping and assessing ecosystem services that serve the multiple objectives addressed by policies. The PRESS-2 study (PEER Research on EcoSystem Services Phase 2) provides such an analytical framework which enables the operationalization of the present scientific knowledge base of environmental data and models for application by the EU and Member States for mapping and assessment of ecosystem services. This study is structured along three strands of work: policy and scenario analysis, mapping and valuation. Linking maps of ecosystem services supply to monetary valuation allows an analysis of the expected impact of policy measures on benefits derived from ecosystem services. The first case study looks at water purification and demonstrates the three-step assessment cycle, investigating the impacts of agricultural and water policy scenarios on the capacity of ecosystems to purify water and on the benefits that are derived from improved water quality at different spatial scales. In general, the conclusion is that greening the CAP, would improve water quality and increase the benefits to society as measured via monetary valuation. Yet, reduction rates differed between the different levels (EU and basin scale) suggesting that the assessment of policy measures is scale-dependent, which, in turn, justifies our multi-scale assessment approach. The second case study (recreation) presents evidence that millions of people visited forests several times per year and they expressed their willingness to …