Few public land managers use strategic tools to plan investments and ensure optimal decisions. Washington State Parks, recognizing the power of being strategic rather than opportunistic in decision making, engaged Earth Economics to create a tool that quantifies the social, environmental, and economic benefits of each state park in Washington State. The tool also lays a foundation for predicting hot spots for future acquisitions.
Community assets such as trails, parks and public open space provide numerous economic and social benefits, from improved health and reduced medical expenses to purchases at local businesses and job creation. Without access to trails, parks and open space, these benefits would be greatly diminished. This report summarizes the return on investment for community assets in the Matanuska-Susitna (Mat-Su) Basin of south-central Alaska, including social (recreation, tourism, human health, public safety, subsistence, culture, and history) and economic (business, tax revenues, taxpayer savings) benefits.
Located on Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula, the Térraba-Sierpe National Wetlands is the largest mangrove wetlands in Central America. This reserve area is also a Ramsar site, a designation that recognizes the international importance of a wetlands area and signifies commitment to ensuring the ecological character of a wetlands (see the Ramsar Convention for more information). The Térraba-Sierpe encompasses diverse natural landscapes - estuaries, lagoons, beaches, cliffs, and mangrove forests. Mangroves in particular provide a valuable suite of critical ecosystem services that includes storm surge protection, healthy fisheries, and carbon sequestration.
Our world’s most important ecosystems are under increasing pressure from climate change and threats from development and other human influences, and the Térraba-Sierpe mangroves are no exception. For some time, there has been a growing interest in developing near the mangroves. Talk of constructing an international airport, rapidly encroaching real estate development, and a proposed hydroelectric station and dam that would obstruct flow to the wetlands were only a few of the concerns in 2010.[1]
In response to these growing concerns, Earth Economics contributed to a project in partnership with the University of Vermont, conducting a valuation of the ecosystem services of mangroves within the wetlands. The project resulted in the most comprehensive database of habitat, water quality, and fisheries for the area to date[2], and the analysis found that the Térraba-Sierpe National Wetlands provides a stunning annual value between $302 million and $1.9 billion. The value of the reserve comes from a broad list of ecosystem goods and services that includes storm protection, natural drought mitigation, nutrient flows, biodiversity, mussel habitat, and aesthetic value, among others. The vast majority of these valuable services are public, benefitting all.
The values identified in the study provided a powerful argument for wetland protection, and one that was used to achieve a key success: the development and adoption of a management plan for the Térraba-Sierpe wetlands. The ecosystem services framework identified in the analysis was presented to local communities in Puntarenas in close partnership with one of Costa Rica’s oldest NGOs, Fundación Neotrópica. Gaining local buy-in was crucial to the ultimate result: the adoption of the Humedal Nacional Térraba-Sierpe management plan, a legally binding document that is an anchor for the community in land-use decisions. The management plan is the first ever for the region – a landmark change for a crucial natural reserve.
Kocian, M., et al. 2010. Nature’s Value in the T.rraba‐Sierpe National Wetlands: The Essential Economics of Ecosystem Services. Earth Economics, Tacoma, WA.
This study was conducted under a contract with the University of Vermont with support from a Bluemoon Grant.
Key Words: Ecosystem Service Valuation, Habitat, Mangrove, Wetland, Natural Reserve, Térraba-Sierpe
Reference [1, 2]
This report demonstrates the value of Washington State Parks in connecting Washingtonians to outdoor recreation opportunities. State parks are responsible for $1.5 billion in consumer expenditures and serve as a vehicle for rural development as wealth transfers from urban to rural areas. State parks generate at least $64 million in state sales tax that directly benefits the Washington general fund. Every year, land conserved by the State Parks system also provides the state between $500 million and $1.2 billion in ecosystem services that include water quality improvements, native species habitat, and aesthetic values.
From hikes in the desert to a ski run down a mountain side to clam digging at the ocean, Washington State residents have numerous choices when deciding what to do outside. The state’s rich outdoor recreation choices also provide jobs to many families and businesses. This study quantifies the contribution of outdoor recreation to Washington State’s economy and way of life.
The St. Louis River in northeastern Minnesota provides tremendous economic benefits to the stakeholders within its watershed. Its water and land are natural capital assets that produce ecosystem service benefits that include clean air and water, wildlife habitat, and natural food sources. Every year, the watershed's ecosystem services provide $5 billion to $14 billion in economic benefits. Despite mining activity in the river's headwaters and the Area of Concern at the river's mouth, the St. Louis River still provides significant economic inputs for the regional economy.
In collaboration with the USFS, Earth Economics presents a measurable framework for ecosystem goods and services, cultural services, and human well-being concepts. Cultural services often go unrecognized in land management and decision making for development plans, and thus risk degradation and loss. This report offers an approach to measure ecosystem services alongside cultural, social, and health benefits across the urban to rural gradient. The Green-Duwamish Watershed is highlighted to represent diverse land-use cases, from rural,indigenous groups to South Seattle's urban city dwellers.
This report presents the results of the first ever open space valuation of Western Washington’s Central Puget Sound region, including King, Kitsap, Pierce, and Snohomish counties. Ten open space services, comparable with ecosystem services, are valued for each of 15 land cover types. These services represent a substantial and critical component of the regional economy, contributing $11.4 to $25.2 billion per year.
This report explores the importance of outdoor recreation in Whatcom County. The County's recreation-related businesses form an important hub of regional economic activity and contribute to the local tax base. This report includes an economic contribution analysis of outdoor recreation and further illustrates the value of Whatcom County's recreational lands through an ecosystem services valuation.
This report presents an independent environmental and social benchmarking analysis of Nautilus Minerals’ proposed deep seabed mining project. The primary goal of the analysis was to measure the environmental and social impacts of the Solwara 1 project in comparison with three terrestrial mines.
