Valuing Biodiversity Flashcards
What is Biodiversity offsetting and trading?
Where Biodiversity net gain cannot be done on a development site, it must be offset in offsite habitats.
What does the direct use of biodiversity mean in terms of economic value?
Natural products are harvested and traded by humans.
E.g. Ecotourism.
What does the indirect use of biodiversity mean in terms of economic value?
Ecosystem services
What does the optional use of biodiversity mean in terms of economic value?
Potential uses. E.g., maintaining a potentially premium resource for the future.
What does the non-use value of biodiversity mean in terms of economic value?
Bequest value and Economic value (e.g. Cultural, aesthetic significance).
What are the direct uses of Biodiversity?
Food - V. few species are currently domesticated and cultivated (75% of human food comes from 12 plant species and wild species genes provide genes for improving domestic values.
Medicine
60% of humans depend on plants for medicine and many drugs are derived from natural products.
Biological control
Industrial materials - e.g. Biomimicry. Swimsuits mimicking shark skin.
Recreational harvesting and wildlife trade - Legal or illegal (Ecotourism).
Does Biodiversity enhance ecosystem services?
At low levels of biodiversity adding species increases ecosystem function.
At higher levels of biodiversity adding species has fewer effects.
What are ecosystem services that benefit from biodiversity?
Ocean productivity
Water quality
Decomposition
Disease limitation
How does ecosystem function stabilize the earth?
Atmospheric composition - e.g. the balance of O2 and CO2.
Water cycle - e.g. Rainfall, retention of hydrogen.
Climate - E.g. Carbon sequestration
The loss of species simplifies ecosystems and reduces ecosystem function thereby destabilizing planetary conditions.
What does Bequest value mean?
The potential value to future generations.
What does Existence value mean?
Humans tend to value species even if they don’t use them.
What is Hedonic cost?
An Inferred price that individuals are willing to pay for ecosystem services.
Based on House prices, Time and money spent on recreational trips.
What are replacement costs?
Cost of replacing or restoring ecosystem services.
What is a contingent valuation?
The price an individual would be willing to pay to maintain/ improve the quality of the environment.
