Part II
Key Ecological and Economic Concepts
Section Summary: The “ecosystem services” framework is an operational way of including natural capital in economic analysis. It is a means to understanding and embracing an integrated approach to managing undeveloped land. Appendix B provides more information on the relationship between human well-being and the supply of nature’s goods and services, as well as built, financial and human capital (labor), and the scarcity of natural resources.
Introduction to Ecosystem Goods and Services Ecosystems provide economically valuable goods and services. Ecosystem services were recently given higher prominence in the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, a project initiated in 2000 by then-United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and completed in 2005. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment examined worldwide changes in ecosystems, their impacts on human well-being, and options for enhancing the conservation of ecosystems and their contribution to human well-being. The project, involving more than 1,360 experts worldwide and a multi-stakeholder board representing governments, businesses, NGOs, indigenous peoples and international institutions, utilized the concept of “ecosystem services” to best understand the linkages between ecosystems and human well-being. Today, a number of federal agencies in the United States, including the Environmental Protection Agency, the United States Forest Service, the United States Geological Service and the United States Department of Agriculture house dedicated ecosystem services departments to advance understanding of how ecosystem services can be promoted to improve longterm economic prosperity for the nation.d
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The natural environment provides many of the things humans need for survival, including breathable air, drinkable water, food for nourishment, and stable atmospheric conditions, to name a few. These “ecosystem goods and services” are derived from ecosystems and provide benefit to humans. Ecosystems perform many functions, but only functions that provide human benefits are considered ecosystem goods or services. Every ecosystem produces a suite of ecosystem services.
The agencies’ websites contain more detailed information on these departments. For example: http://www.fs.fed.us/ ecosystemservices/ (USFS); http://www.fs.fed.us/ecosystemservices/OEM/index.shtml (USDA).
Economic Impact of Metro Parks Tacoma Ecosystem Services
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