Download The Economic Value of Biodiversity

The Economic
Value of Biodiversity
General statistics of losses of
biodiversity up to the present
• By the year 2000, only about 73% of the
original global natural biodiversity was left.
• Anthropogenic rate of species extinction is
estimated to be 1,000x more rapid than
natural rate of extinction.
• As of 2006, 12% of all birds, 23% of mammals,
33% of amphibians, 42% turtles and tortoises,
25% of conifers and 52% of cycads are
classified as threatened.
• 60% of earth’s ecosystem services have ben
degraded in the last 50 years.
Marine and Freshwater
• A third of all assessed freshwater species are
threatened with extinction. The global collapse of
most of the world fisheries is due to overfishing.
• Over the last 25 years, 3.6 million hectares of
mangroves have disappeared worldwide.
• Since 1900 over half of wetland worldwide have
disappeared.
• Over 20% of the world’s coral reefs have been
destroyed by fishing, pollution, disease, and coral
bleaching. By 2030 60% of coral reefs could b
lost.
Forests and Crops
• In the last 300 years, global forests have
shrunk by approx. 40%. They have completely
disappeared in 25 countries and another 29
countries have lost more than 90% of their
forest cover.
• An estimated ¾ of the planet’s crop
agricultural diversity is already destroyed.
Drivers of biodiversity loss
• Conversion to agricultural land
• Expansion of infrastructure (changes from
pristine to asphalt)
• Climate change
• Most dramatic changes are in the Savannah
Biome, The Grasslands, and the Boreal Forest
Known economic benefits of
biodiversity
• Medicine: over 50% have a natural origin ,
trade value in medicinal plants is over $60
billion/year, of all anti-cancer drugs available,
42% are natural and 34% semi-natural.
• Forests: timber harvested= $400,000million/yr
provides subsistence and wage employment,
source of fuel for cooking and heating for 2.6
billion people.
• Coral Reefs: Some 9-12% of the world’s
fisheries are based directly on reefs, while
offshore fisheries rely on them as breeding,
nursery or feeding grounds.
• Tourism generates millions of dollars from
coral reefs annually.
• Coral reefs provide genetic resources for
medical research as well as protect many
coastal areas (islands).
• Mangroves: function as nurseries for many
species. They act as watershed protection by
keeping intact coastal ecosystems
• Fisheries in waters adjacent to mangroves
tend to have higher yields
• Over 1 billion people worldwide are
dependent on fish as their sole or main source
of animal protein while fish provided more
than 2.6 billion people with at least 20% of
their average per capita animal protein intake.
• Healthy reefs and mangroves can absorb 7090% of the energy in wind-generated wavesprotecting shorelines from storms.