Abstract
Ecosystem accounts developed for the Central Highlands region, near Melbourne, informed government decisions about forest use. Currently, native forest timber harvesting conflicts with water provisioning, carbon sequestration, biodiversity conservation and recreation. The native forest on public land is managed under an agreement that guarantees wood supply within a defined area on public land and conservation within a national park boundary. This agreement is currently being re-negotiated. Synthesizing environmental and economic information in the form of ecosystem accounts allowed quantitative comparisons in physical and/or monetary terms that enabled trade-offs to be defined explicitly and spatially.
The accounts included values of ecosystem services and of economic value-added of industries that rely on the ecosystem services. Results demonstrated that a transition away from native forest harvesting would improve the condition of ecosystem assets, the conservation of biodiversity, and the provision of ecosystem services for other land uses, and would reduce the threat of extinction of critically endangered species. Economic gains from increased water supply and carbon storage exceeded the losses from ceasing native timber production. Results from the study are contributing to government decision making and public education.
The accounts included values of ecosystem services and of economic value-added of industries that rely on the ecosystem services. Results demonstrated that a transition away from native forest harvesting would improve the condition of ecosystem assets, the conservation of biodiversity, and the provision of ecosystem services for other land uses, and would reduce the threat of extinction of critically endangered species. Economic gains from increased water supply and carbon storage exceeded the losses from ceasing native timber production. Results from the study are contributing to government decision making and public education.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | 2nd Policy Forum on Natural Capital Accounting for Better Decision Making |
| Subtitle of host publication | Applications for Sustainable Development - Part 2: Case Studies |
| Editors | Arjan Ruijs, Michael Vardon |
| Place of Publication | Washington D.C. |
| Publisher | World Bank WAVES |
| Chapter | 5 |
| Pages | 105-114 |
| Publication status | Published - May 2018 |