Working with public, private and NGO agencies, Earth Economics’ Ecosystem Service Valuation (ESV) studies quantify the value of the goods and services provided by regional ecosystems. This valuation justifies the shift of investment toward environmental preservation and/or restoration. Two valuation services are offered:
Rapid ESV
- 10-15 page report
- Electronic deliverable
Comprehensive ESV
- 85-90 page report
- Meetings with client
- In-house layout
- Printed and electronic deliverable
Working with academics from around the world, Earth Economics is continually upgrading and refining our Benefit Value Transfer tool and ESV Study Database to ensure the most up-to-date appraisals possible.
If you are interested in having a valuation performed, please contact us with your name and affiliation, along with a brief description of the area you want to analyze and the issues facing it. The list below contains a selection of the ecosystem services we identify and value in our analyses.
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Ecosystem Service
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Definition
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Water
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Water provided by the water cycle, climate, topography, ecology and geology of natural systems.
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Food
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Biomass for human consumption, provided by a web of marine organisms and a functioning marine ecosystem (see biodiversity definition above).
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Materials
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Biological materials used for medicines, fuel, and building.
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Shoreline Stabilization
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Keeping shorelines equilibrium.
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Flood and Storm Protection
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Mitigation or attenuation of the effects of wind, waves, and flood waters to downstream communities.
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Water Flow Regulation
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Retention and storage of fresh water.
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Water Quality
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Filtering and purification of water.
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Human Disease Control
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Undisturbed ecosystems keep in check organisms which can cause disease in humans.
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Waste Processing
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Detoxification or absorption of natural or human-made contaminants.
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Carbon Sequestration
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The capture and long-term storage of carbon is part of the global carbon cycle. Watershed play a crucial role in climate stabilization.
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Nutrient Regulation and Cycling
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Transfer of nutrients from one place to another; transformation of critical nutrients from unusable to usable forms.
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Habitat
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Providing for the life history needs of plants and animals.
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Primary productivity
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Fixing of carbon by plants; provides basis of all terrestrial and most marine food chains.
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Scientific and educational
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Ecosystems are the subject of much scientific study and public education for both basic knowledge and for understanding the contribution of functioning ecosystems to human well-being.
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Tourism
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The explicit role that intact land and seascapes play in attracting people to areas for vacationing.
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Aesthetic
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The role which natural beauty plays in attracting people to live, work and recreate in an area.
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Recreation
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The contribution of ecosystem features like biological diversity and clean water play in attracting people to engage in recreational activities.
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Featured Ecosystem Service Valuation:
The Puyallup River Watershed: An Ecological Economic Characterization (June 2011)
