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The possibilities and pitfalls presented by a pragmatic approach to ecosystem service valuation in an arid biodiversity hotspot |
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| Authors: | PJ O’Farrell WJ De LangeDC Le Maitre B ReyersJN Blignaut SJ MiltonD Atkinson B EgohA Maherry C ColvinRM Cowling |
| Institution: | a Natural Resources and the Environment, CSIR, P.O. Box 320, Stellenbosch 7599, South Africa b Department of Economics, University of Pretoria, ASSET Research, and Jabenzi, Pretoria 0001, South Africa c School of Natural Resource Management, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University Saasveld Campus, Saasveld street, George 6529, South Africa d Research Cluster on Sustainable Development and Poverty Reduction, University of the Free State, PO Box 139, Philippolis 9970, South Africa e Department of Plant Science, University of Pretoria, Botany Building, room 1-6, Lynwood Road, Pretoria 0002, South Africa f Department of Botany, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, P.O. Box 77000, Port Elizabeth 6031, South Africa |
| Abstract: | Arid regions are home to unique fauna, flora, and vulnerable human populations, and present a challenge for sustainable land-use management. We undertook an assessment and valuation of three key services, grazing, tourism and water supply in the arid Succulent Karoo biome in western South Africa - a globally recognised biodiversity hotspot. We were looking for ways and values that could be used to promote conservation in this region through the adoption of sustainable land-use practices which have human welfare benefits. Our study adopted a variety of methods in valuing these services in developing ranges of values for these services. At the biome level, total annual values ranged from $ 19-114 million for grazing, $ 2-$ 20 million for tourism, and $ 300-3120 million for water. These values are generally low compared with values derived for other biomes and regions and do not adequately reflect known dependence and the importance of ecosystem services to the residents of this biome. The ecosystems here provide small but critical benefits enabling communities to sustain themselves and small changes in service levels can have major welfare effects. Highlighting these sensitivities will require finding more appropriate ways to link ecological and social factors. |
| Keywords: | Conservation Human wellbeing Resource limited Scarcity of services Sustainable land-use |
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