Intro to Indirect Use Values of Biodiversity 1.1 2003/07/23 10:54:46 GMT-5 2004/07/13 14:14:52.086 GMT-5 Eleanor Sterling sterling@amnh.org Melina Laverty laverty@amnh.org Eleanor Sterling sterling@amnh.org Melina Laverty laverty@amnh.org Nora Bynum nbynum@amnh.org Kyle Clarkson kclarks@rice.edu Ecosystems, and the plant and animal species that constitute them, provide a host of services to all living things (Daily 1997), including: regulating global processes, the regulation of atmospheric gases that affect global and local climates and the air we breathe; soil and water conservation, maintaining the hydrologic cycle and controlling erosion; nutrient cycling, the control of nutrient and energy flow through the planet, for example, waste decomposition and detoxification, soil renewal, nitrogen fixation, and photosynthesis; a genetic library which provides a source of information to create better agricultural crops or livestock; maintenance of plant reproduction through pollination and seed dispersal, in those plants we rely on for food, clothing or shelter; control of agricultural pests and disease; provide a source of inspiration to solve agricultural, medical, manufacturing problems; and provide tourism and recreation opportunities. Often the values of ecosystem services are not considered in commercial market analyses, despite their critical importance to human survival. How can we assign a value to the atmospheric regulation of oxygen? In some ways, its value is infinite since without it we could not survive. Also many ecosystem services cannot be replaced or if they can, it is only at considerable cost. An attempt to estimate the value of ecosystem services was made by Costanza et al. (1997). According to the study, the earth provides a minimum of $16 to $54 trillion dollars worth of "services" to humans per year. This estimate is based on the value of 15 ecosystem services and two goods in 16 biomes. Many services provided by biodiversity go beyond what is needed for our immediate survival, including the many cultural, spiritual, and aesthetic values people place on nature and natural areas. Some feel that people have an innate connection or kinship with nature. Nature also provides insight and understanding of our role in the world, and has value for education, as well as for scientific research. Furthermore, each species has an ecological value as part of an ecosystem and species diversity contributes to ecosystem resilience. Daily, G.C. Natures' Services: Societal Dependence on Natural Ecosystems Island Press 1997 Washington, D.C., U.S.A. Costanza, R., R.d'Arge, R. de Groot, S. Farber, M. Grasso, B. Hannon, K. Limburg, S. Naeem, R.V. O'Neill, J. Paruelo, R.G. Raskin, P. Sutton, and M. van den Belt. The Values of the World's Ecosystem Services and Natural Capital Nature 1997 387 253-260