10/09/2010
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
/ TEEB
Factoring the planet's multi-trillion dollar
ecosystem services
into policy-making can help save cities
and regional authorities' money while boosting
the local economy, enhancing quality of
life, securing livelihoods and generating
employment.
This is the finding
from a major international study, launched
in a report by TEEB for Local and Regional
Policy Makers, released yesterday (September
9) in India, Brazil, Belgium, Japan and
South Africa.
The new report prepared
by The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity
(TEEB), initiative hosted by the United
Nations Environment Programme, calls on
local policy makers to understand the value
of their natural capital and the services
it provides and apply a focus on nature's
benefits in local policy areas such as urban
management, spatial planning and protected
areas management.
The report aims to provide
an inspiring starting point for thinking
local policy in a new way. Highlighting
practicality, the report calls for local
authorities to take a stepwise approach
to assessing options that factor nature's
benefits into local policy action. This
approach includes: assessing ecosystem services
and expected changes in their availability
and distribution; identifying which ecosystem
services are most relevant to particular
policy issues; assessing impacts of policy
options on different groups in the community.
The report highlights
cities dependence on nature and illustrates
how ecosystem services can provide cost
effective solutions to municipal services.
It shows how, in rural development and natural
resource management, ecosystems services
with high market value are often promoted
to the detriment of the regulating services
that are equally important but less obvious.
It investigates planning frameworks and
environmental impact assessments that can
proactively include a strong focus on ecosystem
services and identify the economic potential
of this shift in approach.
Enhancing local benefits
from conservation, protected areas is studied
and the report also offers guidance on incentives
that reward good stewardship of local natural
capital such as locally adapted payment
schemes for ecosystem services, certification
and labeling schemes.
Speaking on the eve
of the report launch, Pavan Sukhdev, TEEB's
Study Leader, said: "All economic activity
and most of human well-being whether in
an urban or non-urban setting is based on
a healthy, functioning environment. Nature's
multiple and complex values have direct
economic impacts on human well-being and
public spending at a local and well as national
level. By focusing on the various benefits
from nature we can see the direct and indirect
ways that we depend on the natural environment
and this insight can substantially support
local policy and public management. We urge
local authorities to read this report and
recognize the benefits provided by nature
and the economic dimension of their local
natural capital."
The report comes in
advance of the 10th Conference of Parties
to the Convention of Biological Diversity
(CBD COP10) meeting in Nagoya, Japan, this
October. Nagoya has also seen the benefit
of linking public policy with conservation
issues. In order to save the Fujimae Tidal
Flat, a vital migratory bird stopover site,
from being converted to a landfill site
to meet the city's waste management needs,
the City of Nagoya initiated a major waste
reduction and recycling programme.
This programme started
in 1998 and involved extensive community
education about correct recycling. The efforts
paid off and Nagoya met its target of a
20 per cent decrease in waste within two
years and won national awards for environmental
practice. In the last ten years the volume
of sorted waste has tripled, the volume
of processed waste is down 30 per cent and
the volume of landfill has been reduced
by 60 per cent. Since 2002 the Fujimae Tidal
Flat has been listed on the Ramsar List
of Wetlands of International Importance.
Achim Steiner, Executive
Director of the United Nations Environment
Programme, commented: "Sizing the problem
of ecosystem degradation and biodiversity
loss in economic terms was the main focus
for TEEB's report to CBD COP-9. Now as we
head towards COP-10 I am pleased to see
that TEEB's focus is on solutions that are
both workable and economically successful."
"State and provincial
governments, local authorities, city and
county councils - the audience for today's
new report - can all make a huge contribution
to overall efforts towards a transition
to a low carbon, resource efficient Green
Economy. This is because some 70 per cent
of humanity's ecological footprint is now
linked with the way resources are consumed
in cities. Some Local governments are already
rising to the challenge as the wide range
of case studies and solutions spotlighted
show - from land-use planning which incorporates
ecosystem service values, to new legislation
and payments for ecosystem services. Many
more now need to come onboard."
The TEEB for Local and
Regional Policy Makers report also underlines
three key issues beyond the appraisal of
ecosystem services that need attention if
natural capital will work for local development:
1. Ensure the fair distribution
of rights to nature's benefits. Policy changes
often affect service distribution or access
- and this must be considered during decision
making.
2. Maximise use of available
scientific and experience based knowledge
as this will help provide a common language
to capture diverse views.
3. Engage stakeholders
throughout the process to prioritize and
develop feasible and effective local policy
action.
TEEB has collaborated
with the European Environment Agency's online
Environmental Atlas to present a series
of case studies from around the world that
highlight efforts being made to incorporate
ecosystems and biodiversity into local policy
initiatives. The case studies can be accessed
via a link on www.teebweb.org.
Over 140 experts from
science, economics and policy from more
than 40 countries across the globe have
been involved in the research, analysis
and writing of the TEEB for Local and Regional
Policy Makers report, which has been coordinated
by Heidi Wittmer of the UFZ Helmholtz Research
Centre and Haripriya Gundimeda of the Indian
Institute of Technology.
TEEB is an independent
study, led by Pavan Sukhdev, hosted by United
Nations Environment Programme with financial
support from the European Commission; Germany,
UK, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden.
Pavan also spearheads the Green Economy
Initiative of the UN Environment Programme.
The TEEB for Local and
Regional Policy Makers report is one of
a series of five interconnected reports.
These include the Report on Ecological and
Economic Foundations, TEEB for Policy Makers
and TEEB for Business. A TEEB for citizens
website goes live in the lead up to Nagoya
and the final TEEB synthesis report will
be released at the CBD COP10 meeting at
Nagoya in October 2010.
Further information is at www.teebweb.org.
