Quantifying the economic co-benefits of conservation action in the Fraser River Estuary

Popular belief suggests that investing in conservation costs jobs and economic opportunities. This argument continues to be used to steer investment away from conservation and towards industries that exploit natural resources. Part of this argument originates from how we currently evaluate economic return on investment for conservation action. Current methods do not properly account for economic co-benefits. Co-benefits are additional benefits beyond the direct gains associated with investing in conservation for a species. For example, salmon conservation in BC will indirectly boost the whale tourism industry, since salmon are a primary food source for southern resident killer whales. Our proposed research will build a framework for properly accounting for the co-benefits of conservation action. We will then apply this framework to a case study in the Fraser River estuary, to determine the economic return of investing in conservation in this highly biodiverse and urbanized region. We hypothesize that when the co-benefits of conservation action are considered, the economic gains will offset the cost of investment.

Faculty Supervisor:

Tara Martin

Student:

Partner:

Raincoast Conservation Foundation

Discipline:

Life Sciences

Sector:

Other services (except public administration); Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

The University of British Columbia

Program: