The environmental goods and servicesalso called ecosystem services either Ecosystem servicesare products, resources or processes of natural ecosystems that benefit human beings.
It is called environmental goods to those products of nature that we take advantage of directly for use or consumption. The environmental services they are, instead, functions of nature that provide benefits to people and communities.
What are environmental goods and services?
It is basically those resources that the ecosystem provides us and that we need to live and produce. For this reason, global warming is one of the factors that most harms them since they damage and destroy the ecosystems that produce them.
The environmental goods are those products of nature that are directly usable for use or consumption. Are tangible resources that are used in production processes and that are transformed or spent on it. Examples of this can be water, medicinal plants, wood, forest seeds, fishing exploitation spaces.
Secondly, environmental services Are the ecosystem functions that are not exhausted in the production process and that have to do with the processes that are carried out in the environment that improve our quality of life.
In general, environmental goods and services are social goods or also called public goods. These are goods that come from the ecosystem and whose benefit is not exclusive, in addition to their consumption being non-rival.
But why when we talk about ecosystems and the environment do we do it in terms of goods and services?
because we are talking about them In economic terms. This idea derives from the principles of environmental economics which proposes to also take into account the use of environmental goods and services in terms of cost and benefit.
When traditional production is thought of, it is always calculated in terms of cost and benefit in monetary terms, but other aspects such as the ecological footprint that this generates, which is also a cost, are not generally taken into account. And a much more expensive one, speaking in long-term terms.
Thinking in terms of environmental economics implies taking these aspects into account and thereby beginning to quantify not only the environmental costs but also how these can be recovered or compensated.
So behind this concept lies the idea that the value of things should not be measured solely in transactional and monetary terms. And if we do so, taking into account what is generally thought of as an externality is essential.
Show that Nature not only has value in terms of landscape beauty, but life itself depends on the stability of ecosystems. If ecosystems are degraded, so are their services.
In this sense, if you search for example ”environmental goods and services pdf”, you will find different documents that explain the complexities of measuring these impacts.
According to environmental goods and environmental services that are being evaluated, an approach that analyzes in terms of direct and indirect use value and also non-use value will be used.
The direct use value it has to do with consumption or direct interaction in the market. They are those natural resources that are sold in the market, such as plants, wood, animals.
On the other hand the use value indirect it is not part of the market and refers to the value derived from the regulatory functions of the ecosystems that indirectly support the activities.
However, in some cases it is not possible to think in those terms, this happens with unique areas in the world that, for example, it is decided to conserve without taking into account the cost of it. Or with the protection of diversity, of endangered species. In this sense, it is measured non-use valuein order to preserve it for posterity.
Types of environmental goods and services
As explained above, they are also called Ecosystem services. These are benefits, in terms of goods, services and values, that the natural world provides to human beings. According to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment they are classified into four groups according to their function.
The supporting services are those benefits provided by ecosystems that are necessary for all others to exist. Some of them are soil formation, photosynthesis, primary production, nutrient cycling, and water cycling.
On the other hand, catering services are those products that are obtained from ecosystems – assimilable to environmental goods – such as water, raw materials, renewable fuels, geotic materials, minerals, biochemical and medicinal compounds.
There are also the regulation services which are the ecological processes that improve and make life possible. Some examples of these are the regulation of water cycles, erosion control, carbon capture and storage, waste decomposition, pollination, among others.
Also, there are cultural services which are those benefits that people obtain from the environment through reflection, recreation, experiences. Ecotourism is one of them, as well as the contemplation of natural landscapes.
All this means a way of valuing in economic, spiritual and moral terms those resources without which we could not live.
And you, what do you think of this way of classifying and quantifying the benefits of nature?
Sources: Sustainablepedia, Wikipedia, INTA