Ecosystem service valuation following the TEEB framework
Conducting surveys with tourists or residents creates understanding of local issues, such as waste management, coastal development as well as insight in usage of ecosystem service. Moreover, a willingness-to-pay (WTP) for nature conservation can be established through Choice Experiments. Valuation of priority ecosystem goods and services, also by other means then WTP, are combined to arrive at an estimate of the Total Economic Value (TEV) following the TEEB framework. Results are used in applications, such as scenarios, valuemaps and decision support systems.
- Primary data collection through surveys (WTP)
- Quality check of values, discount rates and sensitivity analysis with scientific experts
- Existing and proven methodology (TEEB)
- Involved stakeholders
- Budget to realize surveys (around 400 to 800 questionnaires)
- Depending on the available data certain methods can be used and others not
- Primary data collection provides better and more usable results
- Be very clear on the difference between financial value and socio-economic value
- There is always uncertainty
- Deal with lack of solid data by collecting data yourself, make assumptions or qualitatively describe, what you can not value