New TEEB report assesses German natural capital in rural areas
The economic value of services provided by nature for people and society is often systematically underestimated. This is the key finding of the second phase of the report "Natural Capital Germany – TEEB DE", which summarises research findings with regard to rural areas. The study provides many valuable arguments advocating a new ecological focus in agricultural policy.
What are the economic benefits of nature conservation? What are the costs of foregoing nature conservation? The Natural Capital report examines these questions. An economic perspective will generate more transparency in relation to nature's potential and services, thus enabling their better integration into decision-making processes. The project is being financed by the Federal Environment Ministry and the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation and managed by the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ).
The report showcases several examples of the economic importance of nature:
- Current nature conservation measures focussing on floodplains, bogs and agricultural landscapes reduce the amount of pollutants introduced into the waters. Society thus saves on the costs for the prevention of water pollution which equate to approximately 230 million euros per year.
- Meadows and pastures are good for biodiversity, climate change mitigation, water pollution control and the prevention of erosion. Progressive ploughing of arable grasslands leads to significant follow-up social costs, which are estimated at between 440 and 3,000 euros per hectare per year.
- Leaving a riparian buffer strip to be taken over by nature rather than using it for agricultural purposes is an excellent investment from a societal point of view: the benefits alone for water quality in streams and rivers, for marine conservation, fishing and biodiversity are almost twice as great as the costs incurred (by a factor of 1.8).
The report encourages agricultural policy payments to be linked more strongly to the provision of services that are beneficial to society. According to the report, systematic shifting of subsidies towards the goal oriented remuneration of ecological services would mobilise significant potential in agriculture for natural capital conservation and public service provision.