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The Economic Values of the World’s Wetlands

15 junio 2007

Kirsten Schuyt
WWF-International
Gland, Switzerland

Luke Brander
Institute for Environmental Studies
Vrije Universiteit
Amsterdam, The Netherlands

WWF, January 2004

This publication gives a comprehensive overview of the economic importance of wetlands and the need to preserve them.

Wetlands are ecosystems that provide numerous goods and services that have an economic value, not only to the local population living in its periphery but also to communities living outside the wetland area.

They are important sources for food, fresh   water and  building materials and provide valuable services such  as water treatment and erosion control. The estimates in this paper show, for example, that unvegetated sediment wetlands like the Dutch Wadden Sea and the Rufiji Delta in Tanzania have the highest median economic values of all wetland types at $374 per hectare per year.

Threats to wetlands

Wetlands are often perceived to have little or no value compared to other uses of its lands and water that may yield more visible and immediate economic benefits. Some of the uses that threaten wetlands are:

As a consequence, wetlands all over the world are continually modified and reclaimed at great cost. Since, 1900 more than half the world’s wetlands have disappeared. The root cause of much wetland degradation is information failure – decision-makers often have insufficient understanding of the values of wetlands, including the economic value, so the protection of wetlands does not appear to be a serious alternative.

$70 billion worth of freshwater resources

Total Economic Value of Global Wetlands by Continent and Wetland Type (thousands of US$ per year, 2000)

Mangrove Unvegetated Sediment Salt/ Brackish Marsh Freshwater Marsh Freshwater Woodland TOTAL N America 30,014 550,980 29,810 1,728 64,315 676,846 Latin America 8,445 104,782 3,129 531 6,125 123,012 Europe 0 268,333 12,051 253 19,503 300,141 Asia 27,519 1,617,518 23,806 29 149,597 1,818,534 Africa 84,994 159,118 2,466 334 9,775 256,687 Australasia 34,696 147,779 2,120 960 83,907 269,462 Total 185,667 2,848,575 73,382 3,836 333,223 3,444,682

A powerful argument to preserve wetlands

These estimates are intended to clarify for policy makers that wetlands are economically valuable biomes that provide goods and services upon which many communities and economies depend. Recognizing the economic importance of wetlands in addition to their biodiversity, scientific value, climate regulation, potential tourism, socio-cultural and other important wetland values (that were not included in the calculations in this study) is yet another good reason to reverse global wetland loss.