1 Webinar series. Module 4. 7th June 2013

The economic benefits of green infrastructure

Patrick ten Brink Senior Fellow and Head of Brussels Office, IEEP

24 September 2013

Meeting the EU 2020 Biodiversity Targets: Mainstreaming Conservation

Conference of the European Parliament Intergroup “Climate Change, Biodiversity and Sustainable Development”

Tuesday 24 September 2013 ASP 3E2

European Parliament, Brussels

Ecosystem Services

2

Supporting/habitat services:

Soil formation & fertility

Nutrient cycle

Photosynthesis

Cultural Services

Spiritual/religious experiences

Landscape value

Recreation & tourism

Cultural heritage

Education &scientific knowledge

Benefits we obtain from nature: people, society & economy

Provisioning services

Food, fibre, fuel

Fresh water

Genetic resources

Medicinal resources

Regulating Services

Climate regulation

Water purification

Air purification

Natural hazards management

Erosion control

Pollination

Qualitative, quantitative and

monetary assessments can

all be used to assess the benefits.

All levels generally needed to get a

full picture of the value of the

benefits.

Anthropocentric benefits complements intrinsic values of nature

Green infrastructure benefits

Natural resources

Water management

Climate regulation & adaptation

Health and well-being

Investment and employment

Tourism and recreation

Education

Land and property values

Resilience

Conservation benefits

Source: Mazza et al., 2010 adapted from Genecon LLP 2010

Core areas (ie large areas of healthy and functioning ecosystems,

such as Natural 2000 protect`ed areas)

Restoration zones (ie new areas of habitat for specific species or restored ecosystems for service provision)

Sustainable use/ecosystem service zones (ie areas that maintain or improve ecological quality through sustainable economic land uses)

Green urban and peri-urban areas (eg parks, gardens, grassy verges and green roofs)

Natural connectivity features (eg hedgerows and riparian river vegetation)

Artificial connectivity features (ie features assist species movement, such as green bridges

and eco-ducts)

Ecosystem Services

Benefits Green infrastructure

Evidence base: values of ecosystem services

1 10 100 1,000 10,000 100,000 1,000,000 10,000,000

Coral reefs (94)

Coastal wetlands (139)

Coastal systems (28)

Inland wetlands (168)

Tropical Forest (96)

Rivers and Lakes (15)

Temperate Forest (58)

Grasslands (32)

Woodlands (21)

Open oceans (14)

Sou

rces

: de

Gro

ot

et a

l 20

12

bu

ildin

g o

n T

EEB

201

0

For further details see Page 9 of Chapter 2

of the TEEB Water and Wetlands report and associated references

The TEEB Water and Wetlands (Russi et al., 2013)

http://www.ieep.eu/publications/2013/02/the-economics-of-ecosystems-and-biodiversity-for-water-and-wetlands

Benefits of Natura 2000 : The Backbone of EU’s GI A first economic estimate

26,000 sites ~ 18% of EU Benefit First Estimates of value

Natura 2000 network total

benefits

~ €200 - 300 bn/year Building on 3 estimates: €223 – 314 bn /yr (a) €251 – 360 bn /yr (b) €189 – 308 bn /yr (c)

Carbon sequestration /

storage

Current Stock: €600bn - €1130bn

Annual Sequestration Benefits:

€79-88bn increase to 2020 if

ecosystem quality is improved

€82-92bn to 2020 if +10% forest

area

Tourism expenditures

~€ 50-85 billion /year for 1.7 billion

visitor days (~466,000 visitors/day average)

~€ 9-20 billion/year directly for Natura 2000

Recreation (non market benefits)

~€ 5-9 billion/year

for Natura 2000 (4 € / visit )

Estimating the Overall Economic Value of the Benefits provided by the Natura 2000 Network (ten Brink et al., 2011). http://www.ieep.eu/publications/2012/06/estimating-the-overall-economic-value-of-the-benefits-provided-by-the-natura-2000-network

• Comparison between dikes and flood plains vs. storm surge barrier for flood protection:

• Assess the recreational benefits of creating new floodplains

• Payback period to meet flood mitigation objectives compared

• Based on these results, an integrated management plan was approved, integrating GI: restoration of approximately 2,500 ha of intertidal and 3,000 ha of non-tidal areas, reinforcement of dikes, and dredging to improve the fairway to Antwerp

© Daniela Russi

Scheldt estuary, Belgium and the Netherlands

Picture: http://www.sigmaplan.be

@ Daniela Russi Slide by Daniela Russi, IEEP

Restoration: can be costly, but can offer good returns

1 10 100 1,000 10,000 100,000 1,000,000 10,000,000 100,000,000

Coral reefs [7]

Coastal systems/Mangroves/Estuaries [9]

Marine [4]

Woodland/Shrubland [7]

Lakes/Rivers [26]

Inland Wetlands [4]

Tropical forest [10]

Temperate forest [20]

Grassland/Rangeland [6]

2

4 3

1

7

6 5

14 15 13 12 11

10

8 9

16

Sou

rces

: Aro

nso

n e

t a

l. 2

01

0

For further details see Chapter 5, page 48 of the

TEEB Water and Wetlands report and associated references

The TEEB Water and Wetlands (Russi et al., 2013)

http://www.ieep.eu/publications/2013/02/the-economics-of-ecosystems-and-biodiversity-for-water-and-wetlands

Climate Mitigation: Peatland restoration in Bellacorick, Ireland: €1,506 per ha for the avoided carbon loss & €118/ha/yr ave. net carbon sequestration (5.9 tCO2eq.

/ha.yr) (Wilson et al. 2012)

Climate change adaptation: restoration of floodplains Danube River: Cost €183m, while est. annual revenues €85.6 million & flood cost savings of €396 million (Hulea et al., 2009).

Flood control benefits: assessment for several French river basins indicate benefits ranging from € 37/ha/year to € 617/ha/year (Schéhérazade et al., 2010)

Tourism: Cairngorms National Park, Scotland receives around 1.4 million visitors a year

Economic impact and Employment: Natura 2000 network implementation est. to increase nat. GDP by 0.1 to 0.26 % and generate 12,792 additional jobs (Fernandez et al 2008)

Investments in Nature & GI can help meet Cohesion Policy objectives

The Guide to Multi-Benefit Cohesion Policy Investments in Nature and Green Infrastructure (Hjerp et al., 2011) http://www.ieep.eu/publications/2013/09/the-guide-to-multi-benefit-cohesion-policy-investments-in-nature-and-green-infrastructure

Around 930,000 ha of peatlands have been drained in Germany for agriculture, 300,000 of which in the area of Mecklenburg- Vorpommern. Peatland drainage causes emissions of around 20 million tonnes of CO2-eq. per year

Between 2000 and 2008, 29,764 ha of peatlands have been restored, by raising the water level in order to prevent further oxidation of the peat

Also, a system of carbon credits for the voluntary market was established

The carbon credits were called MoorFutures. They cost 35€ and correspond to 1tCO2/yr each

8,000 MoorFutures sold in M-V so far restoration of 55 ha

A

© http://www.moorfutures.de

Source: TEEB case by Förster (2009), mainly based on MLUV - Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (2009), Schäfer (2009)

The MoorFutures programme (restoration+offsetting credits)

Slide by Daniela Russi, IEEP

Green infrastructure a driver of growth

Green Infrastructure contribution to economic growth): CRESR and Eftec for Defra and Natural England 2013 http://randd.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=More&Location=None&Completed=0&ProjectID=19056#Description

Summary

Benefits from GI: biodiversity, society and economy

Measurement: in qualitative, quantitative, monetary & spatial terms

GI Policy synergies: clear benefits re Biodiversity & Cohesion Policy

Benefits also for climate mitigation and adaptation, water purification and

supply, local and regional development, jobs and growth

Benefits are case specific: important to look carefully at the whole picture

Long term green growth and resource efficiency objectives would

benefit from working with nature and Green infrastructure

Further reading

12

The Guide to Multi-Benefit Cohesion Policy Investments in Nature and Green Infrastructure (Hjerp et al., 2011)

http://www.ieep.eu/publications/2013/09/the-guide-to-multi-benefit-cohesion-policy-investments-in-nature-and-green-infrastructure

Book: Social and Economic Benefits of Protected Areas: An Assessment Guide (Kettunen and ten Brink eds, 2013) http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415632843/

The TEEB Water and Wetlands (Russi et al., 2013) http://www.ieep.eu/publications/2013/02/the-economics-of-ecosystems-and-biodiversity-for-water-and-wetlands

The Nature and the Transition to a Green Economy (ten Brink et al., 2012) http://www.ieep.eu/publications/2012/10/nature-and-its-role-in-the-transition-to-a-green-economy--1157

Guides on mainstreaming values into National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) + webinars (UNEP-WCMC and IEEP 2012) http://www.ieep.eu/newsletter/summer-2013/ieep-builds-capacity-in-mainstreaming-natures-values/

Book: The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) in National and International Policy Making (ed. Patrick ten Brink 2011) www.teebweb.org or via www.ieep.eu

Estimating the Overall Economic Value of the Benefits provided by the Natura 2000 Network (ten Brink et al., 2011).

http://www.ieep.eu/publications/2012/06/estimating-the-overall-economic-value-of-the-benefits-provided-by-the-natura-2000-network

Green Infrastructure options (Mazza et al, 2010) http://www.ieep.eu/assets/898/Green_Infrastructure_Implementation_and_Efficiency.pdf

Green Infrastructure contribution to economic growth): CRESR and Eftec for Defra and Natural England 2013 http://randd.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Menu=Menu&Module=More&Location=None&Completed=0&ProjectID=19056#Description

www.ieep.eu @IEEP_eu

IEEP is an independent not for profit institute dedicated to advancing an environmentally sustainable Europe through policy analysis, development and

dissemination.

Patrick ten Brink

ptenbrink@ieep.eu

Thank you for your attention!