Texas Forest Ecosystem Services Valuation

Timber, wood fiber, fuel wood Gas regulation and climate control Carbon sequestration Watershed services (water supply and quality) Clean air Soil stabilization and erosion control Recreational opportunities Aesthetic, cultural, and existence uses Wildlife habitat and biodiversity Soil formation

Forest Ecosystem ServicesProvisioning Services

Regulating Services

Cultural Services

Supporting Services

Forest Ecosystem Services (Why value?) Most are traditionally viewed as free benefit to society,

or “public good” Overlooked or undervalued in decision-making

Decision Making

Timber values

Land values

Carbon

Water

Air

Wildlife

Soil

Cultural Values

Quantify and assess the values of the various non-market ecosystem services provided by the Texas forests

Compare the values of forest ecosystem services under various forest management scenarios

Objectives

All forest in Texas — 63 million acres of rural forestland (defined by FIA, public and private), and more than 1.2 million acres of urban forest

Scope

Types of non-market ecosystem services valued:o Carbon storage and sequestration o Water supply and filtrationo Biodiversity and wildlife habitat o Cultural values

One time snap-shot

Scope

Valuation Framework

Forest Ecosystem

Provisioning Services

Regulating

Services

Supporting

Services

Cultural Services

Direct Use

Values

Indirect Use

Values

Option Values

Non-useValues

Total Values

Step 1. Specification the scope of the system to be valued

Step 1. Specification the scope of the system to be valued

Step 2. Assessment of ecosystem services in bio-physical terms

Step 3. Valuation using monetary terms

Step 4. Aggregation of the values from various services

Landscape classification (forest type, riparian status, watershed, biodiversity index…)

Multiple GIS layers

Methodology―Quantifying Ecosystem Services

Forest Resource Analysis (FIA)

Hydrography, Watershed

Biodiversity

Urban forest Canopy

Benefit transfer (adapting valuation estimates from previous studies to a similar area)

Original survey & econometric modeling (cultural value, asking Texans carefully designed questions to determine their willingness to pay for cultural value of the Texas forests)

Methodology ―Valuing Ecosystem Services

Valuation question (Stated Choice Method):

Suppose there was a ballot proposal that would result in changes

in the area of forest coverage in Texas and additional costs to you

in terms of higher wood products prices. Option A and B are

possible alternatives, and Status-quo is the current situation.

Given a choice between the three, how would you vote?

Texas Forest Cultural Value Survey

Most States

Virginia (2005)

Georgia (2011) Texas

Forest Products Values Yes Yes Yes Yes

Hunting/Tourism No Yes No Yes

Non-market Ecosystem Services Values

Private Forest No No Yes Yes

Public Forest No No No Yes

Comparison With Other Forest Impact Studies

Note: Black-studies already done Red-Impacts will be estimated in the current study

Values of the various ecosystem services provided by the Texas forests and their aggregated value

Spatial distribution of the forest ecosystem services in Texas (GIS map)

Identify forest management scenarios that result in higher values of ecosystem services

Expected Results

Raise awareness of the general public and policy makers about the importance of the Texas forests and encourage conservation of forests

Encourage decision makers to make better land use policy decisions by considering the total values of forests

Complement current economic impact report of the Texas forest sector for a more comprehensive assessment

Results Could Be Used to:

Identify “hot-spots” with high values of ecosystem services and encourage conservation

Encourage forest management practices that increase total values of the forests

Provide a more comprehensive assessment of the impacts of natural disasters

Results Could Be Used to:

Fire damage assessmentSince Nov. 15, 2010, more than 4.0 million acres of forestland have been burned in Texas.

― East TexasWithin 4 days of fire containment, we were able to estimate the values of timber damaged and the total impacts in terms of the loss of potential forest products. Ecosystem services were addressed descriptively.― West Texas

Results Could Be Used to:

Designed and conducted the survey on Texan’s opinion on forest ecosystem services− Mail survey (3,000)− Email survey (75,000)− 376 returned so far by mail

Estimated carbon stock and sequestration by the Texas forests, assessed the values

Estimated water originated from the Texas forests and their values

Estimated values of water filtration by the forests

Project Progress

Working on estimating values of wildlife habitat and biodiversityTexas Ecological Assessment Protocol (TEAP) by TPWD and EPA

Working on estimating value of urban forestsNowak (2010), USFS Northern Research Station, i-Tree model

Project Progress

Texas Forest Service: Burl Carraway (Department Head) Yanshu Li (Forest Economist) Chris Edgar (Resource Specialist) Brad Barber (GIS Manager)

Texas A&M AgriLife: Eric Taylor (Associate Professor, Forestry)

Team Member