The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity: Ecological and Economic Foundations

Essentially this is a giant review of the environmental economics literature, notable principally for how well it has been promoted. It contains a large compendium of individual studies in the form of a set of appendices, and it is the specific monetary values from these which have received by far the most media attention.\n\nThe bulk of this volume, however, focuses more on methodological issues. There are seven chapters. The first introduces the overall framework. The second reviews ecosystem services; the third addresses biophysical indicators; and the fourth provides a sociocultural context. The fifth reviews economic valuation approaches; the sixth looks at discounting options; and the seventh examines…