Using gross ecosystem product (GEP) to value nature in decision making
Chinese Academy of Sciences · Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences · +7 more institutions
Abstract
Gross domestic product (GDP) summarizes a vast amount of economic information in a single monetary metric that is widely used by decision makers around the world. However, GDP fails to capture fully the contributions of nature to economic activity and human well-being. To address this critical omission, we develop a measure of gross ecosystem product (GEP) that summarizes the value of ecosystem services in a single monetary metric. We illustrate the measurement of GEP through an application to the Chinese province of Qinghai, showing that the approach is tractable using available data. Known as the "water tower of Asia," Qinghai is the source of the Mekong, Yangtze, and Yellow Rivers, and indeed, we find that…
Citation impact
- FWCI
- 24.45
- Percentile
- 100%
- References
- 81
Authors
13- ZOZhiyun OuyangCorresponding
Chinese Academy of Sciences, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
- CSChangsu Song
Chinese Academy of Sciences, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
- HZHua Zheng
Chinese Academy of Sciences, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
- SPStephen Polasky
University of Minnesota
- YXYi Xiao
Chinese Academy of Sciences, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
Topics & keywords
- Ecosystem services
- Gross domestic product
- Ecosystem
- Product (mathematics)
- Natural resource economics
- China
- Economics
- Environmental resource management