Estimating the ecosystem service losses from proposed land reclamation projects: A case study in Xiamen

Abstract

Economic valuation of ecosystem damages is an important building block in the development of full cost accounting which may lead to improvements in environmental policy making. Based on an analysis of the negative impacts of land reclamation on coastal ecosystem services and a review of different valuation techniques, this study develops a framework for selecting relevant valuation methods for different ecosystem services and for developing total ecosystem loss estimates for land reclamation projects. We illustrate the framework through a case study of Tong'an Bay, Xiamen, China where four reclamation schemes have been proposed. The results show that the costs associated with ecosystem damages are significantly higher than the internal costs of these reclamation projects.Land reclamation Coastal ecosystem services Ecosystem valuation Environmental damage Coastal management