16th COP of the Barcelona Convention, Marrakech, 3-5th November 2009. Mediterranean marine and coastal ecosystems: an economic valuation Page de titre 2 plus grand public

Framework: Objectives; Conceptual framework; Methodology Plan Framework: Objectives; Conceptual framework; Methodology Results: At the regional scale; At the national scale; Discussions Perspectives: Study implications; Policy implications 2

Contribute to the economic analysis of ecosystems in line with: Framework Objectives Enhance awareness of the benefits to society provided by marine and coastal ecosystem in the Mediterranean region Offer policy makers a common metric for better management of environmental issues Contribute to the economic analysis of ecosystems in line with: Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA,2000-2005); Accounting for Economic Activities in Large Marine Ecosystems and Regional Seas (UNEP, 2006); System of Environmental and Economic Accounting (UN, 2003); The Economics of Ecosystem and Biodiversity (EC, 2007-2010) … 3

Framework Conceptual framework Contribution of ecosystem to human well being Plan Bleu (2008) Inspired from the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, Accounting for Economic Activities in Large Marine Ecosystems and Regional Seas and The Economics of Ecosystem and Biodiversity Macroeconomic approach at regional scale Adapted from the System of Environmental and Economic Accounting Excluding non sustainable uses of ecosystem services 4

Framework Methodology First exploration at the scale of the Mediterranean sea Implementation of a quantitative analysis of the economic value of ecosystem services Benefits provided by marine and coastal ecosystems to riparian countries Estimation of the benefits based on proxy values Focused on direct benefits e.g. fishing excluding sea food processing Methodology and preliminary results constrained by existing data availability 5

Results At the regional scale Annual value of direct benefits in 2005: Benefits Proxy Value (million €) Fishing and aquaculture VA * SC (=0.8) 2 869 Hotels and restaurants 5% VACA 4 133 Int. Tourism 3 804 Real estate 5% housing expenditures in CA 11 198 Coastal protection from erosion Protection expenditures * threatened artificialized CA *presence of Posidonia meadows 530 Global climate regulation Sequestrated CO2 value 2 220 Regional climate regulation Recorded rainfall in catchment area * water shadow price 2 490 Waste treatment CA sewage * compensation fee 2 570 Total benefits Aggregation 29 814 VA : Value Added SC : sustainability Coefficient 29,8 billion € represent 15% of the Greek GNI and 1,3 times the Tunisian GNI. VA: Value Added SC: Sustainability Coefficient CA: Coastal Areas 6

Results At the national scale Two countries in focus(1) : Greece and Tunisia Benefits Values for Greece (million €) Values for Tunisia Fishing and aquaculture 735 206 Hotels and restaurants 680 125 Int. Tourism 443 70 Real estate 1 078 77(2) Coastal protection from erosion Global climate regulation 100 20 Regional climate regulation 23 4 Waste treatment 216 58 Total benefits 3 275 560 Gross National Income 194 624 22 035 % of GNI 2% 3% Bien que  l’écart de la valeur totale des bénéfice soit importante (Grèce = 5,8 fois la Tunisie), on observe le même ordre de proportion (rente/PIN) : 2% pour la Grèce et 3% pour la Tunisie. The value of the total benefits in Greece worth 5,8 times the value of benefits in Tunisia (1) National disaggregation from the regional study, same coefficient applied. (2) estimation assuming same ratio of VA in real estate to GNI as in Turkey, i.e. 17% 7

Results Discussions The results: Illustrate the importance of services provided by marine and coastal ecosystem Provide a low estimation of all benefits included: Only some direct benefits were valuable (data needs, …); Valuation doesn’t count indirect benefits (spread in the different linked activities, ex: benefits to the fishing branch…); This valuation doesn’t reflect the value of the stock (natural capital) but only the flows for one year (benefits provided) Need to be comforted, reinforced. 8

Implications of the methodology used: Results Discussions Implications of the methodology used: Restriction to sustainable uses of ecosystem services results in a lower value of the benefits provided. Application of the SEEA framework to marine and coastal ecosystems requires extensive data generation, collection, and dissemination Estimation at the macro level should be consistant with results obtained in local studies. 9

Perspectives Study implications Possible improvements: Promote acquisition of ecological and economic data Implementation of studies at national or sub national scale Local studies required to assess the benefits provided by remarkable ecosystems such as Posidonia meadows Sector coverage still in progress : marine transportation, aggregate extraction, … Identify key issues with Mediterranean stakeholders: Economic dependency on natural assets? Cost of ecosystem degradation? Benefits of conservation? Introduction of economic incentives (e.g Payment for Ecosystem Services)? Green accounting? Etc. 10

Perspectives Usefulness of such studies Highlight our economic dependency on ecosystem services provided by the Mediterranean sea: Dependency linked to the abundance, quality, and resilience of natural assets Warn against a possible “Tragedy of the commons” (Hardin, 1968). Stress the pros and cons of introducing incentives to limit opportunistic behaviors in the exploitation of natural resource, and the risks of environmental impacts detrimental to ecosystem services. 11

Perspectives Usefulness of such studies Balance benefits provided and environmental impacts: policy implications Identification of environmental functioning and impacts, and quantification of physical flows Quantitative assessment of the costs of environmental degradation (TEEB running project) and the benefits of conservation. Inclusion of environmental assets and flows in national economic assessments of riparian countries (using the SEEA approach). 12

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