Valuation of Ecosystem Services in Carpathian Protected Areas with focus on Slovakia – Guidelines for rapid assessment

Radoslav POVAŽAN¹, Michael GETZNER², Ján KADLEČÍK^3 
1 Občianske združenie Pronatur, Pronatur Generála Svobodu 1977/27, SK-960 01 Zvolen; radopovazan@gmail.com
² Technická univerzita vo Viedni, Resselgasse 5/2/2, AT-1040 Viedeň; michael.getzner@tuwien.ac.at
³ Štátna ochrana prírody Slovenskej republiky, Tajovského 28B, SK-974 01 Banská Bystrica; jan.kadlecik@sopsr.sk

Abstract

Ecosystem services of protected areas are usually not a subject of market trade and thus are not attributed a market price, In order to ascertain the value of ecosystem services with respect to the establishment and management of protected areas (PA), a range of economic methods for valuing these non-market benefits have been developed. The current paper presents a simple methodology for rapid assessment and rough valuation, and for clarifying some basic principles and approaches in terms of a “value of ecosystem services expressed in money terms”. The results of rough valuation done by protected area managers using this methodology should help protected area practitioners to convince others – and themselves – about the tremendous value of protected areas, including their “market” and “non-market” value. It should also help when negotiating with decision makers against investments harmful to the ecology of the park, or for policies in favour of sustainable use of these resources. This exercise should be a useful tool to convince people that protected areas are offering more than a space for researchers or for the people enjoying nature. Protected areas offer real services to everyone’s benefit and it is possible to assess them. As such, rough estimation of the protected areas’ values results in only a first approximation of these values. In order to derive specific and more sound/well-researched values, comprehensive detailed scientific economic studies have to be commissioned.

Key words: guidelines, valuation, ecosystem services, protected areas, use values, non-use values