The Value of Biodiversity

Glossary Accounting prices Accounting or shadow prices are measures of the social opportunity cost of resource use. The accounting price of a resource is the increase in social wellbeing that would be enjoyed if a unit more of the resource was made available at no cost. Ecological functions The combinations of ecosystem component and ecosystem processes that enable ecosystems to support primary production and to maintain populations of species. Economic valuation The methods used to identify society’s willingness to pay for the nonmarket benefits obtained from ecosystems. Ecosystem processes Biogeochemical cycling, including primary production (photosynthesis), nutrient and water cycling, and materials decomposition, and the flow, storage,