Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Table 5.2
New commodities and markets for ecosystem services
Commodity
Share of
business (%)
Client
Wheat
40
World market
Wool
15
World market
Timber
10
World and local markets for wide range of
products from pulpwood to specialty timber;
biomass energy for local energy suppliers to
national electricity grid or local liquid fuel
distribution.
Carbon credits
7.5
Industrial consumers of fossil fuels, e.g. steel mills
Salinity credits
7.5
Public and private funds/enterprises and
individuals driving cost sharing for catchment
management
Water supply
management
15
Water supply companies
Biodiversity
credits
5
Public and private trusts investing in natural
heritage
and maintenance of native biota will require a robust understanding of land-
scape processes and functions, good maps of landscape properties, particu-
larly salt storage and groundwater flow, and an understanding of the
distribution and abundance of flora and fauna.
Such a mosaic of ecologically sustainable, commercial land uses could be
combined with land uses that provide ecosystem services that are valued and
paid for by stakeholders and beneficiaries. The consequence would be that
rural enterprises might derive their income from sources other than tradi-
tional food and fibre production. For example, they might provide services
paid for by either private or public stakeholders and beneficiaries, or in some
innovative mix. A possible set of diverse sources of income is set out in
Table 5.2.
However, while visions for sustainable landscapes are emerging, many of
the components described above do not yet exist. A substantial new research
and development effort is needed that tackles the redesign of farming
systems and their integration into the landscape as a whole. This needs to
combine biophysical and economic studies that deliver:
novel designs well matched to soil, climate and catchment
circumstances, including biodiversity
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