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Note: Session titles beginning with an asterisk (*) have student presenters.
AUTHORS: Scott Chiavacci, Emily Pindilli – Science and Decisions Center, U.S. Geological Survey
ABSTRACT: Market-based (e.g., conservation banking) and market-like (e.g., Payments for Ecosystem Services) conservation incentives serve as mechanisms to encourage landowners to manage their lands for species conservation. Reviews of these markets, however, have highlighted a number of factors hindering their use and efficiency. One of these factors is the lack of transparency and availability of details regarding the quantification methods (i.e., tools) used to estimate biodiversity benefits, which often take the form of credits. By making the design and functions of these tools more transparent and increasing their availability, entities looking to develop markets may save time and money by relying on or drawing from already developed tools instead of developing their own from scratch. To this end, we have been collecting detailed information on all quantification tools being used or developed in the United States. We have created a database that houses a list of these tools, their associated documents (e.g., User Guides, credit calculators), and criteria that describe the functions and attributes of each tool. These criteria cover general tool information, ecological/geographic features of tools, data collection/input/analysis requirements, and the specific measures each tool incorporates in its quantification of species or habitats. To date, we have identified over 40 tools covering at least 27 species and 9 habitat types. In addition to evaluating tools, we are using the database to understand potential gaps in tool design and use that could better guide and improve the development of such tools in the future.
Tuesday October 31, 2017 10:35am - 10:50am EDT
McCreary