Resource information
This paper presents a somewhat novel
approach to explore the economic contribution of ecosystems.
It develops linked models to capture connections between
resource stocks and flows and the resulting microeconomic
and macroeconomic impacts. A bioeconomic model is developed
that is imbedded into a computable general equilibrium (CGE)
model. Incorporating imperfect regulation, the bioeconomic
model characterizes optimal policies, while the CGE model
explores the economy-wide consequences of possible changes
to the ecosystem. The model is parameterized and calibrated
to the case of the Serengeti ecosystem which is perhaps the
most intensively researched biome with a relative abundance
of data. This ecosystem is also undergoing rapid change from
a host of factors related to developments within and around
the protected area system. The analysis identifies the
contribution of the ecosystem to the economy and finds that
changes in tourism and bushmeat hunting have surprisingly
diffuse economy-wide impacts, that are especially large in
the rural sector. To guard against overstatement, ecosystem
impacts are under-stated relative to other effects. The
results suggest that linkages to the natural resource sector
(backward and forward multipliers) are important and
neglecting these may lead to biased estimates.
