Ecosystem valuation: Concept, criteria and terminology

作者：Mark Westoby, David Coleman, David J. Eldridge, Robert M. Kooyman, Martyna M. Kotowska, Max Mallen‐Cooper, Julian Schrader, Ian Watson · 发表于：Methods in Ecology and Evolution · 年份：2026 · DOI：10.1111/2041-210x.70279 · 被引用次数：1 · 研究领域：Land Use and Ecosystem Services、Environmental Conservation and Management、Coastal wetland ecosystem dynamics

Abstract Furlaud et al. (2026) discussed how to measure ‘ecosystem condition’. Here, we argue that the term ‘ecosystem valuation’ should be preferred. ‘Valuation’ signals clearly that a social or political value judgement is being made about which ecosystem states to rate most highly. Furlaud et al. interpreted condition as similarity to a preindustrial or reference state. However, many different criteria have been proposed for valuing different ecosystem states. The word condition risks giving the impression that ecosystem science has arrived objectively at a single criterion. We recommend also that particular criteria for valuation should be named in a way that summarizes what they actually are: for example, conservation of endangered species, pastoral value, carbon storage or similarity to preindustrial.