An ecosystem services perspective for the economic value of seafood production supported by seagrass ecosystems: An exercise in Derawan Island, Indonesia

Abstract

Seagrass meadows provide provisioning services that play a vital role in food security and human wellbeing, especially on the small island. However, the utilisation value is uncalculated as support for seafood production and livelihoods for the community, because they are considered as alternative uses, so that seagrass ecosystem services are underestimated and undervalued. This paper aims to show the economic value provided by seagrass ecosystem services in providing seafood, both as a primary or secondary source. Through field survey and effect on production (EOP) analysis shows that capture fisheries and other marine biota collecting, both crustacean and mollusc species associated with the seagrass ecosystem are utilised directly by coastal communities in Derawan Island, Indonesia. Estimates of the economic value of fish and marine biota employed in the seagrass ecosystem area are US$ US$ 13,488.80 and US$ 35,744.69 per hectare per year, respectively, or a total of US$ 49,233.49 per hectare per year. This value demonstrates the potential importance of seagrass ecosystems. Unfortunately, these benefit values have not been fully understood by the communities, so that many people ignore the function of seagrass ecosystem services as provisioning services, although in the scarcity the utilisation of the seagrass ecosystem is quite intensive. Hence, the precautionary principle and suggesting conservation actions in a participatory manner is challenging to implement.