Understanding production possibility frontiers and utility values of ecosystem services in the Himalayas: An analysis of the supply-demand divide

Abstract

Nature's services to humanity − ecosystem services (ES) − have been at the centre of natural resource management scholarship for the last few decades. Yet, quantification of ES supply and its economic valuation have dominated the academia. Spatial associations of multiple ES and their mutual production possibilities, social dimensions of ES demand, and the gaps between supply and demand of ES have not been sufficiently articulated in the literature, especially for the Himalayan landscapes. In this context, using satellite images, secondary data, and household survey (n = 300), we identified the supply-demand divide of ES by assessing production possibility frontiers and social demand of ES in the central regions of Hindu-Kush Himalayas. Among the six major ES that we considered in this research (crop production, timber production, carbon sequestration, water yield, soil conservation, and habitat quality), production possibilities of the other five ES get diminished with the increasing supply of crop production. Timber production, carbon sequestration, habitat quality, and soil conservation can be mutually incremental through the allocation of sufficient forestland areas. Local people's demand of water yield and crop production is very high as compared to those of the others, yet the current state of supply potential of those ES is largely inadequate to meet the demands. Instead of generalized management prescriptions, we recommend for the people- and place-based interventions in ecosystem management. Nonetheless, improved agronomic practices and integration of farming with forestry, carbon, and climate actions might be the safe operating space for sustainable landscape management in the Himalayas.