Non-market Ecosystem Services Research Articles

Financing ecosystem restoration

The global community has outlined ambitious ecosystem restoration targets. Yet implementation is slow, and a lack of funding is a key barrier to upscaling restoration activities. Most restoration projects are funded by public institutions and recent high-level initiatives have emphasised the need to scale private finance in restoration. Private finance can be channelled into restoration through various financial mechanisms but is held back by a lack of return-making investment opportunities. Various institutions have now been created to commodify previously non-market ecosystem services and make them investable, most prominently voluntary carbon markets and biodiversity compliance market-like mechanisms, such as biodiversity-offsetting systems targeting the achievement of 'no net loss' of biodiversity for a given regulated sector. However, attracting private finance into restoration comes with risks, as private finance objectives in restoration often are misaligned with wider social and ecological objectives. Private finance mechanisms to date have tended to underinvest in monitoring and impact evaluation mechanisms and to favour investments in cost-effective nature-based solutions such as plantation monocultures over naturally regenerated ecosystems. Many technological and institutional solutions have been proposed, but these cannot mitigate all risks. Therefore, scaling of ecosystem restoration through market-like mechanisms requires substantial fundamental investments in governance and civil society oversight to ensure that ecological integrity and social equity is safeguarded. Here, we outline the high-level policy landscape driving restoration finance and explore the roles and potential of both public and private investment in restoration. We explain how some common mechanisms for drawing private investment into restoration work in practice. Then, we discuss some of the shortcomings of past private finance initiatives for ecosystem restoration and highlight essential lessons for how to safeguard the ecological and social outcomes of private investments in ecosystem restoration.

Weather variability risks slow climate adaptation: An empirical analysis of forestry

The timing of climate adaptation decisions can have substantial consequences for the assessment of climate damages. Since weather variability can create risks for natural resource management that differ across adaptation choices, such variability has the potential to alter the speed of climate adaptation. This paper estimates the effect of weather variability on the timing of adaptation decisions of forest landowners in the Eastern United States. A discrete-choice econometric model of forest management is estimated and used in a bio-economic simulation that shows how variability in cold temperatures can significantly slow the rate of adapting from cold-tolerant natural hardwood forests to cold-sensitive, but highly valuable pine plantations. The range of weather variability in climate projections and across the landscape generates large differences in adaptation timing. Ignoring projected future decreases in weather variability results in a large downward bias in estimating future paths of climate adaptation. Since pine plantations produce fewer non-market ecosystem services than natural hardwood forests, an important source of future conservation uncertainty is the economic response of private forest landowners to changing weather variability.

Assessment Paddy Rice Ecosystem Services on Awareness and Satisfaction Level of Local People In Hongthai, Vietnam

The paddy fields in Hongthai is considered as one of the most beautiful terraced fields in the Northeast of Vietnam. However, the efficiency of use of paddy rice ecosystem services here is still limited. The study was conducted to assess farmers’ awareness and satisfaction level of the paddy rice ecosystem services in Hongthai by using questionnaire survey. The results show that the paddy rice ecosystem provides many services to the farmers, specifically 12 non-market services, in which the majority of farmers clearly identify regulating services such as groundwater replenishment, flood prevention and soil erosion control. Also, although income from tourism is still low, most farmers in Hongthai are aware of the importance of cultural services such as tourist landscapes and culture. However, for other regulating and supporting services, farmers’ awareness is still limited. The satisfaction level of farmers in Hongthai with the paddy rice ecosystem services is still low (2.7/10). The reason is explained by the limited awareness of the ethnic people and the local government have not yet exploited and used the non-market ecosystem service values ​​to bring benefits. In the future, it is necessary to actively propagate and raise farmers' awareness about paddy rice ecosystem services and valuate non-market ecosystem services to provide a scientific basis for policy makers. The appropriate legal framework and supporting policies need to be developed for the conservation of paddy rice ecosystems through the services it provides.

Roots of Ecosystem Services from Economics

The consequence of human action on environmental resources was noticed by ancient thinkers like Plato. Modern concern for natural resources started with the publication of Marsh’s book Man and Nature in 1864 where he pointed out that natural resources are not infinite. Nature always remained at a core position in economic analysis. During pre-classical period, physiocrats believed that nature was the primary source of value. Classical economists like Ricardo, Malthus, Mill, put nature as an important determinant in their theories. But classical economists concentrated only to the use values, neglecting their exchange values. The writings of Marx are also rich in ecological hints. Rise of neoclassical economists brought about a change in economic analysis. Emphasis was shifted from use value to exchange value. By 1930s scope of economic analysis was restricted to the factors that command price. Gradually, natural resources completely disappeared from economic production function. Economists started to believe that natural resources can substituted for manufactured capital. During that period, non-marketed ecosystem services were kept outside the scope of economic analysis. The advent of environmentalists during the second half of 20th century opened the door for non-marketed services to be incorporated in economic analysis. For this purpose, they devised various tools like market value approaches, revealed preference approaches and stated preference approaches. Present paper will give an account of the trend of environmental concern in economic analysis.

Assessing the Value of Ecosystem Services From an Indigenous Estate: Warddeken Indigenous Protected Area, Australia

The value of ecological systems to human well-being and the economy is often not estimated in contemporary economic and policy decision making processes. Estimating non-marketable and marketable values of ecosystem services from Indigenous managed land provides significant information about the role that the natural environment plays in maintaining the well-being of people. This research investigates the value of ecosystem services from an Indigenous Protected Area, the Warddeken Indigenous Protected Area—an estate managed by Indigenous people in northern Australia. It provides valuable insights for policy makers, land managers, and future development programs while informing the importance of managing Indigenous lands for the local and wider public benefits. Additionally, applying the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment framework and the standard ecological economic valuation techniques, this study presents ‘realistic’ values of marketable and non-marketable ecosystem services identified from the Warddeken Indigenous Protected Area. The total value of ecosystem services was estimated at $32.6 million per year, which are largely non-marketable (such as climate and water regulation) and these values flow to the local and wider public. This research further argues that investing in managing Indigenous estates helps in reducing welfare costs for the Australian Government worth, in the case of the Warddeken Indigenous Protected Area, $8 million per year. Overall, the value of ecosystem services and cost savings demonstrate the real benefits that Indigenous people obtain for working on their land, termed as “Country.” In addition, Indigenous land management delivers offsite ecological, social, and cultural ecosystem services (value estimated at $29 million per year for the Warddeken Indigenous Protected Area) which are typically ignored in policy decision making regarding Indigenous matters in Australia. This study highlights the importance of land managed by Indigenous people in Australia and worldwide to comprehend the real value of benefits and suggests developing appropriate stewardship arrangements to support people’s efforts.

Valuing water purification services of forests: a production function approach using panel data from China's Sichuan province

AbstractThe water purification functions of forests represent one of the most frequently invoked examples of nonmarket ecosystem services that are economically valuable. This study quantifies the monetary value of forests' water purification services in the form of the ensuing cost savings of municipal drinking water treatment, using a rich panel dataset from China's Sichuan province. Moreover, this study has undertaken a novel spatial piecewise approach to investigate the spatial patterns of such cost savings delivered by forests at different distances from the water intake point. The estimation results find that forests within a 2 km radius upstream from the water intake point have the most sizeable and statistically significant cost saving effect. For forests within a 3 km radius, this effect becomes somewhat smaller but remains statistically significant. Beyond a 4 km radius, this effect becomes notably smaller and statistically equal to zero. Our analysis facilitates the optimal spatial targeting of forest conservation.

Integrating Ecosystem Services Valuation into Land Use Planning: Case of the Ukrainian Agricultural Landscapes

Modern agricultural landscapes produce multiple ecosystem services. Ecosystem services in agricultural landscapes have social, economic, and environmental value—providing a wide array of benefits to society. Absence of scientifically based and practically tested methodologies of identification, mapping, and evaluation of ecosystem services in agricultural landscapes hamper integration of its values in the current system of land use planning. The value of ecosystem services is calculated for the case study territory located within the administrative borders of Kolomak Territorial Community in Bohodukhiv district, Kharkiv region (Ukraine). The highest estimated value among non-market ecosystem services is carbon storage service, and among market services—food production. The baseline scenario of land use (business as usual) is compared with two alternative scenarios (Scenario 1. Land reclamation scenario; Scenario 2. Land protection and bioenergy production scenario). Designing of an integrated production system in the forest agro-landscape, which combines multiple ecosystem services, allows us to attain maximum results in terms of value. Amelioration of agricultural landscape through establishing a system of protective forest shelterbelts allows society to increase the total value of ecosystem services, and this is why it should be better integrated into land use planning and land management.

Forest owners' preferences for contract-based management to enhance environmental values versus timber production

Forests are sources of multiple ecosystem services (ESs) essential for human wellbeing. Forest owners are critical actors to decide which benefits they produce from their forests. To support the uptake of alternative forest management strategies in a way that is beneficial from the perspective of society as whole, new incentive schemes could be implemented in the future. We applied the choice experiment method to investigate Finnish forest owners' potential participation in an incentive scheme in which they were asked to practice a ‘Timber Oriented’ or a ‘Nature Oriented’ management strategy according to the terms of a hypothetical contract. We found that the majority forest owners are willing to participate in the considered contract-based payment scheme, especially those supporting biodiversity and non-market ESs. Non-profitability attributes including biodiversity, carbon stock, and probability of climate change induced damage were highly valued. Forest owners prefer the management contract with the Nature Oriented strategy. Forest owners' preferences for the contract-based management and associated effects are heterogenous.

Assessing the Broader Value of Planted Forests to Inform Forest Management Decisions

This study highlights the importance of incorporating objectively quantified, non-market environmental values (such as avoided erosion and carbon sequestration) into land use decision making for sustainable forest management. A continuously developing approach that has facilitated discussions between researchers, industries, and governments on the quantification of non-market values is the ecosystem services (ES) framework. Using a spatial economic tool, called Forest Investment Framework, this study is, to the best of our knowledge, the first assessment of the market (timber) and non-market (carbon sequestration, avoided nitrogen leaching and avoided erosion) ES values of the 1.75 million-hectare New Zealand planted forest estate. To collect the views of key planted forest industry representatives on ES assessment/quantification, we interviewed 14 forest managers representing 60% of the planted forest area. Results from the spatial economic analysis indicated that the non-market ES values can be more than four times the timber profit nationally, and up to 12 times higher in New Zealand’s most erosion-prone region. These estimated values are indicative and should be treated with caution. From a sensitivity analysis, we found that different discount rates significantly impact ES values, ratios, and distributions. Results from the interviews indicated that ES quantification helped inform decision making by supporting license to operate, while also signaling the development of a reward system for sustaining ES. Sixty-four percent of survey respondents identified the importance of quantifying ES in ecological terms and describing other non-market ES in spatial, qualitative, or binary forms. Overall, this study provided evidence of how estimated non-market ES values compare with market values and highlighted the importance of including them in decision making processes. Future cost benefit analyses that incorporate these non-market monetary ES values would complement multi-criteria analysis that integrate additional dimensions and allow decision makers to rank options based on their particular criteria.

Public Preferences for Longleaf Pine Restoration Programs in the Southeastern United States

Abstract Longleaf pine (LLP) (Pinus palustris Mill.) is well known for its role in supporting healthy ecosystems in the southeastern (SE) United States (US). The decline of LLP forest ecosystems has led to a consensus among stakeholders that restoration efforts are needed. However, there is still a lack of robust understanding of the utilization of nonmarket ecosystem services of LLP forests. These challenges have presented major barriers to landowner acceptance of subsidized LLP restoration programs. Understanding the tradeoffs between forest ecosystem services is critical to restoring LLP in the SE US. This study employs the best-worst choice (BWC) method to assess public preferences toward hypothetical LLP restoration programs that consider ecosystem services such as recreation, timber production, carbon sequestration, water yield, and wildlife diversity. We surveyed a representative sample of n = 953 respondents from Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, and Florida, and results showed that residents in all four states are willing to pay for LLP restoration, with the highest average willingness to pay (WTP) for forest recreation ($20.39), followed by red-cockaded woodpecker (RCW) conservation ($13.37) and carbon sequestration ($13.32). This research provides important public preference information on ecosystem services that is critical in forming sustainable LLP restoration programs.

The economic value of Canada's National Capital Green Network.

The lack of information on the value of ecosystems contributing to human well-being in urban and peri-urban setting is known to contribute to the degradation of natural capital and ecosystem services (ES). The purpose of this study was to determine the economic value of ES in Canada's Capital Region (Ottawa-Gatineau region), so that these values can be integrated in future planning decisions. Using the valuation methods of market pricing, cost replacement, and two benefit transfer approaches (with adjustment and with meta-analysis), the value of 13 ES from five ecosystems (forests, wetlands, croplands, prairies and grasslands, and freshwater systems) was measured. The annual economic value of these 13 ES amounts to an average of 332 million dollars, and to a total economic value of over 5 billion dollars, annualized over 20 years. The largest part of this value is generated by nonmarket ES, indicating that much more emphasis should be put on the management, preservation, and understanding of processes that make up these types of ES. The work generated as part of this study is a first step towards operationalizing the concept of ES in planning. More specifically, these results can be used to raise awareness, but also as a stepping stone to improve ecosystem-wide planning in the Canada's Capital Region.

Trade-offs between environmental and economic factors in conversion from exotic pine production to natural regeneration on erosion prone land

Background:Some of New Zealand’s exotic pine (Pinus radiata D.Don) forests were planted for erosion mitigation but cultural, legislative, environmental, and profitability limitations in some parts of the landscape have led to reassessment of their suitability. There is limited information to support landowner decisions on the viability of natural regeneration of native forest post-pine-harvest.Methods:We evaluated scenarios of post-harvest natural regeneration, compared to remaining in pine production, using erosion susceptibility determined from historical occurrence of landslides, gullies and earthflows, biophysical growth modelling of mānuka–kānuka (Leptospermum scoparium-Kunzea ericoides (A.Rich) Joy Thomps.) shrubland using the process-based CenW model, and cost-benefit analyses using NZFARM with two land use change scenarios, at two levels of erosion mitigation ± honey profits.Results:In our study area, the Gisborne Region (North Island of New Zealand), ~27% of the land has moderate–very high susceptibility to landslides, 14–22% a high probability of contributing material to waterways, and 19% moderate–very high gully erosion susceptibility. Pines grow 10 times faster than naturally regenerating mānuka–kānuka shrubland, but mānuka–kānuka is used for honey not wood production. Natural regeneration resulted in losses of $150–250 ha−1 yr−1 compared to the current profitability of pine production. Honey production offset some reduction in pine revenue, but not fully. Thus, the viability of shifting from pines to native forest is highly dependent on landowner impetus and value for non-market ecosystem services (such as cultural and biodiversity values) provided by native forest.Conclusions:A mosaic of land uses within a property may sufficiently offset income losses with other benefits, whereby highly erosion-prone land is shifted from rotational pine forest production to permanent native forest cover with honey production where possible. At the regional scale in Gisborne, the conversion of the most highly susceptible land under production forestry (315–556 ha) to natural regeneration has the potential for wider benefits for soil conservation reducing erosion by 1–2.5 t yr−1 of sediment facilitating achievement of cleaner water aspirations and habitat provision.

Economic value of non-market ecosystem services derived from trees on cocoa farms

Tree-based conservation agriculture is becoming critical for reducing vulnerability of agricultural production systems from climate risks while enhancing forest-agriculture landscapes. On-farm tree integration is being promoted to restore degraded forest in cocoa landscapes. This study assessed farmers' knowledge and attitude towards non-market ecosystem services provided by trees on cocoa farms. Contingent valuation method was used to estimate economic value of these services to farmers. Data from 340 cocoa farmers from 10 cocoa-farming communities in the Western and Western North Regions of Ghana were analyzed. The results show farmers are familiar with non-market ecosystem services provided by on-farm trees. About 83% of respondents had either retained naturally occurring trees or intentionally planted trees on their farms. Cocoa farmers were willing to pay for tree integration on farms to enhance a bundle of essential regulating and supporting non-market ecosystem services such as providing habitat for pollinating insects and nutrient cycling. The estimated economic values for a bundled non-market ecosystem services provided by integrated trees on cocoa farms was GH₵837.59 (USD 164.00) per farmer per hectare per year. This amount is approximately 8.2% of the mean annual household income of respondent and equivalent to approximately 128 kg (2 bags) of marketable cocoa beans. Family size, age, value motivations and favourable attitude towards forest in general statistically predicted willingness to pay. Cocoa farmers hold substantial economic value for non-market ecosystem services provided by trees on cocoa farms and are likely to support on-farm tree integration initiatives that provide these essential non-market ecosystem services for enhanced cocoa productivity.

Economic, land use, and ecosystem services impacts of Rwanda's Green Growth Strategy: An application of the IEEM+ESM platform

We develop and link the Integrated Economic-Environmental Modeling (IEEM) Platform to ecosystem services modeling (ESM). The IEEM+ESM Platform is an innovative decision-making framework for exploring complex public policy goals and elucidating synergies and trade-offs between alternative policy portfolios. The IEEM+ESM approach is powerful in its ability to shed light on (i) change in land use and ecosystem services driven by public policy and the supply and demand responses of businesses and households; and (ii) impacts on standard economic indicators of concern to Ministries of Finance such as gross domestic product and employment, as well as changes in wealth and ecosystem services. The IEEM+ESM approach is being adopted rapidly and by the end of 2020, IEEM+ESM Platforms will be implemented for about 25 countries. To demonstrate the insights generated by the IEEM+ESM approach, we apply it to the analysis of alternative green growth strategies in Rwanda, a country that has made strong progress in reducing poverty and enhancing economic growth in the last 15 years. The case of Rwanda is particularly compelling as it faces intense pressure on its natural capital base and ecosystem services, already with the highest population density in Africa, which is projected to double by 2050. In applying IEEM+ESM and comparing the outcomes of Rwanda's green growth policies, increasing fertilization of agricultural crops shows the largest economic gains but also trade-offs in environmental quality reflected through higher nutrient export and reduced water quality. Combining crop fertilization with forest plantations better balances critical ecosystem services and their role in underpinning economic development as Rwanda progresses toward its target of middle-income status by 2035. This application to Rwanda's green growth strategy demonstrates the value-added of the IEEM+ESM approach in generating results that speak to both economic outcomes and impacts on market and non-market ecosystem services.

Profitability of erosion control with cover crops in European vineyards under consideration of environmental costs

Vine cultivation on slopes causes serious erosion with significant losses of nutrients, organic matter and water, followed by an overall loss of soil biodiversity and ecosystem services (ES). Cover crops (CC) in inter-rows can reduce these effects, but are often renounced by winegrowers due to economic causes. Soil erosion rates obtained from field data and simulations with ORUSCAL (Orchard RUSle CALibration) lay the basis for comparing three different scenarios of soil management; conventional tillage (CT), temporary cover crops (TCC) and permanent cover crops (PCC). We use the Policy Analysis Matrix (PAM) to include on- and off-site costs of erosion and to demonstrate their economic implications. The scenarios are calculated for two different European wine regions, Montilla-Moriles (Spain) and Carnuntum (Austria). Resultsfrom ORUSCAL show that erosion is decreased in most cases with increasing use of vegetation cover. Overall, the consideration of erosion costs in the budget of farmers has only minor effects on their competitiveness and additional costs for CC are not covered by private erosion cost savings. However, if social erosion costs are added, CC are cost-effective in both regions. This is even without the valuation of non-marketed ecosystem services such as cultural and aesthetic aspects which most likely will increase social costs of erosion.

Oyster Economics: Costs, Returns, and Ecosystem Benefits of Commercial Bottom Production, Commercial Off-Bottom Aquaculture, and Non-Harvested Reefs

We simulate potential costs, market returns, and nonmarket ecosystem benefits for commercial bottom oyster reefs, off-bottom oyster aquaculture, oyster-based living shorelines, and (non-harvested) restored oysters reefs. Results indicate that the range of benefits accruing from commercial bottom reefs and non-harvest restored reefs may be less variable than off-bottom aquaculture and living shorelines. On average, bottom reefs, off-bottom aquaculture, and restored reefs are expected to yield positive net benefits, whereas net benefits of living shorelines are highly variable are more likely to yield negative net benefits, except for under the most optimistic assumptions. Bottom reefs and restored reefs have lower per-unit costs and lower benefits, whereas off-bottom aquaculture has higher per-unit costs, but also higher per-unit revenues; living shorelines have higher upfront construction costs and highly variable nonmarket benefits. Bottom reef and off-bottom aquaculture benefits are driven by market revenues, whereas restored reef and living shoreline benefits are driven by nonmarket ecosystem services.

A Ridge-to-Reef Ecosystem-Based Valuation Approach to Biodiversity Conservation in Layawan Watershed, Misamis Occidental, Philippines

Ecosystem services commonly valued by the society usually pertains to marketable ecosystem services while non-marketable ecosystem services, such as biodiversity, are usually left unaccounted for, making it less priority and beset with problems such as insufficient funding for conservation activities. Low appreciation on the economic value of these ecosystem services has led to overutilization, causing negative impacts to the environment. This study aimed to estimate the value of a non-marketable ecosystem service, biodiversity, through household’s willingness to pay for its conservation activity in Mt. Malindang Range Natural Park (MMRNP) Layawan Watershed. Similarly, a comparison between a “holistic” and “habitat-exclusive” management approaches was done to determine the best management strategy for implementing a sustainable financing mechanism. An average willingness to pay for R2R biodiversity conservation of PhP 43.58 (USD 0.90) per household per month for five years as compared to PhP 33.02 (USD 0.68) per month from an exclusive Upland ecosystem conservation approach and PhP 30.39 (USD 0.62) per month from an exclusive Coastal ecosystem conservation approach. Therefore, a Ridge-to-Reef approach on biodiversity conservation showed significantly higher willingness to pay from households as compared to habitat-based approach. The R2R approach could eventually generate PhP 7.5 M annually.

Impact of illegal mining activities on forest ecosystem services: local communities’ attitudes and willingness to participate in restoration activities in Ghana

Understanding local communities' willingness to participate in environmental restoration activities can help assess the level of volunteerism that can be expected for restoration projects. This study ascertained local communities’ perception of the importance of non-market ecosystem services, the impact of illegal mining on ecosystem services, and their likeliness to participate in restoration of degraded lands resulting from illegal mining. Fifty respondents each were purposefully selected from three mining communities (Ntakam, Asawinso No.1 and Nkatieso) in a survey. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) tests results indicated there were no difference in views of respondents regarding the importance of forest for various non-market services. Illegal mining activities were identified as the cause of environmental problems such as water pollution, deforestation, poor soil fertility and limited access to land for agriculture productivity. Majority of respondents across the three communities indicated that forest is very important for non-market environmental services. Logistic regression results indicated that factors that affect likeliness to participate in restoration financing included income, embracing non-market ecosystem services as important, confidence in PES schemes and positive value motivation for restoration (altruistic, use and bequest values).

Assessment of ecosystem services of rice farms in eastern India

BackgroundRice is a major cereal crop and staple food of eastern India, and most farmers depend solely on rice for their livelihood. Rice farming provides both tangible and non-tangible benefits to ecosystems which need to be maintained and enhanced. These benefits are provided through ecosystem services (ES) that include both marketable and non-marketable.MethodsIn this study, the rice farms in eastern India were valued by quantifying the economic value of the services under conventional method of rice cultivation and the gap of ecosystem services value and farm income per unit area were assessed. A stratified random sampling technique was used in this study for selection of agro-climatic zones, districts, blocks, gram panchayat, and study units (households). Soil sampling was also performed for assessing the regulating services (biocontrol of pests, carbon flow, soil erosion, nitrogen fixation), provisioning services (food and by-products), and supporting services (soil fertility, hydrological flow, nutrient cycling, and soil formation).ResultsThe results indicated that the total economic value of ecosystem services ranged from US$ 1238 to 1688 ha−1 year−1. The marketed (primary production) and non-marketed ecosystem services values ranged from 66–89 to 11–34% of the total, respectively. Valuation of some of the ecosystem services such as cultural services, biodiversity, and gas regulation, which may play a significant role in total ecosystem services, has not been made due to non-availability of data and appropriate methodology for rice ecosystem. Different values of parameters can explain the variability in ecosystem services among the agro-climatic zones in eastern India. Clustering of locations based on variability of ecosystem services helps in identifying intervention points for sustaining and improving ecosystem services, while permitting sustainable agro-ecological intensification. The highest total economic gap between ES value and farm income was found in the north central plateau zone (US$ 1063 ha−1 year−1) and the lowest in the north western plateau zone (US$ 670 ha−1 year−1).ConclusionWe suggest various measures to reduce the economic gap, including payments for ecosystem services for rice farming for sustainability of the ecosystem and agricultural development, while ensuring reliable farm income.

Forest Investment Framework as a Support Tool for the Sustainable Management of Planted Forests

Planted forest ecosystems provide a wide range of goods and services such as timber, carbon sequestration, and avoided erosion. However, only ecosystem services with market values (e.g., timber) are usually represented in decision making while those with non-market values (e.g., avoided erosion) that are difficult to quantify are often ignored. A spatial economic tool, the Forest Investment Framework (FIF), integrates data from forest growth models with spatial, biophysical, and economic data, to quantify the broader value of planted forests and to represent non-market values in sustainable forest management. In this paper, we have tested the applicability of FIF in three types of case studies: assessment of afforestation feasibility, regional economic analyses, and ecosystem service assessment. This study provides evidence that a spatial economic tool that quantifies the economic, environmental, and social values of the planted forest ecosystem is valuable in informing land management decisions for maintaining and enhancing the provision of market and non-market ecosystem services to society.