Natural capital
good economics – it is the efficient thing to do.
Some environmentalists think this is a step too far, arguing that nature is priceless. But this is a conceptual mistake: resources are scarce and a decision to spend money on protecting a
particular asset is a decision not to spend it on others; without a price, the obvious temptation is to treat it as worthless.
Professor Dieter Helm is author of Natural Capital – valuing the planet, published by Yale
University Press, 2015. He has been Chairman of the Natural Capital Committee 2012-2015.
In the allocation of these scarce resources (the very definition of economics), there is of course a strong case for limiting the trade-offs between different kinds of capital. More iPhones cannot compensate for fewer swallows. In my book, I argue that there should be a new natural capital rule: the
aggregate value of natural capital should not be allowed to fall. This may sound arcane and academic but the implications are radical. It means that, whenever a natural capital asset is damaged, there has to be a compensating increase elsewhere. Some who argue that “nature is priceless” might say that no natural capital should be damaged, but this is hopelessly unrealistic. As Britain faces up to a huge housing and infrastructure building programme, we urgently need to get serious about the protection and enhancement of our natural capital. The houses, roads, airports and railways are coming. The issue is whether these are balanced by a major programme for protecting and enhancing natural capital.
In the allocation of scarce resources there is of course a strong case for limiting the trade-offs. More iPhones cannot compensate for fewer swallows.
There is much that could be achieved: restoring our river systems, protecting marine habitats, creating new woodlands, greening our cities with trees and open spaces and new parks, building wildlife corridors – in other words the things that the Wildlife Trusts have been campaigning for. Making the economic case for protecting nature – beside the moral and ecological case – can move us forward but only if we act before it’s too late.
Renewable rules
Natural capital is everything nature gives us for free. It comes in two forms: renewable and non- renewable. Renewable natural capital, such as
soil, forests, biodiversity, water and air, include resources that nature continues to replenish if we don’t over-exploit it. Non-renewable natural capital, such as fossil fuels and mineral ores, are resources that can’t be replaced after they have been used.
NOVEMBER 2015 SCOTTISH WILDLIFE 31
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