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5/16/2008
Forestry Foundation to be Lead Sponsor for Ecological Services Research |
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Long awaited research will soon be underway that will quantify the value, in monetary terms, of the non-timber benefits of forest ecosystem services. Researchers anticipate that the total economic value of Georgia's forests (timber plus non-timber value) to be significantly larger than the market value of timber and other word products. The Georgia Forestry Foundation will be the project's lead sponsor.
Heading the project at UGA's Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources is Assistant Professor and natural resource economist Dr. Rebecca Moore.
"This information no doubt will document what we know to be true, but today have no documented measurements for with respect to Georgia's forests," said Foundation Executive Director Steve McWilliams. "Forest landowners do not get near the credit they deserve for the contributions of their timberlands to the environment, a fact which this research will clearly demonstrate."
The research, expected to take two years to complete, will produce credible quantitative estimates of the total economic value of Georgia's forests, including the value of such non-market ecosystem services as water filtration, carbon storage, wildlife habitat, recreational opportunities and scenic beauty.
"Georgia's elected officials and other policy makers are operating in a vacuum without this information when they make decisions that adversely impact forests," said McWilliams. "This study will provide critical evidence to be used in making informed decisions about land use, taxes, and other forest-related issues."
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