Approaches for Ecosystem Services Valuation for the Gulf of Mexico after the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill

The unprecedented magnitude of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill presents significant challenges for oil spill responders and those tasked with assessing the impacts of the spill. Evaluating changes to ecosystem servicesthe benefits people receive from natural resources and processescaused by the oil spill could expand the potential to capture and value the full breadth of impacts to the ecosystem and the public. This report assesses the methods and metrics that could help scientists effectively evaluate ecosystem services.

nApril20,2010,theDeepwaterHorizon platformdrillingtheMacondowell exploded,killing11oilworkersand injuringanother17.Theoilspillthatfollowed wasunprecedentedinmagnitude:overaperiod ofthreemonths,nearly5millionbarrels (approximately200milliongallons)ofcrudeoil leakedintotheGulfofMexico.Toprevent consumptionofseafoodthatmighthavebecome contaminatedbyoil,80,000squaremilesofthe U.S.ExclusiveEconomicZonewereclosedto fishingovertheshortterm,resultingintheloss offood,jobs,andrecreation.Thefullscaleof theeffectsofthespilloverthelongertermcould beconsiderable.

Thepartiesliableforthespillhavethe responsibilitytomaketheenvironmentand thepublicwholethroughcompensationand restorationofnaturalresourcesinjuredasa consequenceofthespill.Thisrequiresassessmentoftheextentandseverityofaninjuryto anaturalresourcethroughaprocessknownas theNaturalResourcesDamageAssessment (NRDA).Inadditiontoquantifyingtheextent ofdamage,theassessmentincludesplansfor developing,implementing,andmonitoring restorationandcompilesexpensesforboth assessmentandrestorationcostsfromthose deemedresponsible. ThemagnitudeanddepthoftheDeepwater Horizonoilspill, togetherwiththe inherentcomplexity oftheGulfof Mexicoecosystem, poseseriouschallengestothose chargedwith assessingdamages anddeveloping restorationplans. Sincethe ExxonValdezspill inPrince William Sound, Figure 1. MapoftheseaflooroftheGulfofMexicolarge Alaskain marineecosystemwithinsetoftheGulf-Caribbeancomplex. 1989,most BasedondatafromAmante,C.andB.W.Eakins(2009),image
constructedusingFledermausvisualizationsoftware.

Ecosystem services describe the benefits people receive from a multitude of resources and processes that are provided by ecosystems. They are produced as a consequence of the functioning of the ecosystemthe interactions of plants, animals and microbes with each other and with the environment.

assessmentshavebeenappliedtoeventsofmorelimited extentandscale.ForaspillthesizeoftheDeepwater Horizon,anecosystemservicesapproachmaycomplementtheNaturalResourcesDamageAssessmentand offerabroaderopportunitytocapture,value,andappropriatelyrestorethefullbreadthofimpactstothe ecosystemandthepublic. Thisreportprovidesguidanceonmethodsforidentifyingimportantecosystemservices,forunderstanding therelevantspatialandtemporalscalesthatneedtobe studied,andforestablishingabaselineunderstandingof theecosystemcriticaltoassessingtheinjuriescausedby theoilspill.Finally,thereportconsidersthedifficulttask ofassigningvaluetotheimpactedecosystemservices.

areaofhabitatornumberofwildlifespecies.Where damagesdonottranslateeasilyintoaparticularrestorationproject,fundsmaybeprovidedascompensationto beappliedatalaterdatewhenasuitablerestoration projectisidentified. However,theseassessmentapproachesfocusmoreon theimplicitvalueofthehabitatororganismsthanonthe ultimatevalueoftheresourcetohumans,andtherefore maynotcapturethewholevalueprovidedbythe ecosystem.Thereisgrowingrecognitionthattakingan ecosystemservicesapproachbylinkingchangesin ecosystemstoconsequentchangesinhumanwell-being wouldhelpleadtomoreinformedmanagementand policy.Thisbroaderviewmaybeofvalueforunderstandinganeventofthemagnitude,duration,depth,and complexityoftheDeepwaterHorizonoilspill,andmay offermoreapproachesforrestorationprojects.

Methods to Establish a Baseline

InordertoassesstheimpactsoftheDeepwater Horizonoilspill,scientistsneedtounderstandecosystem conditionsbeforethespilltookplace.However,establishingbaselineconditionsforaregionasvastand complexastheGulfofMexicoisadauntingtask.The physical,chemical,andbiologicalenvironmentsofthe regionchangeovertimeforexample,therearenatural variationsinmeteorologicalandhydrologicconditions thatleadtochangesinseasurfacetemperatures,water currents,andfloodconditionswhich,inturn,leadto changesintheecology. Assessmentisfurthercomplicatedbyhuman-made changestotheenvironment(seeBox1).Becausemany ecosystemserviceswerediminishedordegradedprior totheoilspill,realisticbaselineswillneedtobeestablishedinordertodistinguishtheeffectsoftheoilspill fromotheractivitiesthathavenegativeeffectson ecosystemservices. Thebaselinesagainstwhichtheimpactofthespill canbejudgedaredynamic,bothtemporallyandspatially. Hence,analysesoftheimpactsoftheDeepwaterHorizon oilspillwillneedtotakeintoaccountthefundamental complexityoftheGulfofMexicoecosystem,andthepast andongoingaffectsofphenomena,bothnaturaland human-induced,thatareunrelatedtotheDeepwater Horizonoilspill.

Approaches to Assessing and Evaluating Ecosystem Services

TheNationalOceanicandAtmosphericAdministrationhasdevelopedwell-testedmethodsforassessing injuryandimpactstonaturalresources.Forpastspills, losseshavebeenmeasuredinecologicaltermsfor examplethenumberofacresofhabitatdamagedor wildlifeinjuredwhichcanbetranslatedintopotential restorationprojects,suchastherestorationofagiven Box 1: Understanding the Gulf of Mexico Ecosystem
TheGulfofMexicoisaremarkablyrichandcomplex ecosystemthatprovidesawealthofservices.Incoastal areas,theecosystemsupportsatourismindustryworthan estimated$19.7billionperyearandoffersstormsurge protectionandhabitatformigratingwaterfowl.Inaddition, theecosystemprovidesfood,biochemicalandmedicinal compounds,cleanwater,andenergyintheformofcrude oilandnaturalgas. HumanshavehadsignificantimpactsontheGulfof Mexicoformanyyearsthroughmanydifferentactivities. Forexample,channelswerecutthroughthemarshto supporttheoilandgasindustryandlevieswere constructedforfloodcontrol,bothofwhichcontributedto thelossofcoastalwetlands.Nutrientsfromfertilizersused inagriculturetraveldowntotheGulfinthewatersofthe MississippiandAtchafalayarivers,creatingplankton bloomsthatcandepleteoxygenandcreatemassivedead zonescoveringthousandsofsquaremilesofGulfseafloor.

An Ecosystem Services Approach to Damage Assessment

Implementinganecosystemapproachtodamage assessmentrequiresanunderstandingofthecomplex linkagesamongstvariousecosystemcomponents,

Figure 2. ThisillustrationshowssomeofthevariouscomponentsandprocessesoftheGulfofMexicoecosystem.
Source:AlanJoyner,RedTwineArt&Design.

includingtheimpactofhumansonthestructure andfunctionoftheecosystem,theresultingchanges inecosystemservices,andhowthesechangesaffect humanwell-being. 1. Determining the impact of human actions on the structure and function of the ecosystem Scientistswillneedtoinvestigateeachecosystem servicebycarryingoutspecifictypesofsamplingand analysistocomplementtheinformationcollectedunder theexistingdamageassessmentprocess.Inorderto extendthecurrentdamageassessmenttoincludean ecosystemservicesapproach,scientistsneedtounderstandhowthesevariouscomponentshavebeenaffected byhumanactions,theconsequencesforthestructureand functionoftheecosystem,andultimatelythechangesin ecosystemservicescausedbythespill. 2. Establishing how changes in the ecosystem lead to changes in ecosystem services Oncetheimpactsonecosystemfunctionandstructure areidentified,thesecondstepistodeterminethe ecosystemproductionfunctionshowtheecosystem transformsinputsintooutputssuchasfisherylandings. Forsomeecosystemservices,ecologicalproduction functionsarefairlywellunderstoodanddataexistthat canhelpquantifytheamountofaserviceprovided. However,formanyotherecosystemservices,alackof mechanisticunderstandinganddatainhibitsaccurate quantificationofecosystemservices.Thecomplexityof

marineecosystemsmakesitdifficulttounderstandhow disturbancestoanecosystemwillreverberatethroughthe systemandultimatelyleadtochangesintheprovisionof ecosystemservices. Ingeneral,establishingmodelsofecologicalproductionfunctionsisperhapsthegreatestchallengefacingthe applicationofanecosystemservicesapproachtodamage assessment.Utilizingtheextensivedatathathavebeen collectedfortheNaturalResourceDamageAssessment processandemployingtheexistingmodelsforGulfof Mexicoecosystemfunctionpresentsanopportunityto enhanceunderstandingoftheprovisionofecosystem servicesintheGulfofMexico. 3. Establishing how changes in the provision of ecosystem services affect human well-being Thethirdcomponentoftheecosystemservices approachfocusesonestablishingthevaluesofecosystem services.Thisinvolvescombiningeconomicmethods withecologicalassessmentstoestimatethevalueof changesinecosystemservicesasaresultofenvironmentalimpacts. Valuationmethodsareusedtoprovideacommon, quantitativemeasuretofacilitatecomparisonsamong variousservicesasanindicationofhowmuchtheavailabilityoftheservicecontributestotheimprovementin humanwell-being.Theeconomicapproachtovaluation beginswithindividualsandthetradeoffstheyarewilling tomake.Bymeasuringwhatanindividualiswillingto

giveupintermsofacommonmonetarymetric,the economicapproachtovaluationgeneratesmeasures oftherelativevalueofgoodsandservices.For example,howmuchmoneywouldpeoplebewilling togiveupinexchangeforrestoringacoastal ecosystem?Answeringthisquestioninvolvesidentifyingwhichecosystemserviceswouldbeaffected byrestorationandbyhowmuch.Forinstance, restorationmightleadtoimprovedfishing,improvementinwaterquality,andgreaterstormprotection. Economicmethodssuchasrevealedpreference, statedpreferenceandcost-basedmethodscould thenbeappliedtoassessthevalueoftheseimprovementsinecosystemservices.Alternatively,inthe caseofdamagetotheenvironment,valuation methodscouldbeappliedtoassesshowmuchvalue hasbeenlostasaconsequenceofreducedecosystem

services.Primaryresearchonthevaluesof ecosystemserviceswouldprovideadditional groundingfortheDeepwaterHorizondamage assessment.

Conclusion
Itwilltakemanyyearstofullyunderstandthe long-termeffectsandimpactsoftheDeepwater Horizonoilspill,buteffortsareunderwaytoassess thedamagescausedbytheeventanddevelopappropriaterestorationprojects.Giventhevastamountof datacollectedandresearchcurrentlybeing conductedintheGulfofMexico,thecommittee believesthateffortstoapplyanecosystemservices approachwillresultinanimprovedunderstanding ofthefullsuiteofimpactsoftheoilspillandleadto additionaloptionsforrestorationoftheecosystem.

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Committee on The Effects of the Deepwater Horizon Mississippi Canyon-252 Oil Spill on Ecosystem Services in the Gulf of Mexico: Larry A. Mayer(Chair),UniversityofNewHampshire,Durham;Michel C. Boufadel,Temple University,Philadelphia,Pennsylvania;Jorge Brenner,TheNatureConservatory,CorpusChristi,Texas;Robert S. Carney,LouisianaStateUniversity,BatonRouge;Cortis K. Cooper,ChevronEnergyTechnologyCompany,San Ramon,California;Jody W. Deming,UniversityofWashington,Seattle;David J. Die,UniversityofMiami,Florida; Josh Eagle,UniversityofSouthCarolina,Columbia;Joseph R. Geraci,UniversityofMaryland.CollegePark; Barbara A. Knuth, CornellUniversity,Ithaca,NewYork;Kenneth Lee, FisheriesandOceansCanada,Dartmouth, NovaScotia;James T. Morris, UniversityofSouthCarolina,Columbia;Stephen Polasky, UniversityofMinnesota, St.Paul;Nancy N. Rabalais, LouisianaUniversitiesMarineConsortium,Chauvin;Christopher Reddy*, Woods HoleOceanographicInstitution,Massachusetts;Ralph G. Stahhl, Jr., DuPontCompany,Wilmington,Delaware; David W. Yoskowitz, TexasA&MUniversity,CorpusChristi;Kim Waddell,(Study Director);Sherrie Forrest, (Associate Program Officer);Jeremy Justice,(Senior Program Assistant, until July 2011);Lauren Harding, (Program Assistant, from July 2011); Peter Thompson, (Mirzayan Fellow, until May 2011);Christopher Prosser, (Mirzayan Fellow), NationalResearchCouncil. *Resignedfromthecommittee. TheNationalAcademiesappointedtheabovecommitteeofexpertstoaddressthespecifictask requestedbytheNationalOceanographicandAtmosphericAdministration.Themembersvolunteered theirtimeforthisactivity;theirreportispeer-reviewedandthefinalproductsignedoffbyboththe committeemembersandtheNationalAcademies.ThisreportbriefwaspreparedbytheNational ResearchCouncilbasedonthecommitteesreport. Formoreinformation,contacttheOceanStudiesBoardat(202)334-2714orvisithttp://dels.nas.edu/ osb.CopiesofApproaches for Ecosystem Services Valuation for the Gulf of Mexico after the Deepwater Horizon Oil SpillareavailablefromtheNationalAcademiesPress,500FifthStreet,NW,Washington,D.C.20001;(800)6246242;www.nap.edu.
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2011 The National Academy of Sciences