When it comes to danger, it’s ludicrous to try to calculate the monetary value of nature to all of us.
How can we ever know how valuable bees pollinating apples or good soils and forests prevent floods?
The financial worth of only three of the UK’s natural ecosystems (woodlands, farmland, and freshwater habitats such as lakes) was estimated to be £178 billion by the Office of National Statistics. So in the end, there are nine noughts: 178,000,000,000.
It’s a staggering sum comparable to the value of Eurozone exports (€) to the rest of the globe. In addition, around £140 billion is spent on the NHS.
It’s easy to believe that nature will always be there for us. But whether we let a character go to the wall or work to repair, restore, and preserve it is a matter of wishful thinking.
What about the value of natural ecosystem services throughout the world? An initial estimate placed the figure at $33 trillion per year — 12 noughts or a million million. More to the point, the worth of nature is rough twice the $18 trillion world GDP.
The numbers may have altered since these computations, but the point remains the same: nature is both valuable and priceless. To put it another way, if we’re foolish enough to let character deteriorate, can we afford to restore it? You have three guesses.
It’s easy to believe that nature will always be there for us. But it all relies on whether we let character fall apart or take steps to repair, restore, and preserve it.
Unfortunately, species are becoming extinct at an alarming rate, and the natural systems that support all life on Earth are eroding at a quicker pace than ever before.
Even common species such as bees, hedgehogs, starlings, and house sparrows disappear from our streets and neighborhoods. As a result, the bees and birds, as well as ourselves, suffer greatly.
Is it beyond human wisdom to bring nature back from the verge of extinction? On the contrary, it’s in our own best interests. Unfortunately, however, we appear to be the only species on the planet that intentionally destroys its habitat and life support system.
