COS 6-10
Market valuation of coupled nutrients for ecosystem services in the private sector
As land development changes our built environment and human well-being is increasing with economic development, there are losses to natural resources, such as degradation appearing in ecosystem services. A technique to quantify the economic value of land and water assets, particularly water treatment in a predictive method would be beneficial and impact society. This research incorporates improved valuation of ecosystem services making it necessary for stakeholders to make more efficient business decisions in accounting of environmental and social impacts. The ecosystem services analyzed are nutrient cycling, plant growth, and nutrient removal. Coupling nutrients is nutrient management of TN and TP in a natural system and evaluating the quantitative value. This research is trying to avoid consequences that are negative and unintended by defining a sustainable limit state and better understand the requirements for balancing coupled nutrients over a long period of time in land development. The value of ecosystem services integrates life cycle inventory, biogeochemistry, financial options, and decision making into a predictive framework.
Results/Conclusions
Using the Century Soil Organic Matter computer model to simulate the conditions and validate the results based on measured data. Preliminary results of nitrogen and phosphorus modeling are simulating the existing environment and ecosystem functions in the biogeochemistry model for a predicted option. The predictive level of nitrogen output for the end of year of 1970, 1975, 2000, 2050, and 3000. Estimating the nitrogen output as 1.35 gN/m^2 is added to the site twice a year through fertilizer and leaving through leaching, volatilization, storage, and harvest uptake. Over an estimated 1000 year period an average of 2.21 gN/m^2 of nitrogen is leaving annually. Natural assets values can be priced based on commodity prices or using an engineered substitute. Uncertainty and volatility of the asset comes from the ecosystem parameters, volatility of external factors, and volatility of the end product's market price.