How to make land use policy decisions: Integrating science and economics to deliver connected climate, biodiversity, and food objectives

Ian J. Bateman (), Amy Binner (), Ethan T. Addicott, Ben Balmford, Frankie H. T. Cho, Gretchen C. Daily, Anthony De-Gol, Sabrina Eisenbarth, Michela Faccioli, Henry Ferguson-Gow, Silvia Ferrini, Carlo Fezzi, Kate Gannon, Ben Groom, Anna B. Harper, Amii Harwood, Jon Hillier, Mark F. Hulme, Christopher F. Lee, Lorena Liuzzo, Andrew Lovett, Mattia C. Mancini, Robert Matthews, James I. L. Morison, Nathan Owen, Richard G. Pearson, Stephen Polasky, Gavin Siriwardena, Pete Smith, Pat Pat Snowdon, Peter Tippett, Sylvia H. Vetter, Shailaja Vinjili, Christian Vossler, Robert T. Watson, Daniel Williamson and Brett H. Day ()
Additional contact information
Ian J. Bateman: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom
Amy Binner: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom
Ethan T. Addicott: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom
Ben Balmford: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom
Frankie H. T. Cho: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom
Gretchen C. Daily: b Department of Biology, Stanford University , Stanford , CA 94305
Anthony De-Gol: c School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia , Norwich NR4 7TJ , United Kingdom
Sabrina Eisenbarth: d Swiss Institute for International Economics and Applied Economic Research, University of St. Gallen , St. Gallen 9000 , Switzerland
Michela Faccioli: e Department of Economics and Management, School of International Studies, University of Trento , Trento 38122 , Italy
Henry Ferguson-Gow: f Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London , London WC1E 6BT , United Kingdom
Silvia Ferrini: c School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia , Norwich NR4 7TJ , United Kingdom
Carlo Fezzi: g Department of Economics and Management, University of Trento , Trento 38122 , Italy
Kate Gannon: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom
Ben Groom: h Grantham Research Institute, London School of Economics and Political Science , London WC2A 2AE , United Kingdom
Anna B. Harper: i Department of Geography, University of Georgia , Athens , GA 30602
Amii Harwood: c School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia , Norwich NR4 7TJ , United Kingdom
Jon Hillier: j Global Academy of Agriculture and Food Systems, The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies and The Roslin Institute, Easter Bush Campus , Midlothian EH25 9RG , United Kingdom
Mark F. Hulme: k The British Trust for Ornithology, Thetford , Norfolk IP24 2PU , United Kingdom
Christopher F. Lee: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom
Lorena Liuzzo: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom
Andrew Lovett: c School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia , Norwich NR4 7TJ , United Kingdom
Mattia C. Mancini: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom
Robert Matthews: l Forest Research, Farnham , Surrey GU10 4LH , United Kingdom
James I. L. Morison: l Forest Research, Farnham , Surrey GU10 4LH , United Kingdom
Nathan Owen: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom
Richard G. Pearson: f Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London , London WC1E 6BT , United Kingdom
Stephen Polasky: m Department of Applied Economics, University of Minnesota , St. Paul , MN 55108
Gavin Siriwardena: k The British Trust for Ornithology, Thetford , Norfolk IP24 2PU , United Kingdom
Pete Smith: n Institute of Biological and Environmental Sciences, School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen , Aberdeen AB24 3UU , United Kingdom
Pat Pat Snowdon: o Policy and Practice, Scottish Forestry , Edinburgh EH11 3XD , United Kingdom
Peter Tippett: p Exeter Clinical Trials Unit, University of Exeter , Exeter EX1 2LU , United Kingdom
Sylvia H. Vetter: n Institute of Biological and Environmental Sciences, School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen , Aberdeen AB24 3UU , United Kingdom
Shailaja Vinjili: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom
Robert T. Watson: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom
Daniel Williamson: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom
Brett H. Day: a Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute, University of Exeter Business School , Exeter EX4 4PU , United Kingdom

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2024, vol. 121, issue 49, e2407961121

Abstract:

Land use change is crucial to addressing the existential threats of climate change and biodiversity loss while enhancing food security [M. Zurek et al. , Science 376 , 1416–1421 (2022)]. The interconnected and spatially varying nature of the impacts of land use change means that these challenges must be addressed simultaneously [H.-O. Pörtner et al. , Science 380 , eabl4881 (2023)]. However, governments commonly focus on single issues, incentivizing land use change via “Flat-Rate†subsidies offering constant per hectare payments, uptake of which is determined by the economic circumstances of landowners rather than the integrated environmental outcomes that will be delivered [G. Q. Bull et al. , Forest Policy Econ. 9 , 13–31 (2006)]. Here, we compare Flat-Rate subsidies to two alternatives: “Land Use Scenario†allocation of subsidies through consultation across stakeholders and interested parties; and a “Natural Capital†approach which targets subsidies according to expected ecosystem service response. This comparison is achieved by developing a comprehensive decision support system, integrating new and existing natural, physical, and economic science models to quantify environmental, agricultural, and economic outcomes. Applying this system to the United Kingdom’s net zero commitment to increase carbon storage via afforestation, we show that the three approaches result in significantly different outcomes in terms of where planting occurs, their environmental consequences, and economic costs and benefits. The Flat-Rate approach actually increases net carbon emissions while Land Use Scenario allocation yields poor economic outcomes. The Natural Capital targeted approach outperforms both alternatives, providing the highest possible social values while satisfying net zero commitments.

Keywords: decision-making; land use; natural capital; climate change; biodiversity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2407961121 (application/pdf)

Related works:
Working Paper: How to make land use policy decisions: integrating science and economics to deliver connected climate, biodiversity, and food objectives (2024)
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nas:journl:v:121:y:2024:p:e2407961121

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences from Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Eric Cain ( this e-mail address is bad, please contact ).