Valuing Wetland Ecosystem Services: A Case Stud of Delaware

Healthy wetlands perform a range of functions of value to humans. While the importance of healthy wetlands may be clear to wetland scientists, communicating this in a way that is meaningful to decisionmakers and the general public is essential for gaining public and political support for wetlands conservation and restoration programs. Our analysis links wetland functions to ecosystem services--the contribution that wetland functions make to the well-being of human populations--and uses economic valuation to express the value of healthy wetlands in monetary terms readily understood by decisionmakers and the general public.