United Kingdom - Nature worth billions, says environment audit

Nature provides “free services” to Britain’s economy worth tens of billions of pounds a year – from recreational amenities to crop fertilisation and water purification – according to the first comprehensive financial assessment of the environment.
The National Ecosystem Assessment, carried out by 500 experts in ecology, economics and social sciences, provides a “new way of estimating our national wealth”, said Lord Selborne, chairman of the government’s Living with Environmental Change partnership. “It shows how we have undervalued our natural resources.” The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the report “strengthens the arguments for protecting and enhancing the environment and will be used by the government to direct policy in future”. (...)

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http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/644b1884-8c7c-11e0-883f-00144feab49a.html#axzz1O7h7ApL6