This Earth Day, the Earth Economics team has published a study coauthored with the Ohio River Basin Alliance (ORBA) on the economic value that the Ohio River Basin provides, with staggering results: at least $50 billion in annual benefits- and that’s not all.
The Ohio River Basin is approximately 69 million acres of land across 14 states, with the 981-mile Ohio River at its core. The area is home to over 30 million people, providing 5 million of those with drinking water. However, the region is not federally protected, and therefore does not receive federal funding- and this region feels the impact with significant pollution, mainly from agricultural runoff.
Earth Economics partnered with ORBA to create a high-level valuation of the numerous benefits the basin provides: not just drinking water, but flood prevention, cooling during heat waves, carbon sequestration, recreation opportunities and more.
“Natural ecosystems in the ORB produce at least $50 billion in benefits on an annual bases, and $1.17 trillion in benefits over 30 years at a 2% discount rate. This is a conservative estimate based on a model that estimates a high-level value for a limited set of ecosystem services. The true value of the Ohio River Basin is undoubtedly greater.” (Earth Economics Factsheet)
Earth Economics is one of our newest partners, a nonprofit organization with over two decades of experience valuing ecosystem services in order to include the true value of nature in economic decisions. In 2024, Earth Economics developed the Ecosystem Services Valuation Tool (ESVT) for the Land Trust Alliance. The tool values eleven services across nine ecosystem categories, including wetlands, forests, grasslands, shrublands, rivers, and lakes.
Learn more about the effort to protect the Ohio River Basin here.
Featured image by Kelly via Pexels.com
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