Measuring total social income of a stone pine afforestation in Huelva (Spain)

Abstract

We apply an experimental ecosystem accounting approach aimed at estimating the contribution of ecosystem services to total social income accrued from a Stone pine (Pinus pinea L.) forest as the result of afforestation in Huelva Province, Spain. The study encompasses private market products such as timber, pine cones, and forest conservation intermediate services; and non-market final services that include private amenities and public services such as landscape, free-access recreation and carbon sequestration services. We show how the total income of each single product is distributed amongst the factorial rewards to labor, and environmental and manufactured assets. Private products account for 46% of the average total income that the Stone pine forest would yield over its rotation, while public services comprise the remaining 54%. Our results also suggest that the production of public non-market services would offset the government compensation payments to support Stone pine afforestation and management. Finally, the results show that, on average, 7% of the estimated total income would be captured by the current System of National Accounts for forestry if applied to our case study (including only the net value added from timber and pine cone production and from plantation investment) and that 14% of this income would be dislocated into the government institutional accounts.