Laurence Jones, Angus Garbutt, Nicola Beaumont, & co-workers Valuing carbon sequestration in coastal margin habitats
Laurence Jones, Angus Garbutt, Nicola Beaumont, & co-workers
Valuing carbon sequestration in coastal margin
habitats
Why the coast is important to Wales
• 3 % of Wales’ land area
• Seaside tourism accounted for 42% of all
domestic tourism spend in Wales
• 100,000 direct and indirect jobs, nearly £5bn
per annum income to businesses and a
contribution of £1.5bn to Wales’ GDP
• Sea defence by sand dunes is worth £54 –
199 million in Wales
• High rates of carbon sequestration
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
12000
14000
1900 1950 2000 2050
Wal
es a
rea
(ha)
Sand dunes
Saltmarsh
Habitat loss
Jones et al. 2011. Coastal Margins, UK NEA.
• Coastal margin habitat has
declined by 30% since 1900
• Previous losses were due to
rapid coastal development
(industry, housing, tourism,
agricultural land claim)
• Most future losses will be due
to sea level rise and further
development
Distribution
Sand dune carbon stocks
Dunes:
• ~15 sites
• Soil profile to 15 cm
depth
Saltmarsh carbon stocks
-35
-30
-25
-20
-15
-10
-5
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Soil
de
pth
(cm
)
%Loss On Ignition
Saltmarsh:
• 18 sites
• Soil profile to 30 cm depth
• Extrapolated to 50 (100 ) cm
depth
Data: Matt Lundquist
Carbon stocks in Wales’ dunes and saltmarsh
-700
-600
-500
-400
-300
-200
-100
0
100
Dry dunesWet dune
slacks Saltmarsh
10
00
to
nn
es
Car
bo
n
SoilC
BelowGround
AboveGround
Carbon sequestration rates
Dunes: 59.5 +/- 25.8 g C m-2 yr-1
Saltmarsh: 64 - 219 g C m-2 yr-1 Chmura et al. 2003
Jones et al. (2008) Plant & Soil.
Valuing coastal carbon (UK)
• Non-traded shadow price of Carbon £55 /t CO2 (2010)
• Avoided damage cost
Dunes: 18.36 - 45.9 £/ha/yr
Saltmarsh: 34.56 - 118.26 £/ha/yr
Value of annual CO2 sequestration / yr
The consequences of habitat loss
Dunes Saltmarsh CO2 sequestered (t) 9,073,000 13,955,000 CO2 released (t) 1,433,000 4,027,000 Net CO2 stored (t) 7,640,000 9,929,000 Lost value due to habitat loss (£m) £64m £179m
Scenario period 2000 - 2060
Conclusions
N.J. Beaumont et al. (2014) Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 137, 32-40
Thank you
• Dunes and saltmarsh sequester carbon at a high rate • Habitat loss has implications for carbon storage • This approach provides a methodology for valuing loss of both stocks and future sequestration potential •BUT Carbon isn’t the only service & we need to consider the trade-offs with biodiversity, tourism, etc.