Ecosystem services: the role in regional economy and the approaches to evaluation

The increase of welfare with simultaneous decrease of negative impact on environment are one of the main postulates of the modern economy. The concept of the sustainable development, adopted in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 was a turning point in the understanding of the importance of "natural capital" when the emphasis was put on ecosystem services. At present, providing sustainable ecological and economic development of regions of the Russian Federation is one of the long-term objectives and priorities of the country. An important step in the development of the practical implementation of the ecosystem services concept has become the decision based on the following three principles: recognition of the value of ecosystems; carrying out its economic assessment and the development of mechanisms accounting for these benefits. The characteristics of ecosystem services, its structure, main elements of economic evaluation and the set of methods of its conduction are represented. The main directions of ecoservices practical application are defined, including the development of national environmental policy and long-term programs; inclusion of the value of environmental services in national systems of integrated environmental and economic accounting, assessment of adjusted GNP, etc.; establishment of payments and insurance premiums; the formation of markets for ecosystem services. The most widespread overseas payments for EcoServices are those that relate to forestry and agriculture, where the basic principle is that "user should pay instead polluter”. The key schemes and examples of payments for the use of these services in the countries of the world are presented. Pioneer developments for Russian conditions concerned the organization of sustainable environmental management in the territory of protected areas in Kamchatka, Altai Krai, Smolensk and Kaluga regions, the Lower Volga and the Komi Republic. At the first stage of decision-making the economic evaluation of these areas objects was carried out and the beneficiaries from the use of ecosystem services were defined. Further, business plans of territory development based on the inclusion of tourism, agriculture, sports sectors of the economy and traditional economy were developed for certain objects.The domestic examples of implementation of business ideas of PAs territory development are given. Using probation-questionnaire method the assessment of the local population preferences for leisure (recreation and tourism) in protected sites of the region was carried out. The necessity of protected areas involvement in the socio-economic development of the region is proved.