Question

As per the estimated costs given by Robert Constanza and his colleagues on various ecosystem services, which of the statements given below is incorrect?

• A. The average estimated cost of all the fundamental ecosystem services is US $ 33 trillion per year
• B. The estimated cost of soil formation is about 50 per cent of the total
• C. The estimated cost of nutrient cycling is more than 10 per cent
• D. The estimated cost of climate regulation is about 6 per cent

Answer 1

The correct option is C The estimated cost of nutrient cycling is more than 10 per cent

Ecosystem services refers to the products of ecosystems that have been linked directly to the benefit of all organisms on Earth including human beings. Such services include purifying the air, providing water and food by maintaining nutrient cycle, pollination of crops, and other services such as soil formation, regulation of droughts, floods, even aesthetic beauty and recreation.

Robert Costanza and his colleagues proposed an idea to quantify the value of ecosystem services which was estimated to be US $ 33 trillion per year. This was done to make people realize the value of services humans are availing which are available to them free of cost.

The amount is nearly twice the value of the global gross national product (GNP). Soil formation itself accounts for about 50% of the total estimated cost. The contributions of services such as recreation and nutrient cycling, are less than 10% each while climate regulation and habitat for wildlife accounts for about 6% each.