1. Photo by Hawk Khatcherian
How Payments for Environmental
Services Can Deliver Co-Benefits for
Business & Sustainable Development
A Conservation Finance Strategy to
Protect Armenia’s Natural Heritage
Presented by Jason A. Sohigian at Columbia’s Earth Institute, May 9, 2011
17th International Sustainable Development Research Conference

2. Presentation Overview
Principles of sustainable development
What are environmental services?
Status of natural, financial & social capital
Examples of payments for environmental services
Next steps for implementation

3. Principles of Sustainable Development
Strategic investment in
all three dimensions:
Natural Capital
Financial Capital
Social Capital

4. Armenia & the South Caucasus Region
Map source http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caucasus

5. Background: MA (2005) & TEEB (2011)

6. What are environmental services?
Graphic source: Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, 2005

7. Natural Capital: Biodiversity Resources
Photo by A. Malkhasyan, I. Khorozyan, and M. Boyajyan used with permission of WWF Armenia

8. Natural Capital: Forest Resources
Photo by Jason A. Sohigian

9. Natural Capital: Water Resources
Photo by Jeff Masarjian used with permission

10. Financial Capital: Tourism Investment

11. Financial Capital: Beverage Industry

12. Photo source: EU-Armenia Web Portal on Renewable Energy
Financial Capital: Reliance on Hydropower

13. Social Capital: Impacts on Poverty
Photo by Jason A. Sohigian

14. Photo by Hawk Khatcherian used with permission
Social Capital: Stakeholder Engagement

15. Scenarios & Conservation Finance Gap

16. Payments for Environmental Services: Costa Rica
Costa Rica’s forest law recognized these
environmental services provided by forests:
mitigation for GHG emissions
hydrological services including the provision of
water for consumption, irrigation, energy production
biodiversity conservation
provision of scenic beauty for recreation &
ecotourism

17. Payments for Environmental Services: Catskills
Widely recognized benefits of the conservation
program implemented in the Catskills Watershed:
a filtration plant large enough to clean New York
City’s water supply would have cost $6 billion to
build & $250 million annually to maintain
preserving the watershed (75 percent forested) had
a cost of only $1.5 billion

18. Payments for Environmental Services: Danube
Objectives of WWF’s Danube Basin program in
Bulgaria & Romania:
promote sustainable financing
demonstrate how national & local-level payment
schemes work
contribute to rural development & conservation
share experiences with other countries

19. Next Steps for Implementation: Plan of Action
Use Corporate Ecosystem Services
Review to identify business risks &
opportunities from a company’s
dependence & impact on ecosystems
Identify international donors that have
invested in PES to finance a pilot project
to demonstrate viability of PES program
Initiate pilot scientific & economic study
of a specific ecosystem that provides
services or inputs to businesses in a key
sector
Use Ecosystem Marketplace guidebook
to assess viability of a PES program,
initiate stakeholder engagement &
develop a project
Initiate education program for business
& other stakeholders to advance
understanding of environmental services
& their importance for sustainable
development

20. Next Steps for Implementation: Further Study
Initiate general study to estimate the
value of the range of environmental
services provided by ecosystems in
Armenia
Survey businesses in strategic sectors
outlined to determine “willingness to
pay” for environmental services that
are a core part of their business
Initiate research into legal, political,
economic & social spheres that may
pose potential barriers to the
implementation of a PES scheme
Initiate further research in the general
field of environmental economics &
natural resource accounting in
Armenia to identify new sustainable
development opportunities

21. Thank you! Questions & Discussion
Deputy Director, Armenia Tree Project NGO
jason@armeniatree.org
Master’s Candidate, Harvard University, ‘11
Sustainability & Environmental Management
jsohigian@post.harvard.edu