Strengths
¥Can focus on necessary conditions to
provide services
¥Can be based on conventional tool of the
production function
¥Can reflect factors that determine
aggregate willingness to pay
¥Can reflect risks of service flow
disruptions
¥Can be site-based and take account of
landscape context
¥Can be used as benefit-transfer method if
$$ estimates exist
¥Can be used to compare environmental
assets for trading
¥Can be used for prioritizing
environmental investments
¥Similar to indicators that
decision-makers use everywhere else
¥Practical because of GIS and Web
¥Can reflect relative preferences for mix
of services
Weaknesses
¥Cannot be used in conventional
benefit-cost analysis
¥Not very useful for justifying increases
in levels of $ spending
¥Generally unpopular with economists,
scientists, & policymakers
¥Requires some decisions that will appear
to be arbitrary
¥Requires acceptance as better than $$ and
better than nothing
¥Requires upfront investments in data
collection/software