Defenders' Experts
Oregon Marketplace: Draft Executive Order
Ecosystem Markets in Oregon
Whereas...
1. Oregon's natural resources, including native plants and animals, fish and wildlife habitat, and ecological processes are important to Oregonians because they provide food and shelter, clean air and water, recreational opportunities, aesthetic benefits and a high quality of life. We have a responsibility to maintain these values for present and future generations, and to leave Oregon's ecosystems in better shape than we found them. Natural ecosystems have been degraded through overuse and improper management in the past and some continue to deteriorate in spite of many conservation and restoration efforts undertaken by public and private interests. These conservation actions tend to be poorly coordinated and unlikely to result in an overall improvement in ecological conditions. Simply following existing environmental regulations is not sufficient to meet environmental goals.
2. Employment and economic opportunities are also important to Oregonians in order to maintain a high quality of life and prosperity. A scarcity of developable land in appropriate locations for economic expansion is a significant limiting factor. A new system is needed that will expedite development in suitable locations that are not ecologically sensitive or in priority habitats, while ensuring that overall ecological conditions improve, and that restoration occurs at an ecologically significant scale.
3. Maintaining the integrity of rural landscapes is important to the quality of life for all Oregonians. A variety of factors including foreign competition, increasing land values, and rising energy prices create pressure on rural landowners to develop their lands. Maintaining economically viable farming and forestry industries will help preserve rural landscapes. Assisting landowners in accessing emerging markets for ecosystem services will help diversify revenue and stabilize rural economies.
4. Many different state agencies, federal agencies, and the private sector have responsibilities to address land and water use and management, habitat conservation, and economic development. However, these efforts are generally fragmented, uncoordinated, and may work at cross purposes.
In order to address these ecological and economic needs in a balanced and coordinated way, the Governor hereby orders…
1. The Department of Fish and Wildlife to engage other agencies and the private sector in the implementation of the Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy by combining resources, sharing information, and providing assistance to private landowners to help them conserve fish, wildlife, and habitat.
2. The Departments of Fish and Wildlife, State Lands, Forestry, Agriculture, Water Resources, Watershed Enhancement Board, Environmental Quality and State Parks to develop and implement a coordinated natural resource monitoring system that tracks status and trends for native fish and wildlife species, natural habitat, ecological condition and processes, and conservation actions across the landscape and over time, working with neighboring states, federal agencies and the private sector.
3. The Departments of Transportation, Economic and Community Development, Fish and Wildlife, State Lands, Forestry, Agriculture, Water Resources, Watershed Enhancement Board, Environmental Quality and State Parks to work with the Willamette Partnership to create a pilot ecosystem marketplace in the Willamette Basin that streamlines appropriate development while facilitating strategic investment in priority lands at an ecologically significant scale. The purpose of the marketplace is to use market forces to supplement existing conservation strategies (including acquisition, incentives, private restoration efforts) to address the full spectrum of regulated and unregulated resources in a coordinated manner that restores the ecological integrity to the Basin while facilitating proper economic development. During the course of this pilot, agencies shall assess current statutes and regulations to identify known barriers to the implementation of a coordinated system of multi-function ecosystem banking.
4. The aforementioned agencies shall develop a consistent methodology for describing and quantifying ecological values for banking purposes, but shall not set prices for the sale of ecosystem credits.
5. The Willamette Partnership and agencies shall engage the private sector (including developers, private landowners and conservation groups) in the development and implementation of the ecosystem marketplace to ensure that it has a positive economic and ecological outcome.
6. The Oregon Institute for Natural Resources shall convene the relevant parties, facilitate discussion about the most effective strategies to employ in order to accomplish the aforementioned goals.
7. By the middle of 2008, the Willamette Partnership shall present a report to the Governor, highlighting the successes and challenges, and propose any necessary changes to regulations or statutes.
8. Funding shall be provided through _____ .
A Habitat assessment tool for multi-credit banks that calculates improvements or damage to a site through a single resource lens.
