Economics of Land Degradation to Estimate Capital Value of Soil in Eurasia

Abstract

Among the dimensions of soil security, capital occupies a special place because it depends on numerous factors that are not necessarily related to soil, such as regional economic development, current dynamics of food markets, social stability, and many others. However, the capital also depends on soil capacity and conditions that are threatened by land and soil degradation. Economics of land degradation is one of the useful approaches that help in quantifying the relation between soil and capital. We used the approach for a preliminary quantification of the impact of land degradation in Northern Eurasia (Russia and neighboring countries) on the loss of profit due to the decline in agricultural production and in ecosystem services. The approximate loss on the national level exceeds 1.9 % of annual gross domestic product, and the mean ratio of the cost of action to the cost of inaction in the country is 18 %. However, we also show that the credibility of the results is low yet due to methodological difficulties and recommend the improvement of the approach for the regional conditions.