Ecosystem Health: New Goals for Environmental ManagementRobert Costanza, Bryan G. Norton, Benjamin D. Haskell As environmental regulatory and management agencies (most notably the Environmental Protection Agency) move toward a broad set of management goals to protect ecosystem health, developing an adequate definition for "ecosystem health" has become increasingly important. This work is a multidisciplinary collection of perspectives on the concept of health as it relates to ecosystems. The contributors - leading ecologists, philosophers, and economists - analyze the normative, conceptual, and biological issues surrounding the idea of ecosystem health. They examine both theoretical and practical aspects of the issues, and look at philosophical and ethical underpinnings as well as implications for public policy and ecosystems management. Ecosystem Health is a groundbreaking attempt to formulate an understanding of the quality and health of natural environments so that regulatory mandates can be brought in line with legislative goals. Ultimately, it seeks a new ethic of sustainability that will serve to protect the vital processes of nature. |
Contents
A New Paradigm for Environmental Management | 23 |
Aldo Leopolds Metaphor | 42 |
Has Nature a Good of Its Own? | 57 |
Copyright | |
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Other editions - View all
Ecosystem Health: New Goals for Environmental Management Robert Costanza,Bryan G. Norton No preview available - 1992 |
Common terms and phrases
Aldo Leopold analysis applied assessment autopoiesis biological integrity biotic Chesapeake Chesapeake Bay communities complex components concept of ecosystem concept of health conservation context Costanza decision defined disease disturbance diversity dynamic Ecological Economics ecological health ecologists economic approach economists ecosys ecosystem health effects environment Environmental Ethics environmental management eutrophication evaluate evolution example Faustian Fisheries forest function goal habitat health and integrity humankind idea ignorance impact indicators individual inputs Karr Lakes Land Ethic land health Leopold measure medicine models National Park natural nomic normative Norton nutrient objective organisms output paradigm perspective philosophy pollution population predict problem processes production protect Rapport Regier resilience resource restoration Restoration Ecology ROBERT COSTANZA Sagoff scale Schaeffer scientific self-organizing social species stability stress structure sustainability system health tems theory therapeutic nihilism threshold criteria tion trophic Ulanowicz University Press valuation valuing ecological systems wilderness York