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Natural Resource Economic Valuations Environmental Economic Valuation of the HIMA System the Case of Zarqa River Basin – Jordan

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Natural Resource Economic Valuations Environmental Economic Valuation of the HIMA System the Case of Zarqa River Basin – Jordan Natural Resource Economic Valuations Environmental Economic Valuation of the HIMA System The Case of Zarqa River Basin – Jordan INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF NATURE – REGIONAL OFFICE FOR WEST ASIA European Union Acknowledgements IUCN ROWA would particularly like to thank the ministry of Agriculture, who have provided valuable inputs through the research phase and will hopefully use this in updating the National Rangeland strategy. Special acknowledgments go to Dr Amer Jabarin for his invaluable experience in economic evaluations and his continuous support in conducting this study. We would also like to thank Dr. Jonathan Davies (IUCN, Coordinator of the Global Drylands Initiative) for commenting, reviewing and advising on the various elements of this study. “The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the International Union for Conservation of Nature and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.” ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMIC VALUATION OF HIMA IN JORDAN PAGE 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ....................................................................................................... 4 T ..................................................................................... 7 (ﺍﻟﺧﻼﺻـــــــﺔ E3T XECUTIVE SUMMARY (3 1.3T 3T I3T NTRODUCTION 3T .......................................................................................................... 9 1.1.3T 3T A3T GRICULTURAL SECTOR IN JORDAN 3T ........................................................................... 9 1.2.3T 3T IUCN3T PROJECT’S OBJECTIVES, METHODOLOGY AND INVOLVEMENT WITH LOCAL COMMUNITIES3T 11 2.3T 3T T3T HE CONCEPT OF THE HIMA SYSTEM IN JORDAN 3T ........................................................... 11 2.1.3T 3T W3T HAT IS THE HIMA SYSTEM? AND HOW IT IS APPLIED IN THE TARGETED AREA? 3T ................ 11 2.2.3T 3T H3T OW THE HIMA SYSTEM IS USED TO PROTECT RANGELANDS AND BIODIVERSITY IN GENERAL?3T 12 2.3.3T 3T HIMA3T SYSTEM IN OTHER COUNTRIES IN THE REGION (LEBANON, SYRIA, SAUDI ARABIA,...) 3T ... 12 3.3T 3T E3T CONOMIC VALUATION OF LANDSCAPE REHABILITATION USING THE TOOL OF HIMA SYSTEM 3T.... 13 3.1.3T 3T I3T NTRODUCTION TO VALUATION METHODOLOGIES OF HIMA SYSTEM AS A TOOL FOR BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION 3T ........................................................................................... 13 4.3T 3T E3T CONOMIC ESTIMATES OF THE DIRECT AND INDIRECT ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF THE HIMA SYSTEM3T 14 4.1.3T 3T D3T IRECT USE VALUES IN JORDAN’S RANGELANDS 3T ......................................................... 15 4.1.1.3T 3T G3T RAZING (COSTS OF RANGELANDS DEGRADATION) 3T ................................................... 15 4.1.1.1.3T 3T A3T SSUMPTIONS FOR ESTIMATING THE COSTS OF RANGELANDS DEGRADATION 3T .............. 16 4.1.1.2.3T 3T R3T ESULTS OF ESTIMATING THE COSTS OF RANGELANDS DEGRADATION 3T ....................... 17 4.1.1.3.3T 3T M3T EDICINAL AND HERBAL PLANTS: 3T ...................................................................... 21 4.1.2.3T 3T I3T NDIRECT USE VALUES IN JORDAN’S RANGELANDS 3T ................................................... 29 4.1.2.1.3T 3T W3T ATER RECHARGE 3T ......................................................................................... 29 4.1.2.2.3T 3T S3T EDIMENTATION FROM RUN-OFFS 3T ...................................................................... 30 5.3T 3T C3T ONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS: 3T .................................................................... 33 6.3T 3T R3T EFERENCES 3T .......................................................................................................... 35 ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMIC VALUATION OF HIMA IN JORDAN PAGE 3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Al-Hima system defines it as: “a traditional system of resource tenure that has been practiced for more than 1400 years in the Arabian Peninsula. It predates Islam, not necessarily in its existing form or after the introduction of Islam in the Arabian Peninsula. In any case, the Hima is the most widespread and longstanding indigenous / traditional conservation institution in the Middle East, and perhaps on Earth”.1 The Arabic word "hima" literally means "a protected place" or "protected area." In pre- Islamic times, access to this place was declared forbidden by the individual or group who owned it. Later its meaning evolved to signify a rangeland reserve, a piece of land set aside seasonally to allow regeneration. This study is intended to demonstrate the economic rationale of the HIMA approach and identify opportunities to establish economic incentives for sustained rangelands management. In addition, the study will provide some useful economic parameters that could be helpful in designing policy options for the upcoming rangelands rehabilitation strategy. The study estimated some of the potential economic benefits that could be accrued from protecting and restoring the rangelands of Jordan using the traditional Hima system tool. The study used the concept of the Total Economic Value (TEV) to derive the economic benefits from the communal rangeland products which are considered important to households and rangelands users in Jordan’s Badia. The TEV involves estimating both Use and Non-Use values. The Use-values include both direct and indirect Use values. But the Non-Use values include option, bequest and existence values. Due to the complexity of estimating every single potential economic benefit from the restoration of the rangelands and the lack of detailed data, the researcher has limited the estimation process on the following benefits (included in the chart) that can be estimated using secondary data sources and estimates by other previous studies in Jordan and abroad: • Direct Use values: Grazing and Medicinal Plants • Direct Non-Use values: Water Recharge and Soil Erosion Control The consequences of land degradation due to the different factors were quantified in using TEV based on specific assumptions listed in the text. The estimated costs were based on the continuous decline of rangelands productivity (rangeland vegetation losses) in terms of dry matter per one dunum of the steppe and the Badia. The presented estimates in this study provide a perspective on the economic impact of degradation. Overgrazing has decreased fodder availability without a decrease in 1 IUCN, 2007, Al HIMA Way of life, International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources - Society for the Protection of Nature and Natural Resources. Funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation [ SDC ) through the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMIC VALUATION OF HIMA IN JORDAN PAGE 4 livestock numbers, contributing to increased desertification and biodiversity loss. The cost of forage losses for grazing livestock is estimated based on feed units, valued at barley prevailing market price for the period 1991-2011. The total accumulated adjusted value of the loss during 1990-2011 is estimated at JD 740 million of which JD 545 million belongs to Badia and JD 195 million belongs to steppe. Assuming that the rangelands are rehabilitated using the Hima system (i.e. the conditions are reversed to the original status as it used to be prior 1990), the annual values (in 2011 prices) of one dunum of rangelands in the Badia and in the steppe are JD 1.1 and JD 1.2 , respectively. The weighted annual average of the value of the two regions (Badia and Steppe) is estimated at JD 1.1 /dunum. The estimated value would be even much higher if the grazed fodder is converted to livestock products such as milk, meat and skin. Using the above assumption that the Hima system will reverse the rangeland conditions as it used to be originally before 1990, this implies that the vegetation cover will be restored and the win-win situation becomes possible. In this case, each additional 1 mm of rainfall infiltrated due to the restoration of the vegetation cover would result in adding one cubic meter of water per dunum to the water table. Using an average price of JD 0.5 per one cubic meter, this denotes that the average indirect use benefits of one dunum of restored rangeland is JD 0.5 per each 1 mm of rainwater infiltrated. Applying the value of this indictor to the 90 million dunum of rangelands, would easily show the huge economic indirect losses due to the continuous degradation of the rangelands during the past 2 decades. The total annual lost economic value for every lost 1 mm of infiltrated water would therefore be around JD 45 million. The study also estimated the indirect benefits of the rangelands in reducing the amount of sedimentations in the different dams, especially those located close to the Jordan Valley. The benefit of maintaining the capacity of the dams by an annual rate of 1% through reducing sedimentation means that the rangelands is maintaining the total capacity of the dams in Jordan by 3.3 million cubic meter annually. The saved cost of the reduced capacity is estimated based on the volume of lost storage capacity at a value of water at JD 0.5 per cubic meter (a very conservative estimate compared to marginal value of water2). This means that the indirect benefit of reducing sedimentation is JD 1.65 million JD. Preventing sedimentation has another indirect value represented by the cost of removal of JD 1.68 per cubic meter. This implies that the annual saved cost is estimated at JD 5.5 million. The total indirect value of rangelands from reducing dams’ sedimentation is 1.65 + 5.5 = JD 7.1 million JD. In other words, the value
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