The Cost of Environmental Degradation: Case Studies from the Middle East and North Africa (Directions in Development - Environment and Sustainable Development) - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0821383183 ISBN 13: 9780821383186

Publisher: World Bank Publications, 2010

Synopsis

How much is a cleaner environment worth? For policy makers, that question used to go largely unanswered. Many economic activities cause environmental degradation, entailing real costs to the economy and to people's welfare. Knowing the extent of these costs is crucial for identifying a country's main environmental priorities and allocating appropriate funds for environmental protection.

Over the past decade, the World Bank has initiated a systematic effort to measure the costs of environmental degradation in the Middle East and North Africa, shedding new light on their magnitude and on the need for policy changes. In many cases, these costs were found to be surprisingly large. 'The Cost of Environmental Degradation: Case Studies from the Middle East and North Africa' brings together the best case studies of this program and summarizes their policy impacts at the national and regional levels.

The case studies quantify monetarily the annual damage due to environmental degradation and express these estimates as percentages of the countries' gross domestic product. The studies use the most recent environmental valuation methods to estimate the economic costs resulting from air pollution, water degradation, deforestation, and land degradation. Uniquely, the book dedicates a case study to value the costs of environmental degradation resulting from an oil spill and demolition waste in times of conflict. The studies then illuminate the concrete implications on policy, investments, and institutions for the respective nations.

This book will be of interest to policy makers, nongovernmental organizations, and academic and research institutions.

Edition details

• Publisher: World Bank Publications
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0821383183
• ISBN 13: 9780821383186
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 188
• Editor: Croitoru Lelia, Sarraf Maria