A new study shows that saving rainforests and protecting land in national parks and reserves reduced poverty in two developing countries, according to research by a Georgia State University professor.
Paul J. Ferraro, associate professor of economics in GSU’s Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, with four co-authors, looked at the long term impacts of the poor living near parks and reserves established in 1985 or earlier in Costa Rica and Thailand.
The logic goes against the conventional wisdom that says taking away resources, such as farm land and forests, exacerbates poverty.
“The results are surprising,” Ferraro said.
“Most people might expect that if you restrict resources, people on average will be worse off.”
The research, entitled “Protected areas reduced poverty in Costa Rica and Thailand,” was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America journal.
The authors speculate that the conservation of biodiverse areas may have helped the poor because of tourism and infrastructure, such as new roadways, which may have provided new economic opportunities.
Source: Saving Rainforests May Help Reduce Poverty – Science Daily
Date: 25 May 2010
Economic Costs
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