Abstract

Forests provide various services classified as supporting services, provisioning services, regulating services and cultural services Most of these services are underestimated or not estimated and are thus undervalued in policy decisions. This paper is based on the quantification of various provisioning services from forests such as timber, fuel wood, fodder, green leaf manure, medicinal plants and NTFP. The area under different types of forest is derived from remote sensing data. Quantification of forest goods has been done based on the data compiled from the division offices of the Forest Department and  micro level studies (productivity, etc.). Market prices were used for valuing the goods. The valuation of forest goods and services at micro level is expected to explore the possibilities for more effective micro level planning. This helps in integrating the environmental services with the economic goals of the region while ensuring the sustenance of natural resources and maintaining intergeneration equity.

Keywords: Valuation, forests, Western Ghats, Provisioning services, Market price