Robert Constanza and his colleagues have very recently tried to put price tags on nature’s life-support services. Researchers have put an average price tag of USD 33 trillion a year on these fundamental ecosystem services, which are largely taken for granted because they are free. This is near twice the value of the global gross national product GNP which is USD 18 trillion.

Out of the total cost of various ecosystem services, the soil formation accounts for about 50%, and contributions of other services like recreation and nutrient cycling, are less than 10% each. The cost of climate regulation and habitat for wildlife is about 6% each.