ECONOMIC-EFFICIENCY, SUSTAINABILITY, AND BIODIVERSITY

An economy can be both efficient and sustainable, but efficiency does not guarantee sustainability. The safe minimum standard (SMS) for biological diversity illustrates the practical steps that could be taken to increase the likelihood that the economy is sustainable. Extinction threatens sustainability because it may affect the stability of economically important ecosystems and it may entail losses of plants, animals, and microorganisms that would otherwise have become important resources in the future. Wherever preservation is biologically feasible, extinction of species would be avoided unless the costs of avoidance are excessive or other social goals must receive a higher priority. The stated policies of the US and many other countries are consistent with the SMS. However, in the US at least, lack of funding has been a major impediment to implementation. A tax on natural resource use would be a possible source of funding for programs to improve prospects for economic sustainability.