Cost-effectiveness analysis of urban nature-based solutions: A stepwise ranking approach

Despite increasing interest in Nature-based Solutions (NbS), there is still a lack of comprehensive understanding regarding the costs of different types of NbS and their variations. Cost information is crucial for economic assessments of the viability of NbS compared to other alternatives. In this p...

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Main Authors: Toke Emil Panduro, Doan Nainggolan, Marianne Zandersen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2024-12-01
Series:Nature-Based Solutions
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772411524000776
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author Toke Emil Panduro
Doan Nainggolan
Marianne Zandersen
author_facet Toke Emil Panduro
Doan Nainggolan
Marianne Zandersen
author_sort Toke Emil Panduro
collection DOAJ
description Despite increasing interest in Nature-based Solutions (NbS), there is still a lack of comprehensive understanding regarding the costs of different types of NbS and their variations. Cost information is crucial for economic assessments of the viability of NbS compared to other alternatives. In this paper, we provide an overview of NbS costs in urban settings, drawing primarily from a literature review of both gray and scientific literature. We present cost estimates for establishing green and blue spaces in urban and peri-urban areas, street trees, green roofs, and green walls. Our findings show that median costs are 56 EUR/m² for green spaces, 73 EUR/m³ for blue spaces, and 201 EUR/m² for green roofs.Furthermore, we demonstrate how an economic assessment can be carried out utilizing the calculated cost estimates while providing a systematic procedure to handle the multiple potential benefits provided by NbS. We argue that a step-wise ranked cost-effectiveness analysis, based on ranking local policy objectives, is a feasible approach for making informed choices on competing solutions relative to conventional cost-effectiveness analysis and cost-benefit analysis. The proposed approach could prove useful due to its relatively straightforward application and the fact that it does not require the aggregation of multiple benefits into one common measurement or valuation unit.
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spelling doaj-art-00afdcfd4f9543eca4e45b3984c0f36f2024-12-17T05:02:06ZengElsevierNature-Based Solutions2772-41152024-12-016100186Cost-effectiveness analysis of urban nature-based solutions: A stepwise ranking approachToke Emil Panduro0Doan Nainggolan1Marianne Zandersen2Corresponding author.; The Department of Environmental Science, ICLIMATE Aarhus University Interdisciplinary Centre for Climate Change, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, Roskilde 4000 , DenmarkThe Department of Environmental Science, ICLIMATE Aarhus University Interdisciplinary Centre for Climate Change, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, Roskilde 4000 , DenmarkThe Department of Environmental Science, ICLIMATE Aarhus University Interdisciplinary Centre for Climate Change, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, Roskilde 4000 , DenmarkDespite increasing interest in Nature-based Solutions (NbS), there is still a lack of comprehensive understanding regarding the costs of different types of NbS and their variations. Cost information is crucial for economic assessments of the viability of NbS compared to other alternatives. In this paper, we provide an overview of NbS costs in urban settings, drawing primarily from a literature review of both gray and scientific literature. We present cost estimates for establishing green and blue spaces in urban and peri-urban areas, street trees, green roofs, and green walls. Our findings show that median costs are 56 EUR/m² for green spaces, 73 EUR/m³ for blue spaces, and 201 EUR/m² for green roofs.Furthermore, we demonstrate how an economic assessment can be carried out utilizing the calculated cost estimates while providing a systematic procedure to handle the multiple potential benefits provided by NbS. We argue that a step-wise ranked cost-effectiveness analysis, based on ranking local policy objectives, is a feasible approach for making informed choices on competing solutions relative to conventional cost-effectiveness analysis and cost-benefit analysis. The proposed approach could prove useful due to its relatively straightforward application and the fact that it does not require the aggregation of multiple benefits into one common measurement or valuation unit.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772411524000776Cost estimatesStep-wise rankingCost-effectiveness analysisEconomic assessmentNature-based Solutions
spellingShingle Toke Emil Panduro
Doan Nainggolan
Marianne Zandersen
Cost-effectiveness analysis of urban nature-based solutions: A stepwise ranking approach
Nature-Based Solutions
Cost estimates
Step-wise ranking
Cost-effectiveness analysis
Economic assessment
Nature-based Solutions
title Cost-effectiveness analysis of urban nature-based solutions: A stepwise ranking approach
title_full Cost-effectiveness analysis of urban nature-based solutions: A stepwise ranking approach
title_fullStr Cost-effectiveness analysis of urban nature-based solutions: A stepwise ranking approach
title_full_unstemmed Cost-effectiveness analysis of urban nature-based solutions: A stepwise ranking approach
title_short Cost-effectiveness analysis of urban nature-based solutions: A stepwise ranking approach
title_sort cost effectiveness analysis of urban nature based solutions a stepwise ranking approach
topic Cost estimates
Step-wise ranking
Cost-effectiveness analysis
Economic assessment
Nature-based Solutions
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772411524000776
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AT doannainggolan costeffectivenessanalysisofurbannaturebasedsolutionsastepwiserankingapproach
AT mariannezandersen costeffectivenessanalysisofurbannaturebasedsolutionsastepwiserankingapproach