Focussing development in compact communities and avoiding sprawl can help preserve agricultural land and important ecosystems.
Natural features such as streams, lakes, wetlands, and forests provide vital "ecosystem services." These include fish and wildlife habitat, community water supply, filtering of air pollution, waste treatment, climate control, recreation and tourism, and cultural heritage.
In the Lower Fraser Valley, for example, it is estimated that every hectare of preserved wetland may be worth almost $23,000 annually for its filtering, flood control, and other benefits.1
Note:
(1) N. Olewiler (2004), The Value of Natural Capital in Settled Areas of Canada, Published by Ducks Unlimited Canada the Nature Conservancy of Canada, http://www.ducks.ca/aboutduc/news/archives/2004/041115.html.
