AN ECONOMIC-ASSESSMENT OF A NEST-BOX STRATEGY FOR THE CONSERVATION OFAN ENDANGERED SPECIES

There is increasing concern over the extinction of plants and animals resulting from modern land-use activities. Many jurisdictions have ena cted legislation that limits these activities and directs resource man agers to take mitigative steps. In this paper we demonstrate how stand ard economic analysis can be used to assess the costs of alternative c onservation management strategies. The costs of a nest box program for the conservation of an endangered Australian arboreal marsupial, Lead beater's possum (Gymnobelideus lendbeateri McCoy), are compared with t he timber production value of the forests they inhabit. Nest boxes hav e been suggested as a mechanism to maintain the species and still allo w timber harvesting to occur. In most scenarios nest boxes cost more t han logging bans even under a variety of discount rates. Thus, given a n exogenous policy decision to conserve Leadbeater's possum, the most efficient management strategy in this case is to not harvest the old-g rowth forests that are likely to support the species.