If valuation processes are dualistic in the sense that ethical values
are given priority over instrumental values, and if old-growth forests
are considered to be valuable in their own right, then the cost-benef
its approach to valuing old growth is inappropriate. If this is the ca
se, then ethical standards must be used to determine whether preservat
ion is the correct policy when human material needs and ecosystem pres
ervation are in conflict. Such a standard is suggested and evaluated i
n the context of the policy debate over the preservation of spotted ow
l habitat in the Pacific Northwest region of the U.S.