Energy analysis of nonmarket values of the Mississippi Delta

An energy analysis was used to estimate nonmarket values under various land cover scenarios in the Mississippi Delta. Land loss since 1900 has led to a decline in nonmarket values from $3.1 billion/year in 1900 to $2.5 billio n in 1990, resulting in a total loss of $29.4 billion, This loss is concent rated in the Barataria-Terrebonne basins, where nonmarket value has dropped from $1.6 billion/year in 1956 to $1.3 billion/year in 1988. Although valu es are projected to increase in the Atchafalaya basin (from $723 million/ye ar in 1988 to $756 million/year in 2058), total nonmarket value for the Lou isiana coast is projected to decrease to $2.1 billion/year under currently approved levels of restoration.