This guide describes biological and economic procedures developed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to evaluate the biological effects and economic benefits of BLM's resource improvements and treatments, especially habitat improvements, affecting wildlife populations. Although developed as part of an instructional package for teaching BLM resource managers to use BLM procedures for benefit-cost analysis and project ranking, this expanded publication is also intended to provide a basic level of knowledge and understanding of wildlife economics and productivity analysis. We hope that it will help resource managers become a more effective force for ecologically sound and economically efficient wildlife management on the public lands.
This guide breaks some new ground by linking biological analysis with economic analysis through limiting factors analysis. Wildlife and fisheries productivity analysis (WFPA) is a quantitative technique for biologists to use to make projections of the effects of proposed actions on wildlife populations. Without such quantitative projections, there can be no numerical benefit-cost analysis. In addition, this guide provides systematic methods for incorporating the consumptive and nonconsumptive values of wildlife into BLM's investment analysis procedures. A third element that was considered for inclusion was guidance on estimating the nonconsumptive use values of wildlife, such as existence and bequest value. However, since we were unable to adequately quantify these values, we settled for providing procedures which require qualitative consideration of these values in ranking projects and in choosing how to spend BLM funds for resource improvements and treatments. We believe this is the appropriate way of accounting for the value of preserving endangered species or any species whose population is not used widely for recreation. By using existence value and preservation value in ranking choices, we confront the economic cost of protecting these unique biological resources and judge the desirability of different plans for protection against their costs—the essence of benefit-cost analysis. Whether measuring everything in dollars or dealing in unquantified values, the goal is still to make the most economic use of existing funds and resources by considering all costs and benefits that can be recognized, described, and evaluated.
This guide is written for biologists and other resource specialists, economists, other social scientists, planners, and managers. Some basic economics is included for biologists who may be working without readily available economic expertise. A more advanced discussion of economics is included in the appendices. We expect economists and other social scientists to benefit from some of the expert sections and appendices because of the responsibility they may have for advising on technical matters, developing information on demand, and for determining prices to be used in estimating benefits. An appendix on regional economic impact analysis is included for those resource specialists who need to work with this technique as well as with benefit-cost analysis. The distinctions between these two kinds of economic analysis are often confused by economists and noneconomists alike. Biologists need to know that their biological analyses can serve both kinds of economic analysis equally well, but that benefit-cost analysis and not regional economic analysis is the focus of this guide.