Why Some of the Largest Corporations Are Exploring Ecosystem Services

It is becoming so relevant to day-to-day business practices that a new term has been coined: Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (BES). As reported by Greenbiz.com, Disney, BP, Rio Tinto and Weyerhaueser represent vastly different sectors, yet these companies see an increasingly persuasive business case for tracking the impacts and dependencies on BES.

Ecosystem services are essential to businesses. Internally, the foundation of pursing BES is about improving how companies identify risks and opportunities. If poorly done, the result can be project delays and supply chain challenges. With regard to operational risk, it is no longer unusual to point out that companies must consider how to maintain long-term access to key natural resource-based inputs, particularly water.

And now companies are also considering reputational risk. For example, the Dow Jones Sustainability Index has added ecosystem services considerations within the forestry sector, and financial media coverage of ecosystem services, with stories in Bloomberg, the Financial Times and the Economist, are becoming commonplace.