The report Natural Heritage, Natural Wealth: Highlighting the Economic Benefits of the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System World Heritage Site aims to capture some insight into Belize’s natural wealth through an economic assessment of the contribution of the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System (BBRRS) to the economy and to highlight the incredible resource the country is at risk of losing.
The study reveals the extent to which Belize’s economy depends on tourism generated by the threatened BBRRS and finds that that the BBRRS provides a significant socio-economic contribution to Belize, with greater investment needed to protect its outstanding universal value and the goods and services currently being provided. These estimates of economic benfit far exceed the annual cost of managing the respective proected areas, demonstrating that investing in biodiversity conservation can be cost effective.
Belize Fisheries Department, Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF), Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Belize, Belize Audubon Sociery, Wildtracks Belize