Economic-Ecological Evaluation of Temporary Biodiversity Offsets in Alberta's Boreal Forest

Description: Temporary conservation offsets are a type of offset where land is restored or restricted from development only for a given period. Temporary offsets may be an appropriate policy tool on working landscapes in ecosystems with a wide-spread natural disturbance regime, like the boreal forest, where ecological permanence may not be desirable, and where policy rules must respond to the needs of industrial exploration and resource extraction. This paper evaluates the impact of alternative temporary conservation offset rules (e.g., restoration vs avoided loss, geographic restrictions) on land use dynamics, benefits for Alberta's boreal forest, and the costs of the offset policy.