Economic Costs of Eutrophication in The Laurentian Great Lakes Basin in Canada

This data set is collected to support the project titled Lake Futures: Enhancing Adaptive Capacity and Resilience of Lakes and Their Watersheds: Work Package 4'. Lake Futures is a Pillar 3 project under the Global Water Futures Program funded by Canada First Research Excellence Fund. The main goal of this research is to identify ecosystem services that are negatively affected by water quality deterioration in the Great Lakes Basin on the Canadian side, and further quantify the monetary costs induced by the worsened water quality. We identify and categorize the direct costs into seven groups: costs on property value, recreation, tourism, water treatment, biodiversity, human health, and commercial fishing. The cost estimates inform us how much it will cost us if we do not invest in solutions to promote the recovery of the Great Lakes ecosystem. Considering that climate change and higher temperature can increase algal growth and nutrient runoff, eutrophication might become an even larger problem if actions are not taken immediately. Our research can help the society understand the gravity and urgency of the issue and take appropriate measures to restore and improve the water quality in the Great Lakes Basin and provide better services to local residents and tourists.本数据集旨在支持题为《湖泊未来：提升湖泊及其流域的适应能力与韧性：工作包4》的研究项目。“湖泊未来”是全球水未来计划（Global Water Futures Program）下的第三支柱项目，由加拿大第一研究卓越基金（Canada First Research Excellence Fund）资助。本研究的核心目标是识别加拿大境内的五大湖流域（Great Lakes Basin）内因水质恶化而受到负面影响的生态系统服务（ecosystem services），并进一步量化水质恶化所引发的经济损失。我们将直接经济损失划分为七大类：房产价值损失、休闲娱乐损失、旅游业损失、水处理成本、生物多样性损失、人类健康损失以及商业渔业损失。这些成本估算可帮助我们明确，若不投入资金推进五大湖生态系统修复，将面临的经济代价。考虑到气候变化与气温升高会加剧藻类繁殖与营养物径流，若不立即采取行动，水体富营养化（eutrophication）问题可能会愈发严重。本研究可帮助社会认识到该问题的严重性与紧迫性，并采取恰当措施修复、改善五大湖流域的水质，从而为当地居民与游客提供更优质的服务。