ECONOMY OF THE SERVICES OF COASTAL ECOSYSTEMS

STATE OF THE ART AND CONCEPTUALIZATION

Abstract

This paper surveyed ecosystem services in coastal regions, seeking to build the concept of the economy of coastal ecosystem services in Brazil, especially the contribution of the function of the sea to the regional economy. The interest in the economic dynamics of coastal regions has attracted worldwide attention. In Brazil, the coastal zone covers 8,500 km in 17 federative units, counting more than 400 municipalities distributed from the North (Oiapoque/AP) to the extreme South (Santa Vitória do Palmar/RS). Such regions have abundant natural resources and biodiversity with a great capacity to generate economic gains. In this sense, coastal services were divided into six economic dimensions: energy; ports and logistics; fisheries and aquaculture; sociocultural dimension; Sports; and tourism. Finally, it is suggested the need for studies that quantify the relationship between the economic dynamics of coastal regions and environmental sustainability.