Natural Resources

El Yunque National Forest provides a variety of ecosystem services—including clean air, fresh water, and recreation—that are essential to the well-being of people in communities surrounding the forest and beyond.  Many of these goods and services are traditionally viewed as free benefits to society, or “public goods”—wildlife habitat and diversity, watershed services, carbon storage, and scenic landscapes, for example. Lacking a formal market, these natural assets are traditionally absent from society’s balance sheet; their critical contributions are often overlooked in public, corporate, and individual decision-making. When our forests are undervalued, they are increasingly susceptible to development pressures and conversion. Recognizing forest ecosystems as natural assets with economic and social value can help promote conservation and more effective decision-making.