Biodiversity and economic development: what are the territorial impacts of ecological compensation?

Abstract

Biodiversity conservation policies have a potentially significant socio-economic impact, and not only because they impose restrictions on economic activities. The purpose of this article is to examine, through the emblematic case of ecological compensation, how biodiversity conservation can translate into new economic activity, not only through the redistribution of resources over a territory, but also by reinforcing existing activities for which there is potential demand. Through case studies carried out in Isère, it shows that the implementation of compensation can have significant positive impacts, provided that the coordination of the various local policies is sufficiently effective and that a real dialogue exists between the different categories of impacted actors.