Ibadan Journal of the Social Sciences
Volume 18, No. 1, 2020
DOI: 10.36108/ijss/0202.81.0120
Trends in Environmental Valuation: The Challenge to Nigerian Geography and Sustainable Development
B. A. Chokor
Department of Geography & Regional Planning, University of Benin, Nigeria
Abstract
Environmental valuation, which is interdisciplinary in scope and practice, has a considerable role in natural resource management. This paper contends that assessment studies required to prioritize and preserve the ecological integrity of Nigeria’s varied environments have been limited in geography and argues the need to realign with newer perspectives. The review problematizes the relative value of the seemingly more robust, precise but conventional quantitative tools of assessment widely deployed in the discipline and the efficacy of the experiential perspectives espoused by humanistic geographers, whose impetus comes from conceptual borrowings. The propriety of these borrowings is evaluated. The paper then suggests that while the increasing interest in valuation has largely been spurred by the need to establish criteria for minimizing and managing the impact of human activities on the environment, the validity of much of the methodologies adopted has been far from clear, although a notable contribution in Nigerian geography is the attempt at reducing a composite or aggregate index of environmental quality. While this approach has benefits for environmental planning and design, the paper also outlines new directions for more impactful research, especially against the backdrop of the upsurge of interest in environmental or resource economics.