The area of Caracol Bay in northeastern Haiti (19o43’51”N, 72o02’44”W) is the target site for this report.
In an attempt to estimate the monetary value of the services that ecosystems provide various methods of ecosystem valuation have been designed. Dollar-based valuation systems can include : travel cost, productivity, benefit transfer, and others. The Ecosystem Value Transfer (EVT)/Benefit Transfer Method (BTM) was used for this activity in which values which have already been estimated for similar ecosystems are extrapolated to the study site.
The total estimates for ecosystem services for Caracol Bay are US$ 105,228,000 for mangroves and US$ 4,505,000 for coral reefs for a total estimated value for ecosystem services of US$ 109,733,000 (this total does not include ecosystem services provided by sea grass beds).
In 2004 an assessment by the World Resources Institute arrived at certain key findings concerning Caribbean reefs
