Protecting environment pays off, experts say

What is a honeybee worth? A wetland? A fish or a bird? A human life?

Ecologists and health advocates are assigning dollar values to the environment as they argue for its protection and enhancement. Budget-minded governments make this a practical approach, if sometimes a distasteful one.

"You can't have a healthy economy without a healthy environment," says John Kostyack of the National Wildlife Federation. He cited recent studies showing that "an investment in conservation today really pays off in the long run -- and the payoff is in terms of both quality of life and dollar and cents."

Why pay $9 million for a barrier in the Chicago Sanitary & Ship Canal to keep Asian carp out of Lake Michigan? To protect the Great Lakes' annual $4.5 billion fishing industry, environmentalists say.

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