Coastal and marine resources often require to be valued to assess management options and encourage sustainable policy-making. While numerous non-market valuation techniques are available, the complexity of biodiversity makes applications challenging. Typically, a small number of proxy assets (e.g. coral reefs) are used to represent more complex natural assets and processes in valuation exercises. While using proxies simplifies the assessment process, it can be challenging to interpret what values represent. We conduct a comprehensive review of the use of proxies to represent coral reef biodiversity in the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, spanning four decades (1983–2020) of literature. Studies are categorized based on the Total Economic Value and Ecosystem Services components they refer to, and the different approaches to the use of proxies. We identify that value estimates are sensitive to the type of proxy, and recommend habitat- or process-focused proxies over species-focused proxies as being more holistic and accurate. The most adequate proxies may, however, be considered on a case by case basis, depending on the policy question being addressed.

通常需要对沿海和海洋资源进行估值，以评估管理方案并鼓励可持续决策。虽然有许多非市场估值技术可用，但生物多样性的复杂性使应用程序具有挑战性。通常，在估值活动中使用少量代理资产（例如珊瑚礁）来代表更复杂的自然资产和过程。虽然使用代理简化了评估过程，但解释值代表什么可能具有挑战性。我们对使用代理代表澳大利亚大堡礁的珊瑚礁生物多样性进行了全面审查，跨越了四个十年（1983-2020）的文献。研究根据它们所指的总经济价值和生态系统服务组成部分以及使用代理的不同方法进行分类。我们确定价值估计对代理的类型很敏感，并建议以栖息地或过程为中心的代理比以物种为中心的代理更全面和准确。然而，根据正在解决的政策问题，可以根据具体情况考虑最合适的代理。