Some might say Hawaii’s coral reefs are priceless, but a new study actually puts a dollar value on them – $33.57 billion.

That’s the amount that the public is willing to pay to protect and preserve the reefs, said Norman Meade, a co-author of the study and senior economist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

NOAA spent $1 million to survey more than 3,200 households across the country. The unusual study assessed how much people value things like snorkeling, eating the fish and just having the reefs exist. Those surveyed weren’t asked specifically how much they were willing to pay for protecting Hawaii’s reefs, but through a complicated economic formula, Meade said, the study’s authors were able to determine a value. NOAA scientists and academics with expertise in coral reefs worked on the study.

The number is close to what Americans spend annually on biomedical research – $32 billion, four times what Americans spend on the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and six times the overall budget of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, according to government data. The $33.57 billion annual expenditure on Hawaii’s reefs would break down to about $285 per household.

Any direct results from the study, which is the first to assign a numerical value to reefs, are unclear.

“It was a research project, really,” said Reade. “Some people may find various uses for it.”

The findings, released Friday, come at a time when NOAA is evaluating whether to classify nine coral species in Hawaii as endangered under federal law, which could limit activities such as fishing and coastal development. However, Meade said that the study’s results were not allowed to be used in the determination.

William Aila, director of the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources could not be reached for comment, but in a statement released by NOAA, he said that while he was glad that such research was being done, “before we consider any potential applications of the study we will consult closely with local communities.”

About one-third of the world’s 700 species of coral are threatened with extinction, according to a study by the Global Marine Species Assessment. Overfishing, recreational activities and climate change have contributed to reef degradation.

NOAA said the study could spur similar evaluations of other natural resources.

DISCUSSION: Do you think that NOAA’s study on the value of coral reefs is worth it?*