Valuing the Recreation Benefits of Natural Springs in Florida

Karst springs are scenic natural resources in karst areas of Florida, currently under threat from increasing groundwater withdrawal from the Floridan Aquifer and pollution resulting from a variety of sources. This paper estimates the current recreation benefits from visiting springs using the travel cost method and elicits residents’ willingness to contribute for springs restoration using the contingent valuation method. It further compares the performance of count data models correcting for endogenous stratification and truncation, and finds that the annual consumer surplus per person per trip is between $20 and $43, and the annual total recreational value for the four springs studied is about $25 million. Furthermore, visitors are willing to contribute $12 to $14 per person per trip for springs restoration without reducing trip demand.

Study on the Appraisal of Tourism Demands and Recreation Benefits for Nanwan Beach, Kenting, Taiwan

This study implemented a questionnaire survey on tourists to the Nanwan Beach, Kenting, Taiwan and then applied the travel cost method to appraise the recreation benefits of the Nanwan Beach. The truncated Poisson model (TPOIS), truncated negative binomial distribution model, and on-site Poisson model were applied in view of the errors caused by truncated samples and endogenous stratification, and the results indicated that: (1) The on-site Poisson model was more suitable than the other two models for estimating the recreation benefits of Nanwan; (2) the three recreational benefit indicators (consumer surplus, compensation variation, and equivalent variation) estimated using the TPOIS model were all significantly greater than those of the on-site Poisson model; (3) the on-site Poisson model estimated the price elasticity and income elasticity of the tourism demands for Nanwan as −0.329 and 0.187, respectively; and (4) on the basis of the on-site Poisson model, the consumer surplus for Nanwan was NT$9639 (approximately US$289) per person per visit, and the annual gross recreation benefits were approximate NT$8.022 billion. The results are expected to provide a valuable reference for management and planning policies of the Kenting National Park.

Valuing Recreation Benefits of Natural Springs in Florida

Fresh water springs are unique natural resources in Florida, currently under threat from increasing groundwater pumping and pollution resulting from a variety of sources. This paper estimates current recreation benefits from visiting springs using the travel cost method and elicits residents’ willingness to contribute for springs restoration using the contingent valuation method. It further compares the performance of count data models correcting for endogenous stratification and truncation, and finds that the annual consumer surplus per person per trip is between $20 and $43. Furthermore, visitors are willing to contribute $12 to $14 per person per trip for springs restoration without reducing trip demand.

Do CVM Welfare Estimates Suffer from On-Site Sampling Bias? A Comparison of On-Site and Household Visitor Surveys

The problem of endogenous stratification associated with on-site sampling has been overlooked in the Contingent Valuation Method (CVM). We find that using on-site samples of visitors overstates visitor willingness to pay (WTP) estimates relative to a household sample of visitors, and substantially overstates the unconditional population values. We provide two methods of correcting WTP of on-site samples. The uncorrected on-site sample CVM yields WTP of $132 per trip, while visitor WTP obtained from a random sample of households had a value of $66 per trip. Adaptation of choice-based sampling correction estimator to the on-site CVM data yields $73 per trip, not statistically different from the visitor value from the household survey, but significantly different from the uncorrected on-site sample value.

A Joint Estimation Method to Combine Dichotomous Choice CVM Models with Count Data TCM Models Corrected for Truncation and Endogenous Stratification

We update the joint estimation of revealed and stated preference data of previously published research to allow for joint estimation of the Travel Cost Method (TCM) portion using count data models. The TCM estimation also corrects for truncation and endogenous stratification as well as overdispersion. The joint estimation allows for testing consistency of behavior between revealed and stated preference data rather than imposing it. We find little gain in estimation efficiency, but our joint estimation might make a significant improvement in estimation efficiency when the contingent valuation scenarios involve major changes in site quality not reflected in the TCM data.