Umeå Economic Studies, Department of Economics, Umeå University
No 712:
Assessing the non-timber value of old-growth forests in Sweden
Thomas Broberg ()
Abstract: This paper estimates the public benefit of preserving 126
000 hectares of old-growth forest in the sub-mountainous region of Sweden
through contingent valuation. The primary benefit of this in-situ
conservation of biodiversity is the forest’s relative diversity and
richness, which provides important habitat for threatened species. Thus,
benefits arise predominantly from nonuse values. We find that a majority of
the Swedish population is unwilling to contribute financially to the
preservation project (median WTP equals zero). The estimated mean WTP is
SEK 300, implying an aggregate benefit of SEK 9 billion. We estimate two
types of valuation functions in order to reject the hypothesis that
respondents state random numbers as their WTP. Firstly, a binary logit
model indicates that variables related to a respondent’s education level,
income level and concern about the environment are positively correlated
with the likelihood of supporting the preservation project, while being a
male and having an anti-environmental attitude towards public expenditures
are negatively correlated. After controlling for whether or not locals are
employed in forest-related industries, we find that locals, in general, are
more likely to have a positive WTP. Secondly, we estimate a valuation
function conditioned on respondents with a positive WTP and find that the
size of their contribution is explained by income, general concern about
the environment, and the motive underlying their valuation (e.g., use
versus nonuse). No differences between locals and non-locals were found.
Keywords: contingent valuation; willingness to pay; social benefit; nonuse values; non-timber value; old-growth forest; preservation; conservation; (follow links to similar papers)
JEL-Codes: Q20; Q23; Q26; Q28; Q38; (follow links to similar papers)
22 pages, May 16, 2007
Before downloading any of the electronic versions below
you should read our statement on
copyright.
Download GhostScript
for viewing Postscript files and the
Acrobat Reader for viewing and printing pdf files.
Full text versions of the paper:
DownloadAsset.action?contentId=48302&languageId=3&assetKey=ues712 
Download Statistics
Questions (including download problems) about the papers in this series should be directed to Kjell-Göran Holmberg ()
Report other problems with accessing this service to Sune Karlsson ()
or Helena Lundin ().
Programing by
Design by Joachim Ekebom
