Economic value of conservation. The case of the edible sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus

S. Matsiori, S. Aggelopoulos, A. Tsoutsou, Ch Neofitou, K. Soutsas, D. Vafidis

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Abstract

    This paper presents a goods and services approach to determine the economic value of Paracentrotus lividus with the aim of clarifying the role of valuation in the management and conservation of marine biodiversity. More specifically, it uses the Contingent Valuation Method to estimate the existence value of the sea urchin population that is predicted to be lost in the future if we do not take any measure today to protect them. According to the results a great number of respondents were willing to pay for the conservation of P. lividus population. Moreover, individual characteristics have distinctively different effects for explaining responders behaviour against their conservation. The empirical results from the proposed models link individuals opinion about eco-nomic value of biodiversity with people total willingness to pay (WTP). The results would help the choice of management strategies for P. lividus conservation and can help design incentive schemes to make conservation policy both effective and efficient.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)269-274
    Number of pages6
    JournalJournal of Environmental Protection and Ecology
    Volume13
    Issue number1
    Publication statusPublished - 2012

    Keywords

    • Contingent valuation
    • Economic value of conservation
    • P. Lividus
    • Value of biodiversity

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