Description

Abstract: Economists have developed various techniques for evaluating natural resources in the absence of price signals, including what is known as contingent valuation (CV). This methodology calls for respondents to participate in simulated transactions in a hypothetical market setting, designed to reveal what people are willing to pay for nonmarket goods and services provided by the

natural environment. The purpose of this study is to determine what, if anything, local people are willing to pay for the sort of watershed management that would make water supplies cleaner and less subject to interruption. Estimates of willingness to pay (WTP) are obtained using CV.