Determining public attitudes and willingness-to-pay for artificial lakes protection

Abstract

This study explores factors influencing people's willingness to pay (WTP) for protecting an artificial lake. WTP was derived from a face-to-face survey of 564 recreational users of Plastira Lake, one of the most important constructed wetlands in Greece. Key elements in this research were the uses of adequate econometric models to tackle protest answers and of a scale for measuring the dimensions of Total Economic Value of a water resource. The results indicated relative importance of particular value components in determining water resources conservation preferences and individuals’ willingness for protecting them. We extract four factors (water use, production, flora and fauna and quasi-option values) and explore their influence on respondents’ WTP. Various demographic variables together with the extracted factors show a strong impact on WTP and the specific amounts stated. The study contributes to understanding of values underlying conservation decisions and help policy makers promoting strategies for protecting water resources. © 2016 Elsevier B.V.