Eliciting policy-relevant stated preference values for water quality: An application to New Zealand

Abstract Governments need tools to analyze trade-offs for freshwater policy, yet valuation estimates from the literature can be difficult deploy in a policy setting. Obstacles benefit transfer include (i) difficulties scaling up local estimates, (ii) water quality attributes that cannot linked and (iii) surveys positing large, unrealistic changes. Focusing on rivers streams New Zealand, we develop implement nationwide discrete choice stated preference study aimed at future transfer. The provision mechanism environmental commodity being valued are specified regional council level, which is administrative unit implementation. survey administered national scale with three – nutrients, clarity, E. coli levels were chosen align government levers salience public. Estimation results demonstrate positive significant willingness pay values improvements each attribute, magnitudes comparable recent referendum vote tax. To illustrate utility of our study, apply analyzed by Zealand’s Ministry Environment estimate annual benefits NZ $115 million ($77 USD).