Shifted Baselines Reduce Willingness to Pay for Conservation
A loss of memory of past environmental degradation has resulted in shifted baselines, which may result in conservation and restoration goals that are less ambitious than if stakeholders had a full knowledge of ecosystem potential. However, the link between perception of baseline states and support f...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2018-02-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Marine Science |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmars.2018.00048/full |
| _version_ | 1817968480873349120 |
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| author | Loren McClenachan Ryunosuke Matsuura Payal Shah Sahan T. M. Dissanayake Sahan T. M. Dissanayake |
| author_facet | Loren McClenachan Ryunosuke Matsuura Payal Shah Sahan T. M. Dissanayake Sahan T. M. Dissanayake |
| author_sort | Loren McClenachan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | A loss of memory of past environmental degradation has resulted in shifted baselines, which may result in conservation and restoration goals that are less ambitious than if stakeholders had a full knowledge of ecosystem potential. However, the link between perception of baseline states and support for conservation planning has not been tested empirically. Here, we investigate how perceptions of change in coral reef ecosystems affect stakeholders' willingness to pay (WTP) for the establishment of protected areas. Coral reefs are experiencing rapid, global change that is observable by the public, and therefore provide an ideal ecosystem to test links between beliefs about baseline states and willingness to support conservation. Our survey respondents perceived change to coral reef communities across six variables: coral abundance, fish abundance, fish diversity, fish size, sedimentation, and water pollution. Respondants who accurately perceived declines in reef health had significantly higher WTP for protected areas (US $256.80 vs. $102.50 per year), suggesting that shifted baselines may reduce engagement with conservation efforts. If WTP translates to engagement, this suggests that goals for restoration and recovery are likely to be more ambitious if the public is aware of long term change. Therefore, communicating the scope and depth of environmental problems is essential in engaging the public in conservation. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T20:09:27Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0473ef183d3744d4bb4a439192cea0d4 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-7745 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T20:09:27Z |
| publishDate | 2018-02-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Marine Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-0473ef183d3744d4bb4a439192cea0d42022-12-22T02:31:53ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Marine Science2296-77452018-02-01510.3389/fmars.2018.00048301406Shifted Baselines Reduce Willingness to Pay for ConservationLoren McClenachan0Ryunosuke Matsuura1Payal Shah2Sahan T. M. Dissanayake3Sahan T. M. Dissanayake4Environmental Studies Program, Colby College, Waterville, ME, United StatesDepartment of Economics, Colby College, Waterville, ME, United StatesOkinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Okinawa, JapanDepartment of Economics, Colby College, Waterville, ME, United StatesDepartment of Economics, Portland State University, Portland, OR, United StatesA loss of memory of past environmental degradation has resulted in shifted baselines, which may result in conservation and restoration goals that are less ambitious than if stakeholders had a full knowledge of ecosystem potential. However, the link between perception of baseline states and support for conservation planning has not been tested empirically. Here, we investigate how perceptions of change in coral reef ecosystems affect stakeholders' willingness to pay (WTP) for the establishment of protected areas. Coral reefs are experiencing rapid, global change that is observable by the public, and therefore provide an ideal ecosystem to test links between beliefs about baseline states and willingness to support conservation. Our survey respondents perceived change to coral reef communities across six variables: coral abundance, fish abundance, fish diversity, fish size, sedimentation, and water pollution. Respondants who accurately perceived declines in reef health had significantly higher WTP for protected areas (US $256.80 vs. $102.50 per year), suggesting that shifted baselines may reduce engagement with conservation efforts. If WTP translates to engagement, this suggests that goals for restoration and recovery are likely to be more ambitious if the public is aware of long term change. Therefore, communicating the scope and depth of environmental problems is essential in engaging the public in conservation.http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmars.2018.00048/fullbaselinescoral reefschoice experimentsmarine conservationocean optimismwillingness to pay |
| spellingShingle | Loren McClenachan Ryunosuke Matsuura Payal Shah Sahan T. M. Dissanayake Sahan T. M. Dissanayake Shifted Baselines Reduce Willingness to Pay for Conservation Frontiers in Marine Science baselines coral reefs choice experiments marine conservation ocean optimism willingness to pay |
| title | Shifted Baselines Reduce Willingness to Pay for Conservation |
| title_full | Shifted Baselines Reduce Willingness to Pay for Conservation |
| title_fullStr | Shifted Baselines Reduce Willingness to Pay for Conservation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Shifted Baselines Reduce Willingness to Pay for Conservation |
| title_short | Shifted Baselines Reduce Willingness to Pay for Conservation |
| title_sort | shifted baselines reduce willingness to pay for conservation |
| topic | baselines coral reefs choice experiments marine conservation ocean optimism willingness to pay |
| url | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmars.2018.00048/full |
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