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Service providing units, existence values and the valuation of endangered species: A methodological test

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  • Kontogianni, A.
  • Tourkolias, C.
  • Machleras, A.
  • Skourtos, M.

Abstract

Non-market valuation approaches for estimating the social value of biodiversity and individual species need to enhance their policy relevance. The concept of service-providing unit (SPU) may help achieve this objective by promoting the systematic quantification of the key components of nature that provide services for human wellbeing. The present paper is the first application of the SPU concept in stated preference surveys. The object of valuation is the highly endangered Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus). A split-sample is used testing the hypotheses that the SPU framework would: 1) minimize the part of non-use values that is due to a ‘warm glow’ effect and therefore 2) encourage respondents in reallocating part of their total economic value towards use values. Our results indicate that the difference between the means of existence values in the two sub-samples is statistically insignificant: in both cases respondents attribute a significant percentage of their total economic value to existence value. On the other hand though, the non-use value component of WTP decreases in the sub-sample with SPU in relation to the sub-sample without it. We conclude that existence values in our sample are based on solid preferences related to the species since they persisted in both sub-samples.

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  • Kontogianni, A. & Tourkolias, C. & Machleras, A. & Skourtos, M., 2012. "Service providing units, existence values and the valuation of endangered species: A methodological test," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 97-104.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:79:y:2012:i:c:p:97-104
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2012.04.023
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    3. Halkos, George & Galani, Georgia, 2016. "Assessing willingness to pay for marine and coastal ecosystems: A Case Study in Greece," MPRA Paper 68767, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. John Robinson, Peter & van Beukering, Pieter & Brander, Luke & Brouwer, Roy & Haider, W. & Taylor, Michael & Mau, Paulus, 2022. "Understanding the determinants of biodiversity non-use values in the context of climate change: Stated preferences for the Hawaiian coral reefs," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 53(C).
    5. M. Skourtos & D. Damigos & D. Tsitakis & A. Kontogianni & C. Tourkolias & N. Streftaris, 2015. "In Search of Marine Ecosystem Services Values: The V-MESSES Database," Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy and Management (JEAPM), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 17(04), pages 1-27, December.
    6. Hyo-Jin Kim & Se-Jun Jin & Seung-Hoon Yoo, 2018. "Public Assessment of Releasing a Captive Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin into the Wild in South Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-8, September.
    7. Halkos, George & Matsiori, Steriani & Dritsas, Sophoclis, 2017. "Exploring social values for marine protected areas: The case of Mediterranean monk seal," MPRA Paper 82490, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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