Swiss Parks of National Importance as model regions of sustainable development – An economic success story for farmers?

Evidence on the socioeconomic effects of the protected area status of affected regions is mixed. While some studies highlight positive outcomes for these regions, others point in the opposite direction. Consequently, this study aimed to add to the discourse on whether protected area status fosters the socioeconomic development of these regions or not. The study focuses on the agricultural sector in protected areas, because this sector is of particular importance for local communes in these regions. Our study aimed to investigate whether the status Swiss Park of National Importance (henceforth park) positively or negatively influenced economic indicators of local farms (i.e., direct payments, income, and revenues). Specifically, the study answers the following question: How would economic farm indicators have developed if the territory had not gained park status? Thus, the study compared the economic indicators of farms located in a park with economic indicators of farms from neighboring regions outside the park. The analyses focused on the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Biosphere Reserve Entlebuch and the Nature Park Gantrisch as case study regions. The empirical findings revealed that gaining the park status had neither positive nor negative significant effects on income of farms inside a park compared to similar farms outside. However, results also showed that gaining the park status had positive rather than negative effects on further economic indicators such as direct payments and revenues.