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Few studies have acknowledged and quantified the economic contribution in expenditures of recreational fisheries. Additional economic value attributed to fishers' willingness to pay (WTP) for recreational fisheries in excess of expenses was estimated for 33 countries in Europe. Benefit transfer was used in a meta‐regression analysis of 184 studies and 1001 observations of WTP per day for recreational fisheries. Most studies of fishing were in the USA, but also in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, South America and Canada. Mixed‐effects regression models were estimated with income, climate variables, population density and study characteristics as explanatory variables. Income and temperature positively affected WTP per day. Benefit transfers with these variables and different transfer methods among European countries showed that the estimated total WTP could amount to 11.4 billion USD (purchasing power parity corrected to 2020 prices). Variation in WTP per day was large, and ranged 9–62 USD among countries and transfer methods. For several countries, WTP for recreational fisheries exceeded 0.1% of gross domestic product. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Sustainable development ensures the longevity of civilization by balancing economic growth, environmental protection, and social equity. The present study evaluates cultural heritage assets via a meta-regression analysis function transfer, in which 85 studies were examined that revealed 106 different willingness-to-pay (WTP) values in the period 1995–2022. The meta-regression methodology enables the valuation of cultural heritage—tangible and intangible—goods and services, as well as cultural values (e.g. aesthetic, spiritual, symbolic, etc.). The utilization of WTP would enable us to compare the two models (i.e., European and non-European) on how much a citizen would value cultural heritage based on non-market valuation. The results would inform policymakers about the importance of cultural heritage assets in the sustainable development agenda. The empirical findings present that the WTP for the European sample is 37.6€ and for the non-European is 60.12€. In essence, the Europeans are influenced mainly by intangible cultural assets, whereas non-Europeans are influenced by oral tradition. Overall, cultural heritage conservation necessitates for proper economic valuation through a holistic approach, in short—the valuation of both tangible and intangible cultural goods and services is imperative for sustainable development.

Sustainable development ensures the longevity of civilization by balancing economic growth, environmental protection, and social equity. The present study evaluates cultural heritage assets via a meta-regression analysis function transfer, in which 85 studies were examined that revealed 106 different willingness-to-pay (WTP) values in the period 1995–2022. The meta-regression methodology enables the valuation of cultural heritage—tangible and intangible—goods and services, as well as cultural values (e.g. aesthetic, spiritual, symbolic, etc.). The utilization of WTP would enable us to compare the two models (i.e., European and non-European) on how much a citizen would value cultural heritage based on non-market valuation. The results would inform policymakers about the importance of cultural heritage assets in the sustainable development agenda. The empirical findings present that the WTP for the European sample is 37.6€ and for the non-European is 60.12€. In essence, the Europeans are influenced mainly by intangible cultural assets, whereas non-Europeans are influenced by oral tradition. Overall, cultural heritage conservation necessitates for proper economic valuation through a holistic approach, in short—the valuation of both tangible and intangible cultural goods and services is imperative for sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land use and land cover (LULC) changes are inevitable outcomes of socioeconomic changes and greatly affect ecosystem services. Our study addresses the critical gap in the existing literature by providing the first comprehensive national analysis of LULC changes and their impacts on ecosystem service values (ESVs) in Malawi. We assessed changes in ecosystem service values (ESVs) in response to LULC changes using the benefit transfer method in ArcGIS 10.6 software. Our findings revealed a significant increase in grasslands, croplands, and urban areas and a notable decline in forests, shrubs, wetlands, and water bodies. Grassland, cropland, and built-up areas expanded by 52%, 1%, and 23.2%, respectively. In contrast, permanent wetlands, barren land, and water bodies declined by 27.6%, 34.3%, and 1%, respectively. The ESV declined from US$90.87 billion in 2001 to US$85.60 billion in 2022, marking a 5.8% reduction. Provisioning services increased by 0.5% while regulating, supporting, and cultural ecosystem service functions declined by 12.2%, 3.16%, and 3.22%, respectively. The increase in provisioning services was due to the expansion of cropland. However, the loss of regulating, supporting, and cultural services was mainly due to the loss of natural ecosystems. Thus, environmental policy should prioritise the conservation and restoration of natural ecosystems to enhance the ESV of Malawi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study provides step‐by‐step guidance for practitioners and local stakeholders on how to use existing study results to conduct benefit transfer (BT), and ultimately make informed predictions of how improvements in lake water clarity may benefit surrounding communities. The procedures are demonstrated using a publicly available meta‐dataset developed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, and a subsequent meta‐analysis that synthesizes the literature on how improvements in water clarity impact home values. The BT procedures are demonstrated using a case study of 14 large lakes in Kosciusko County, Indiana. Lake‐specific average increases in home values, as well as the value of the housing stock in aggregate, are calculated for illustrative improvements in lake water clarity. This analysis provides a critical bridge to better connect high‐quality, academic research with real‐world policy analysis, and ultimately serves to better equip local governments and stakeholders to make more informed policy and land use decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Ecosystems provide a wide range of services crucial for human well-being and decision-making processes at various levels. This study analyzed the major land cover types of north-central Ethiopia and their impact on total and per-capita ecosystem service value (ESV). The ESV was estimated using the benefit-transfer method along the established global and local coefficient values for the periods 1973, 1986, 2001, 2016, and 2024. The findings show that agricultural lands continued to expand at a rate of 563.4 ha year−1, at the expense of forests and grasslands. As a result, the total ESV of the study area declined from $101.4 to $61.03 million and $60.08–$43.69 million, respectively. The ESV per capita was also diminished by $152.4 (37.7%) and $257 (40.6%), respectively. However, land-cover improvement during the period 2001–2016 enhanced the total and per capita ESV in the study area. Therefore, potential future research may be required to develop a valid approach for assessing the robustness and sensitivity of value coefficients for the valuation of the ESV at the landscape level.

In the Northern highlands of Ethiopia, Eucalyptus plantations have been widely established since the 1970s. However, there have been debates and concerns about the impact of these plantations on ecosystem services. Therefore, the study aimed to assess the impact of monoculture Eucalyptus plantations on ecosystem service values (ESVs) in the upper Blue Nile part of Ethiopia. We used Landsat satellite images (captured in 1993, 2004, 2014, and 2023) for land use/cover assessment. The images were classified using the Random Forest (RF) algorithm in the R open-source software. For ecosystem services valuation, we used the benefit transfer method, which allowed us to estimate ESVs by applying both global and local value transfer coefficients. The results show a significant expansion of Eucalyptus plantations, with the highest net change (180%) between 1991 and 2023. The estimated global ESVs ranged from US$206 million in 1991 to US$208 million in 2023, with croplands contributing the largest share (75%). However, specific ESVs related to nutrient cycling, habitat refuge, pollination, and culture declined due to decreasing ESVs of forest land, shrub land, and grazing land over the study period (1991–2023). In addition, ESVs associated with food production declined in the latter period (2014–2023) due to the conversion of croplands into Eucalyptus plantations and shrub lands. This study highlights the need for informed decision-making in land use systems, considering the trade-off between increasing productivity and the loss of other ecosystem functions and services.

The role of Perhutani and local farmers in developing agroforestry in Bogor Forest Management Unit (FMU) is important for carbon sequestration-based climate mitigation efforts. Different compositions of the plants in seven agroforestry systems in four part of Bogor FMU. Farmers adjust the multipurpose crops planted with Perhutani main plants, which are more dominant. The potential mean annual carbon increment based on aboveground carbon stock of agroforestry is between 2.26 to 66.65 tonnes per hectare, while in 2 monocultures land system is between 13.65 to 18.29 tonnes per hectare. The carbon increment in agroforestry systems is better than monoculture because of plant diversity and different ages. Then, carbon revenue using carbon pricing set by the World Bank-FCPF Program in East Kalimantan is in the range of IDR 1,547,325 to IDR 49,292,405 per hectare, using the Social Cost scheme in the range IDR 12,997,535 to IDR 414,056,204 per hectare and using domestic carbon tax is range IDR 635.017 to IDR 20,229,441 perhectare. Regarding carbon revenues, the wider the agroforestry land managed by farmers, the higher the carbon income received. Using the benefit transfer method over a 20-year mitigation period, an estimated 2.19 times increase in carbon revenues is obtained at an inflation rate of 4%.

Ecosystems provide a wide range of services crucial for human well-being and decision-making processes at various levels. This study analyzed the major land cover types of north-central Ethiopia and their impact on total and per-capita ecosystem service value (ESV). The ESV was estimated using the benefit-transfer method along the established global and local coefficient values for the periods 1973, 1986, 2001, 2016, and 2024. The findings show that agricultural lands continued to expand at a rate of 563.4 ha year−1, at the expense of forests and grasslands. As a result, the total ESV of the study area declined from $101.4 to $61.03 million and $60.08–$43.69 million, respectively. The ESV per capita was also diminished by $152.4 (37.7%) and $257 (40.6%), respectively. However, land-cover improvement during the period 2001–2016 enhanced the total and per capita ESV in the study area. Therefore, potential future research may be required to develop a valid approach for assessing the robustness and sensitivity of value coefficients for the valuation of the ESV at the landscape level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changes in land use and land cover (LULC) are caused by several factors, including climate change, socio-demographic dynamics, human pressures and urban sprawl. These factors alter the structure and functionality of ecosystems and their capacity to provide ecosystem goods and services to society. The study of LULC changes is important for understanding the dynamics of relationships between environmental, social and economic components and for analyzing the factors affecting natural capital. Including ecosystem services (ES) in spatial planning tools and sectoral policies is useful for improving governance. In this paper, the impact of LULC changes on ES provision has been estimated. To this end, we carried out a literature review (Step 1) to select the biophysical and economic coefficients of ES supply by land cover classes and collect them in a database (Step 2). We subsequently aggregated the economic and biophysical coefficients by macro classes (Step 3) and, using the benefit transfer approach, we estimated the change in the supply of ESs concerning permanence and transition phenomena in Italy from 1990 to 2018 (Step 4). The transition phenomena analysis also allowed us to evaluate the consequences of urbanization and urban green space governance on ES supply. Indeed, these urban green spaces can help reduce risks to people's health and safety and mitigate the effects induced by climate change. In total, approximately 800 coefficients (biophysical and economic) of ESs supplied by Corine Land Cover classes were acquired. The results show a reduction in the annual supply of ecosystem services of EUR 927 million (2022) caused by LULC changes between 1990 and 2018. This research proposes a methodology to improve knowledge of ESs concerning anthropogenic impacts and to support land-use planning policies regarding Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development Goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changes in land cover affect ecosystems and the services they provide. The aim of this study was to assess the spatial changes in land use from 1990 to 2018 and analyze the changes in ecosystem service value (ESV) in response to the changes in landscape structure in Lithuania. Croplands provided the majority of the ESV, followed by forests, grasslands, and wetlands. The total ESV in Lithuania was USD 29 billion year−1 in 2018, and land use had a significant impact on ESV, with a total decrease of USD 438 million year−1 between 1990 and 2018. The total ESV change was mainly influenced by the decrease in provisioning (USD 426 million year−1) and regulating (USD 208 million year−1) services. The reduction in cropland area was a major factor in the loss of ESV. The increase in the value of habitat and cultural services was not large enough to offset the reduction of the ESV. The highest elasticities were in the urban municipalities, indicating a significant change in ESV due to land use change. The results of this study provide valuable insight into the potential of the sustainable management and regeneration of ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study seeks to understand the socio-economic and ecological impacts of the hydroelectric power projectsalong the upper basin of the river Teesta in Sikkim. This study estimates the non-market benefits of restoring the Teesta riverine ecosystem and evaluates the transferability of welfare estimates. This study is a first of its kind undertaken in the Teesta basin which uses a unique dataset of 830 households obtained from the affected regions of the river basin. During the study, nine villages adjacent to the river Teesta, dams, and powerhouses were identified and surveyed. Double bounded dichotomous choice questions were used to elicit willingness to pay (WTP). Both the logistic and normal distribution models were fitted and the results were mostly similar. The median WTP was INR 373.00 and the variables that described the rating on dams, ownership of property, monthly expenditure of the household, informal employment status, and satisfaction about the state of the river Teesta were among the significant variables in the model. The benefit function value transfer estimated was INR 232.00 with the percentage transfer error (PTE) of 61.9%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to assess the economic value of recreation as an ecosystem service enjoyed by hikers in Hungary's forests. The assessment is carried out in the framework of a national undertaking to map and assess the state of ecosystems and their services in Hungary under the EU's biodiversity strategy. As is common in the policymaking context, the constraints of the project did not allow for a primary study. We therefore rely on previous studies and combine several approaches to arrive at a value estimate on two scales. First, we conduct a local case study, calculating travel costs for the Pilis Biosphere Reserve, a popular hiking area where visitor surveys are available. We then estimate the unit (value per visit) and total value of forest recreation for the whole country by a different approach, based on foreign studies via benefit transfer. We find that the results from the two approaches are consistent and that the monetary value of forest recreation (in the form of hiking/walking) is approximately 10 million EUR/year for the Pilis Biosphere Reserve and approximately 100 million EUR/year for the whole country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changes in land cover affect ecosystems and the services they provide. The aim of this study was to assess the spatial changes in land use from 1990 to 2018 and analyze the changes in ecosystem service value (ESV) in response to the changes in landscape structure in Lithuania. Croplands provided the majority of the ESV, followed by forests, grasslands, and wetlands. The total ESV in Lithuania was USD 29 billion year−1 in 2018, and land use had a significant impact on ESV, with a total decrease of USD 438 million year−1 between 1990 and 2018. The total ESV change was mainly influenced by the decrease in provisioning (USD 426 million year−1) and regulating (USD 208 million year−1) services. The reduction in cropland area was a major factor in the loss of ESV. The increase in the value of habitat and cultural services was not large enough to offset the reduction of the ESV. The highest elasticities were in the urban municipalities, indicating a significant change in ESV due to land use change. The results of this study provide valuable insight into the potential of the sustainable management and regeneration of ecosystems.

Changes in land use and land cover (LULC) are caused by several factors, including climate change, socio-demographic dynamics, human pressures and urban sprawl. These factors alter the structure and functionality of ecosystems and their capacity to provide ecosystem goods and services to society. The study of LULC changes is important for understanding the dynamics of relationships between environmental, social and economic components and for analyzing the factors affecting natural capital. Including ecosystem services (ES) in spatial planning tools and sectoral policies is useful for improving governance. In this paper, the impact of LULC changes on ES provision has been estimated. To this end, we carried out a literature review (Step 1) to select the biophysical and economic coefficients of ES supply by land cover classes and collect them in a database (Step 2). We subsequently aggregated the economic and biophysical coefficients by macro classes (Step 3) and, using the benefit transfer approach, we estimated the change in the supply of ESs concerning permanence and transition phenomena in Italy from 1990 to 2018 (Step 4). The transition phenomena analysis also allowed us to evaluate the consequences of urbanization and urban green space governance on ES supply. Indeed, these urban green spaces can help reduce risks to people’s health and safety and mitigate the effects induced by climate change. In total, approximately 800 coefficients (biophysical and economic) of ESs supplied by Corine Land Cover classes were acquired. The results show a reduction in the annual supply of ecosystem services of EUR 927 million (2022) caused by LULC changes between 1990 and 2018. This research proposes a methodology to improve knowledge of ESs concerning anthropogenic impacts and to support land-use planning policies regarding Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development Goals.

Globally, the extent of inland wetlands has declined by approximately 70% since the start of the twentieth century, resulting in the loss of important wetland-associated ecosystem services. We evaluate the drivers of wetland values in agricultural landscapes to increase the effectiveness and reliability of benefit transfer tools to assign values to local wetland services. We reviewed 668 studies that analyzed wetland ecosystem services within agricultural environments and identified 45 studies across 22 countries that provided sufficient economic information to be included in a quantitative meta-analysis. We developed meta-regression models to represent provisioning and regulating wetland ecosystem services and identify the main drivers of these ecosystem service categories. Provisioning wetland ecosystem service values were best explained (direction of effects in parenthesis) by high-income variable (+), peer-reviewed journal publications (+), agricultural total factor productivity index (−) and population density (+), while agricultural total factor productivity index (−), income level (+) and wetland area (−) had significant effects on regulating wetland ecosystem service values. Our models can help estimate wetland values more reliably across similar regions because they have significantly lower transfer errors (66 and 185% absolute percentage error for the provisioning and regulating models, respectively) than the errors from unit value transfers. Model predicted wetland values ($/Ha/Year) range from $0.62 to $11,216 for regulating services and $0.95 to $2,122 for provisioning services and vary based on the differences in the levels of the variables (in the wetland locations) that best explained the estimated models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of wetlands in the conservation of global biodiversity is very significant due to the provision of various benefits to households. The assessment of these benefits and general public perception in terms of their willingness to pay for restoring the degraded ecosystem services is also heterogeneous because of their spatial preferences. This research employed a choice experiment technique to evaluate willingness to pay of the households to improve the current degraded ecosystem services and assessed benefit transfer among upper, middle and lower sub-basins of Heihe River. The outcomes of the study were estimated through two models, i.e. the conditional logit and random parameter logit models. The heterogeneous willingness to pay amounts for ecosystem services confirm the variations in taste and preferences of the respondents across all sub-basins. Considering spatial heterogeneity of the preferences, the random parameter logit model resulted in smaller transfer errors than the conditional logit model. The values of transfer errors estimated by the random parameter logit model from the lower to the upper sub-basin, from the upper to the middle sub-basin and from the middle to the lower sub-basin were 17.76%, 80.65% and 33.92%, respectively, and the reason for these smaller values is the consideration of taste and preferences of the respondents. On the other hand, the estimated values of transfer errors for the same settings in the conditional logit model were 21.93%, 109.31% and 43.08%, respectively. The transfer error values thus validate the transfer of benefits across all the sub-basins of the river. Therefore, the current findings are helpful in proper management of ecosystem services and permit for benefit transfer from one sub-basin to another sub-basin of Heihe River. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The estimate used to value mortality risk reductions, conventionally expressed as the value of a statistical life (VSL), has long been an important parameter for economic analysis in developed countries. However, the application of VSL in developing countries has been challenging due to insufficient empirical attention. We conduct a comprehensive meta-analysis of 19 stated preference (SP) studies on VSL covering Chinese populations between 1998 and 2019 to provide a unique perspective on VSL in a fast-developing society. In contrast to the findings of research conducted in developed countries, we find no evidence of publication bias. We determine that the income of the population studied, the type of risk and the magnitude of risk reduction are the most important variables affecting VSL estimates. However, the relationship between these key factors and VSL changes as society develops, especially after the social shock of an environmental health risk crisis. We also provide a set of VSL estimates and key parameters needed in benefit transfer that are tailored to the settings of various economic analyses of health effects. • The estimated average VSL in China for 2020 is CNY 4.46 million (USD 1.10 million). • Income, type of risk, and magnitude of risk reduction are key determinants of VSL. • No evidence of publication bias has been found. • VSL significantly increased due to heightened awareness of air pollution risks. • A set of VSL estimates and key parameters for benefit transfer is provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land use/land cover change (LULCC) is an important driver of ecosystem changes in coastal areas. Despite being pervasive in coastal Ghana, LULCC has not been investigated to understand its effects on the potential for coastal landscapes to supply ecosystem services (ES). In this study, the impacts of LULCC on the potential supply of ES by coastal landscapes in Southwestern Ghana was assessed for the years 2008 and 2018 by using remote sensing and benefit transfer approaches. Based on available data, relevant provisioning and regulating ES were selected for the assessment while indicators to aid the quantification of the ES were obtained from literature. Supervised classification methods and maximum likelihood algorithms were used to prepare land use/land cover (LULC) maps and the derived LULC categories were assigned according to the descriptions of the Land Cover Classification System (LCCS). Potential supply of provisioning (food, fuelwood) and regulating (carbon storage) services was quantified and the spatial and temporal distributions of these ES illustrated using maps. The results show variations in food and fuelwood supply and carbon storage potentials over the study period and across different locations on the landscape. Potentials for fuelwood supply and carbon storage in mangrove forests indicated declining trends between 2008 and 2018. On the other hand, food-crop supply and carbon storage potential in rubber plantations depicted increasing patterns over the same period. Population, slope and elevation exhibited strong effects on LULC conversions to food crop and rubber plantations whereas these factors were less important determinants of mangrove forest conversions. The findings of the study have implications for identifying and addressing tradeoffs between land uses for agriculture, industrial development and conservation of critical coastal ES within the context of rapid land system transformations in the study region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban growth has impacted natural ecosystems such as wetlands. This situation destabilizes the beneficial contributions of nature, generating a socioeconomic effect. There is a need to quantify the benefits of wetlands in developing countries and urban areas, where the growth of cities is fastest. This is the first valuation study of urban and peri-urban wetlands in Colombia. The methodology includes a benefit transfer (BT) method with a geographical information system (GIS) and an exploratory governance analysis. Because there are few studies on the economic valuation of urban wetlands in Latin America, we present a methodology of interest, which can be easily replicated in other cities of this subcontinent. Based on an economic approach, our results find that 76% of the total value of wetlands is provided by ecosystem services (ES) of existence and legacy value, followed by maintenance of the life cycle of migratory species and water supply. Urban areas are identified where users benefit more than areas where the population exerts greater pressure on wetlands. Weak governance is due to the disarticulation between regulation, land-use planning, and the social-ecological system. This research contributes to urban wetland management policies, as well as to sustainable solutions in cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study estimates the value of green infrastructure and ecosystem services of the Kenna Cartwright Nature Park in Kamloops, British Columbia (B.C.). The 749 ha municipal park is considered the largest in the province of B.C. and the ninth-largest in Canada. The methodology allows for capturing natural, human, social, and built capital through an "opportunity cost" assessment of green infrastructure. It integrates the perceived benefits of urban parks found in numerous studies from stated preference methods and estimates the annual future growth rate of the value of ecosystem services. Kenna Cartwright Nature Park is estimated to be worth $2.96 billion and yields conservatively $45.7 million in annual ecosystem services or a 1.5% yield using a European transfer function, and $58.6 million per year or a 2% rate of return using the global transfer function. On a Kamloops per-capita basis, Kenna Cartwright's ecosystem services yield a minimum of $500 per year, and each person has $28.8 thousand worth of green infrastructure capital equally distributed. Kenna Cartwright Nature Park represents 20% of the value of all single-detached houses in Kamloops. For the lower, more conservative 1.5% yield, the annual ecosystem services are estimated to increase by 1.96% per year, similar to the longrun growth rate of Canada's standard of living of 2%, measured by GDP per capita. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change will have a major negative impact on global biodiversity. Our review of integrated assessment models (IAMs) show that biodiversity damage costs are not included or incompletely captured. We provide improved damage cost estimates of species loss based on (i) a recent global biophysical assessment of impacts on species, (ii) transfer of economic values from a global Delphi contingent valuation study of households' willingness-to-pay, and (iii) benefit transfer techniques. The new damage cost estimates are implemented in FUND 3.9. The numerical simulations suggest that both the expected physical global species loss and the associated damage costs are higher than initially predicted. Hence, IAMs with incomplete assessment and valuation of species loss could greatly underestimate the social cost of carbon, and lead to underinvestment in greenhouse gas mitigation measures. Even if the knowledge is incomplete, IAMs should include nonmarket environmental damage costs scenarios to better inform climate policy designs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Waste is a national problem in Indonesia. It is related to the old paradigm of waste management, which is only collected, transported, and disposed to the landfill. The same problem occurs in some big cities in Java. Landfills use open dumps, and that causes an increase in negative externalities in the quality of the environment for people who live nearby. This study aims to analyze the externalities of the Piyungan landfill. The objects of this research are the people who lived around the dump. Cost of illness and replacement cost are analysis tools to calculate the externalities. Benefit transfer is used to analyze the externalities ofthe Putri Cempo landfill in Surakarta. The benefit transfer method was developed as an alternative way to value externalities using values from studies of similar circumstances, carried out at related sites somewhere else, given the challenges and high costs inherent in assessing the actual price. Accurately, to test the performance of the benefit transfer method, this study focused on estimates of externalities associated with waste dis-amenities. The results indicate that the existence of the Piyungan landfill has a negative influence on the economic and social aspects as well as the environment of the people around it. It also happens in the Putri Cempo Landfill.

Ecosystem Service value (ESV) is a technique of assigning monetary value to the services and goods of an ecosystem. The rapid change in land-use land cover (LULC) is a major factor for the change in the capacity of Ecosystem Services (ES). Understanding LULC change and its impact on ESV is vital for decision-making processes. We quantify the spatiotemporal variation of ESV of the Kaffa biosphere reserve in association with LULC dynamics, which is part of the Eastern Afromontane biodiversity hotspot areas. Eight LULC types were identified following a supervised classification using a maximum likelihood technique in ArcGIS 10.5. The ES coefficients published by Costanza and others in 2014 were used to estimate the monetary value through the benefit transfer method. Sensitivity analysis was conducted to control the effect of coefficients on the estimated ESV. The results showed declining of ESV from US$ 5818 million to US$ 5536.9 million from 1986 to 2019 and are expected to decline to US$ 5222.8 million in 2049. The change in ESV revealed a total loss of 4.8%. The reasons for the decline in ESV of the biosphere reserve were the conversion of forestland, grassland, and wetland to settlement and agricultural areas. From the land-use types, the contribution of wetland, forest, and agriculture was the most dominant land use in ESV. Genetic resources, climate regulation, water regulation, and recreation were the highest contributors to the total ESV. We conclude that the cause for the decline of ESV is a land-use change that caused ecosystem degradation.

Iceland is an understudied nation with respect to the quality, quantity and value of its ecosystem services, despite the growth of nature-based tourism and an economy reliant on abundant natural resources, especially fish stocks and renewable energy. This research reports on the preliminary outcome of an investigation to estimate the economic value of Iceland's ecosystem services (ES). The benefit transfer method is applied using the latest aggregate unit values from the Ecosystem Services Valuation Database, scaled to CORINE land cover types for Iceland. An estimate of 3,209,476 million ISK/year (approximately US $26.1 billion/year) is determined in 2019 prices, which is 1.08 times the size of Icelandic Gross Domestic Product and could be a low estimate due to the omission of cultural ES. Rather than being the final word on the value of Iceland's ecosystem services, this assessment should be viewed as an order of magnitude estimate, a useful starting point for considering the biomes and related ES of likely high economic value in Iceland, which in turn provides a basis for considering potential ES management issues of importance. The study discusses how economic valuation of Iceland's ecosystem services could provide useful information to decision-makers in a range of hotly discussed areas, including the determination of conservation policy, strategic energy management and sustainable land management. The results of this study also imply that there would be merit in conducting a national ES assessment for Iceland, which would integrate extensive stakeholder, biophysical and economic analyses to provide a comprehensive evidence base concerning the benefits supplied to society and how ES underpin the nation's economic prosperity.

Estimating the economic value of ecosystem services is a guarantee for promoting the value realization of ecosystem products. However, the lack of ecosystem service value data caused by difficult identification and accounting is still a practical problem faced by policymakers. The benefit transfer method uses second-hand data to integrate existing research into the study area to be evaluated, avoiding the time-consuming and expensive problems in the primary studies. Therefore, it is favored by scholars in the field of ecosystem service valuation. The core advantage of this method is that it can help managers quickly solve the data gap in the ecosystem service value under the condition of limited capital and time budget. Given the wide prospect of this method in practice, the concern about its validity and reliability is more urgent than other methods. However, its theoretical background determines that a series of valuation errors are inevitable. Therefore, this article began with a brief review of Chinese research, sorted out common forms of benefit transfer, and presented testing methods of transfer errors. We then summarized further challenges of this method, discussed the latest consensus on minimizing the benefit transfer bias. To sum up, this method should focus on the following four aspects in the future: 1 Reducing the generalization error of 'cross-context'; 2 Avoiding repeated calculations caused by the confusion between intermediate services and final services; 3 Adding geographic information variables to evaluate the changes in the spatial pattern of ecosystem service value; 4 Testing the temporal stability of ecosystem service value. We also discussed another important issue that effective benefit transfer requires a sufficient number of high-quality primary studies. Finally, this paper concluded with a suggestion that Chinese experts in interdisciplinary studies should jointly develop a set of guidelines to improve the efficiency of benefit transfer in ecosystem service valuation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Benefit transfer is the use of pre-existing empirical estimates from one or more settings where research has been conducted previously to predict measures of economic value or related information for other settings. These transfers offer a feasible means to provide information on economic values when time, funding and other constraints impede the use of original valuation studies. The methods used for applied benefit transfers vary widely, however, and it is not always clear why certain procedures were applied or whether alternatives might have led to more credible estimates. Motivated by the importance of benefit transfers for decision-making and the lack of consensus guidance for applied practice, this article provides recommendations for the conduct of valid and reliable transfers, based on the insight from the combined body of benefit transfer research. The primary objectives are to: (a) advance and inform benefit-transfer applications that inform decision making, (b) encourage consensus over key dimensions of best practice for these applications, and (c) focus future research on areas requiring further advances. In doing so, we acknowledge the healthy tension that can exist between best practice as led by the academic literature and practical constraints of real-world applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land use/land cover change (LULCC) is an important driver of ecosystem changes in coastal areas. Despite being pervasive in coastal Ghana, LULCC has not been investigated to understand its effects on the potential for coastal landscapes to supply ecosystem services (ES). In this study, the impacts of LULCC on the potential supply of ES by coastal landscapes in Southwestern Ghana was assessed for the years 2008 and 2018 by using remote sensing and benefit transfer approaches. Based on available data, relevant provisioning and regulating ES were selected for the assessment while indicators to aid the quantification of the ES were obtained from literature. Supervised classification methods and maximum likelihood algorithms were used to prepare land use/land cover (LULC) maps and the derived LULC categories were assigned according to the descriptions of the Land Cover Classification System (LCCS). Potential supply of provisioning (food, fuelwood) and regulating (carbon storage) services was quantified and the spatial and temporal distributions of these ES illustrated using maps. The results show variations in food and fuelwood supply and carbon storage potentials over the study period and across different locations on the landscape. Potentials for fuelwood supply and carbon storage in mangrove forests indicated declining trends between 2008 and 2018. On the other hand, food-crop supply and carbon storage potential in rubber plantations depicted increasing patterns over the same period. Population, slope and elevation exhibited strong effects on LULC conversions to food crop and rubber plantations whereas these factors were less important determinants of mangrove forest conversions. The findings of the study have implications for identifying and addressing tradeoffs between land uses for agriculture, industrial development and conservation of critical coastal ES within the context of rapid land system transformations in the study region.

This paper analyses and compares transferability of freight production (FP) and freight trip production (FTP) models to provide guidance on when, when not, and how to transfer models from one spatial context to another. Separate sets of model parameters are estimated for various industry sectors in two regions within Kerala, a Southern State of India and are transferred to Jaipur, a Northern State of India. Model performance in five different transfer combinations are assessed to understand the degree of transferability of FP and FTP models which included intrastate transfers within Kerala and interstate transfers to Jaipur. Two approaches of updating model parameters using locally collected data are evaluated – Bayesian updating and combined transfer estimation – with metrics that measure transferability improvement. The relative performance of transferred models revealed that the degree of transferability of freight models vary widely across industry sectors and depends on: (i) measure of business size and the (ii) metric of measuring freight activity. That is, employment-based models show better transferability than area-based models and FP models are more transferable than FTP models. The transferability results also suggested that the interstate transferability is higher than interstate transferability. Overall, the study findings will assist planning agencies to: (i) identify the locational characteristics that restrict the transferability of freight models, (ii) develop modelling strategies that focus on the appropriate metric of measuring freight and business size indicators, and (iii) reduce costs and resources in regions where there is lack of institutional capacity to develop freight demand model systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This dataset contains 706 estimates of the economic value of water; it has been compiled from published sources. Economic values are provided for three off-stream uses (agriculture/irrigation, industry, and municipal) and three in-stream ecosystem services (recreation, waste assimilation, and wildlife habitat). The dataset covers per period and capitalised asset values. All value estimates have been standardised in USD (2014) per acre-foot. The data accompany the research article entitled “Shifting from volume to economic value in virtual water allocation problems: a proposed new framework and methodology” [1]. The dataset can be used to facilitate benefits (or value) transfer.

• We conduct a meta-analysis based on 37 primary hedonic pricing studies. • Value transfer functions assess the marginal effects of urban nature on property prices. • Nature increases property prices depending on its type, distance, population density. • Maps illustrate the application of value transfer to nature-based solution projects. • We derive implications for green gentrification and urban planning. Although green interventions, like nature-based solutions, contribute to more sustainable urban environments and provide ecosystem services to urban populations, some impacts are not well understood. This particularly applies to social impacts in the domain of environmental justice, including (green) gentrification. Gentrification refers to a process in which green urban renewal raises property prices, which results in an influx of affluent people, displacing poorer residents. Our study conducts a meta-analysis based on 37 primary hedonic pricing studies, to estimate value transfer functions that can assess the effects of nature types on property prices in various urban settings. Urban nature has positive impacts on house value in the areas surrounding it, which depend on population density, distance to, and the type of, urban nature. We illustrate how the estimated benefit transfer function can be applied to natural interventions in a Dutch city, and visualize the obtained effects using mapping. These maps show the distance decay of the cumulative effects of urban nature interventions on the house value at the city and the neighbourhood levels. Our application estimated increases in local property values up to a maximum of 20 % compared with properties not affected by the interventions, with value equivalent of 62,650 USD, at average prevailing price level in a particular area in Utrecht. When new nature is being planned in urban areas our mapping approach can be used for guiding assessments of potential undesirable effects on property values that may lead to green gentrification, and for identifying where additional policies may be needed to contribute to environmental justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non‐market goods can be measured on cardinal or relative scales. Consider a marsh of 200 acres, of which 20 acres would be affected by a policy. The same affected area can be measured in cardinal terms (20 acres) or as a relative proportion (10% of the marsh). When relative units such as percentages are a scalar transformation of cardinal units, the units of measurement used for modeling are often inconsequential for single‐site econometric and welfare analysis. However, this seemingly inconsequential transformation can have significant implications for benefit transfer across sites—a simple observation that remains unacknowledged by the literature. This article provides a theoretical and empirical evaluation of variable measurement conventions within benefit transfer, deriving conditions under which different types of measurement scales are expected to enhance validity and reliability. Theoretical results are illustrated using an application of discrete choice experiments to coastal flood adaptation in two Connecticut (United States) communities. Empirical findings validate expectations from the theoretical model, suggesting that transfers over goods measured in relative units may often outperform transfers over goods measured in cardinal units. These findings imply that the outcome of benefit transfer convergent validity tests may hinge on whether goods are measured in cardinal or relative units. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

I study how the economic value of a heterogeneously distributed environmental public good depends on how the endowment with this good and income are distributed. I find that the effect of environmental inequality on the societal willingness to pay (WTP) for the environmental good is determined both by its substitutability and by the correlation of its provision with income. Specifically, environmental inequality decreases societal WTP for substitutes, but this effect is reversed if the environmental good is a complement or distributed strongly in favour of richer households. Moreover, I show that richer households living in places where environmental good endowment is high increases (decreases) societal WTP if and only if the environmental good is a substitute for (complement to) consumption goods. I propose novel adjustment factors for structural benefit transfer to control for differences in the spatial distribution of environmental goods. Using forest preservation in Poland as an empirical example, I find that societal WTP is up to 4% higher for equal access to forests and up to 8% higher for an equal distribution of both income and access to forests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Prior meta-regression models (MRMs) of wetland values pool value estimates associated with diverse commodity types—for example recreation, flood control, nutrient cycling, habitat provision, nonuse value, and carbon sequestration. Neither theory nor economic intuition justify the inclusion of such dissimilar commodities within a single meta-analytic value function, leading to validity concerns. This article seeks to advance methods for commodity and welfare consistent MRMs, applied to a particular category of wetland values. We develop a wetland value MRM restricted to a specific wetland type (coastal marshes), general location (US and Canada), commodity type (habitat provision and services), and valuation approach (stated preference methods). Results indicate that willingness to pay per household for marsh habitat changes is responsive to scope, spatial scale, market extent, the type of habitat change, household characteristics, and other factors suggested by theory and intuition. Results supersede those of prior wetland value MRMs in terms of statistical performance, estimation of anticipated value surface patterns, and capacity to support conceptually valid benefit transfers. Comparison with an otherwise identical but less commodity consistent MRM demonstrates that commodity consistency leads to improved statistical and benefit transfer performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]