Protected Area Certificates

Gaining Ground for Better Ecosystem Protection?

authored by
Anna Segerstedt, Ulrike Grote
Abstract

Protected areas are vital to sustain a number of ecosystem services. Yet, many protected areas are underfinanced and lack management effectiveness. Protected area certificates have been suggested as a way to resolve these problems. This instrument would allow land managers to certify an area if it meets certain conservation criteria. The certificates could then be sold on an international market, for example to companies and any consumers that are interested in environmental protection. Some pilot initiatives have been launched, yet little is known about future demand and features of protected area certificates. To fill this knowledge gap, we conduct a choice experiment with close to 400 long-distance tourists from Germany as a potential group of buyers. Our results indicate that the respondents have the highest willingness to pay for certificates that conserve sensitive ecosystems and in addition to this lead to poverty reduction and safeguard water resources. For other attributes such as a greenhouse gas reduction, the preferences are less significant. Overall, the results are rather homogenous irrespective of where the protected areas are located. These insights are important for the future design and marketing of protected area certificates.

Organisation(s)
Institute of Environmental Economics and World Trade
Type
Article
Journal
Environmental management
Volume
55
Pages
1418-1432
No. of pages
15
ISSN
0364-152X
Publication date
06.2015
Publication status
Published
Peer reviewed
Yes
ASJC Scopus subject areas
Global and Planetary Change, Ecology, Pollution
Sustainable Development Goals
SDG 1 - No Poverty, SDG 8 - Decent Work and Economic Growth, SDG 15 - Life on Land
Electronic version(s)
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-015-0476-2 (Access: Closed)