Economic valuation of environmental attributes of the Yanachaga–Chemillén National Park via contingent valuation and choice experiment

The purpose of this paper is to present the first economic valuation of four environmental attributes of the Yanachaga–Chemillén National Park (PNYCH – Parque Nacional Yanachaga-Chemillén) in Peru.

This study included households in three cities adjacent to the PNYCH and assessed the willingness to pay (WTP) for preservation efforts of these natural services to avoid the predicted loss in forest area by 2030 (currently 143,425 hectares per year).

The results showed that the average WTP was US$0.695 (2.3197 soles) per household annually. Added to all households in Peru (9 million), this is equivalent to approximately 6.255 million dollars annually.

The economic valuation of these attributes is complementary to the contingent valuation and can have a significant impact, as this data influences decision-making and public policies focused on conserving forests and biodiversity.

Upon using the choice experiment (CE) model, the attributes that have the most significant impact on inhabitants’ well-being were economic benefits. The flora and fauna coverage attributes were beneficial for the inhabitants of the place because they valued the proposed recovery and conservation program in a positive and differential way.

From the collection of valuable economic data, the novelty lies in using the CE method, which has not yet been applied in valuations of natural ecosystem services in Peru.