Estimating the Willingness to Pay for Improvement of an Urban Park in Southern Brazil Using the Contingent Valuation Method
Publication: Journal of Urban Planning and Development
Volume 141, Issue 4
Abstract
Urban green spaces play a key role in the improvement of environmental quality, livability, and sustainability of towns and cities. The aim of this paper is to elicit the willingness of the population of Passo Fundo, a town in southern Brazil, to pay for improvements, maintenance, and conservation of a park situated in the Cidade Universitária (University Campus) subdivision. After the preliminary description of the current situation of the park, a scenario was defined for environmental valuation offered by proposed improvements according to different experts in urban and environmental planning. A total of 338 households in the urban area of Passo Fundo were surveyed through the application of a questionnaire and by the contingent valuation method. An economic value between R$964,560.00 (US$550,547.94) and R$2,531,970.00 (US$1,445,188.35) was obtained for the improvement, maintenance, and conservation of the park. Also, a relationship was observed between the socioeconomic characteristics of the population and willingness to pay. The analysis of economic viability for the investments in this park showed a positive net present value.
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Acknowledgments
The authors wish to express their gratitude to the Brazilian Research Council (CNPq) for the financial support to the research group (Project PQ 309105/2011-0).
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Published In
Journal of Urban Planning and Development
Volume 141 • Issue 4 • December 2015
Copyright
© 2014 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Feb 6, 2012
Accepted: Sep 3, 2014
Published online: Oct 15, 2014
Discussion open until: Mar 15, 2015
Published in print: Dec 1, 2015
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