Evaluation of Economic Value of Pilikula Lake using Travel Cost and Contingent Valuation Methods

Water ecosystems provide a wide range of goods and services for human benefit and consumption. But these benefits are still largely left out in decisions about how to allocate water, how much to charge for water products and services, etc. Nowadays ecosystems can be evaluated in terms of total economic value. Travel Cost Method (TCM) and Contingent Valuation Method (CVM) are two methods used for ecosystem valuation in which Willingness to Pay (WTP) for ecosystem benefits are determined. The present study was taken up to evaluate the economic value of water as related to recreational use at the Pilikula Lake, Mangalore, India. The objective was to estimate visitors' WTP for services rendered by the facilities available at the lake using TCM and CVM. A zonal approach was used for the valuation in TCM, and Open-Ended questions were used for CVM elicitation. Data collection was completed through direct interview with 500 visitors at Pilikula Lake using a questionnaire. Data analysis was carried out in MS Excel (R) and SPSS (R) Statistical software. The mean WTP value for improving extra facilities at Pilikula Lake through open-ended stated preference was very less compared to that obtained through application of TCM. (C) 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.