3.1.1. What is observable?
Indeed, valuation methods have to deal with empirical data. Following textbooks, these techniques can be reviewed according to the nature of the data used:effective technical costs, observable behaviours and choices, statements when confronted to questionnaires.
These data have then to be treated in order to obtain priceequivalents,under the assumption that individuals’preferences, which are admittedly the foundation of economic value, are adequately summarized in willingness to pay or to accept compensations.
In Table 1 valuation techniques are ranked by rows according to the type of observation and by columns according to the method for expressing preferences.
The valuation of the benefits of biodiversity conservation raises two main problems. First, as discussed about biodiversity as a merit good, many people are poorly informed about the meaning and issues related to biodiversity. Using stated preferences techniques is thus made difficult. Hanley et al. [9] found that willingness to pay for biodiversity protection increases with the level of information provided. Second, individuals’ preferences for biodiversity protection may be lexicographic rather than ‘‘utilitarist’’. Preferences are said ‘‘lexicographic’’ when
individuals do not consider the possibility of compensating the loss of biodiversity through an increase in the availability of another good or service. As in a dictionary,the value of the first item is what it is, and cannot be changed by varying the following. If this were true for
many individuals, the cost-benefit analysis would become invalidated as a guide for decision making. Despite evidence that below a certain limit (unfortunately difficult to determine) [30,31] ecosystem services become less substitutable, multiple observations [35] tend to show that
3.1.1. What is observable?
Indeed, valuation methods have to deal with empirical data. Following textbooks, these techniques can be reviewed according to the nature of the data used:effective technical costs, observable behaviours and choices, statements when confronted to questionnaires.
These data have then to be treated in order to obtain priceequivalents,under the assumption that individuals’preferences, which are admittedly the foundation of economic value, are adequately summarized in willingness to pay or to accept compensations.
In Table 1 valuation techniques are ranked by rows according to the type of observation and by columns according to the method for expressing preferences.
The valuation of the benefits of biodiversity conservation raises two main problems. First, as discussed about biodiversity as a merit good, many people are poorly informed about the meaning and issues related to biodiversity. Using stated preferences techniques is thus made difficult. Hanley et al. [9] found that willingness to pay for biodiversity protection increases with the level of information provided. Second, individuals’ preferences for biodiversity protection may be lexicographic rather than ‘‘utilitarist’’. Preferences are said ‘‘lexicographic’’ when
individuals do not consider the possibility of compensating the loss of biodiversity through an increase in the availability of another good or service. As in a dictionary,the value of the first item is what it is, and cannot be changed by varying the following. If this were true for
many individuals, the cost-benefit analysis would become invalidated as a guide for decision making. Despite evidence that below a certain limit (unfortunately difficult to determine) [30,31] ecosystem services become less substitutable, multiple observations [35] tend to show that
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