Value of Beachscape
Attributes
Medium: Land
Country: Philippines
Analytical Framework(s): Benefit Valuation
Unit(s): Mean WTP
Study Date: 2009
Publication Date: 2014
Major Result(s)
| Category | Resource/Environmental Good | PHP (2009) |
PHP (2014)1 |
USD (2014)2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Model | mean WTP per visit for Caramoan beachscape beauty conservation3 | 897.00 | 1,079.56 | 24.14 |
| General Model | TEV per year of conserving beachscapes4 | 10,760,000.00 | 12,949,875.20 | 289,540.56 |
| Protest and Uncertain Responses Excluded | mean WTP per visit for Caramoan beachscape beauty conservation | 1,147.00 | 1,380.44 | 30.86 |
| Protest and Uncertain Responses Excluded | TEV per year of conserving beachscapes | 13,764,000.00 | 16,565,249.28 | 370,375.12 |
About the Inflation Adjustment: Prices in Philippines (PHP) changed by 20.35% from 2009 to 2014 (aggregated from annual CPI data), so the study values were multiplied by 1.20 to express them in 2014 prices. The study values could be expressed in any desired year (for example, to 2026) by following the same inflation calculation and being sensitive to directional (forward/backward) aggregations using your own CPI/inflation data.
Study Note: The author noted that the esults of the study that highlight the need for a sustainable source of fund for conservation, and harmonized institutional arrangements for beachscape tourism and coastal resource management as priority concerns support the potential of implementing PES within a community-based coastal resource management framework under a marine fishery reserve-sanctuary setting co-managed by the community and the Caramoan LGU, or within a the natural protected area framework managed by the Caramoan Natural Park Protected Area Management Board. However, operational issues and bottlenecks in PES as cited in current literature (e.g. high transaction costs, unclear property rights and weak institutions) suggest that it is not a cure-all solution to the problems and issues related to the coastal environment and the conservation of panoramic views of the beaches in Caramoan. Instead, it should be viewed as a complement to a set of policies and processes that address these problems.
Study Details
Summary: The extent of tourists' willingness to pay (WTP) for the conservation of Caramoan beachscape beauty in Camarines Sur, Philippines was determined in this study. It used Contingent Valuation Method (CVM) in analyzing the data generated from 760 respondents using a total of four analytical models generated using different data sets. It was found that majority of Caramoan tourists are younger, adventurous, without familial obligations, highly educated and earn relatively higher income. Majority perceive that a sustainable source of fund for conservation, and political and harmonized institutional arrangement for beachscape tourism and management are the most pressing institutional and management issues impacting the sustainability of Caramoan beachscape ecotourism. Majority also agree to protect the beachscape. The visitors' WTP in the general model is estimated at PhP897; while the WTP in the model where protest and uncertain responses were not considered in the analysis is estimated at PhP1,147. Using the PhP897 and PhP1,147 mean WTPs, the total economic value of conserving the beachscapes in Caramoan is estimated at PhP10.76 and PhP13.764 million annually, respectively. These estimates justify the relevance of investing public funds to pursue sustainable beachscape ecotourism development in Caramoan.
Site Characteristics: The small town of Caramoan is located at the tip of the Caramoan Peninsula, a rugged piece of land extending into the waters of the Maqueda Channel on the north and east and Lagonoy Gulf on the south. The municipality is situated between 124°59" east longitude and 13°46" north latitude. It covers approximately 27,741km2 with approximately 71km of irregular coastline surrounded by the vast ocean, bay, seas and swamps. The municipality is home to 347-hectare Caramoan National Park, declared via Proclamation No. 291 on 20 July 1938, and is currently a natural protected area. It is a hilly peninsula, with deep gorges and a rough, rocky terrain. The forests are mainly lowland in type. Other habitats present in Caramoan National Park include mangrove forest, sand dunes and beaches. The natural features of this park include caves, limestone formations, white sandy beaches, an islet lake and a subterranean river. Its marine ecosystem is part of the Ticao-San Bernardino Strait-Lagonoy Gulf MPA with its marine waters adjacent to Maqueda Bay, the mouth of the Lagonoy Gulf. This protected natural marine area ranks extremely high in terms of conservation priority.
Comments: This study estimated the WTP for the conservation of Caramoan beachscape in Camarines Sur, Philippines as input for establishing a PES system for sustainable ecotourism and coastal resource management in the area.