Recreational users' willingness to pay and preferences for changes in planted forest features

This study examines the current and potential economic value of recreation by users of a New Zealand periurban planted forest. The value was derived from a face-to-face survey of 578 users of Whakarewarewa forest in Rotorua. The recreational benefit, estimated by the travel cost method, was NZ$34 per visit for walkers and NZ$48 per visit for mountain bikers. Aggregating these estimated values by the number of forest visits in 2009 suggests that the economic value of recreation in this planted forest was approximately NZ$8 million in that year. Visitors' preferences for alternative features of the planted forest were analysed using a latent class model to account for preference heterogeneity. This analysis indicates that forest users would gain a higher recreational satisfaction from an increase in diversity of forest features. Forest user characteristics that positively influence satisfaction from an increase in diversity were analysed using an ordinary least squares regression model. Important user characteristics include being a New Zealand born European, a local resident of Rotorua, and elderly.

► In this study, we examine the economic value and preference of users of an iconic New Zealand planted forest.
► Data was collected through a face-to-face survey of 578 forest users.
► Recreational benefit was calculated at NZ$34 per visit for walkers and NZ$48 per visit for mountain bikers.
► Results show that the majority of users would gain a higher satisfaction from increasing the diversity of forest features.
► We conclude that periurban planted forests serve as increasingly important assets for recreation.