Designing a forest-energy policy to reduce forest fires in Galicia (Spain): A contingent valuation application

Recent issues of this journal have presented an interesting debate regarding forest fires in Galicia, Spain. This article proposes a forest-energy programme that will contribute to reducing the risk of forest fires in this Atlantic Region of Southern Europe. We apply the contingent valuation method to assess a programme whereby 10% of the electricity produced from coal, fuel oil and gas would be replaced by electricity generated in biomass power plants. The programme would begin implementation in 2005 and it would take 6 years (up to 2010) before we reach the 10% goal. The results show that Galician households are willing to pay a mean of 38 Euros per year. In addition, we have introduced an innovative procedure to detect protest responses related to the payment vehicle in a contingent valuation. Heckman's sample-selection procedure is used to analyse the WTP function.