Measuring Nonuse Damages Using Contingent Valuation: An Experimental Evaluation of Accuracy

Abstract

When the Exxon Valdez oil spill occurred on March 24, 1989, the application of contingent valuation to estimate use values, let alone nonuse values, was still in the early stages of development. Only two nationally prominent contingent-valuation studies had been conducted to estimate values for changes in water quality (Mitchell and Carson, 1981; Desvousges, Smith, and McGivney, 1983), and neither study valued the consequences of a major oil spill in a marine environment. Mitchell and Carson (1993) valued the national benefits of freshwater pollution control. Desvousges and colleagues estimated values for enhanced water quality in the Pennsylvania portion of the Monongahela River (Desvousges, Smith, and Fisher, 1987).