Economic valuation of the calden (Prosopis caldenia Burkart) forest in the south of Córdoba, Argentina

Abstract

Introduction: The native forest of calden is a natural ecosystem that produces valuable ecosystem goods and services for society; however, it has been replaced for the production of commercial, agricultural and livestock goods. Objective: To estimate the economic value of a conservation program for ecosystem services of the remnant of the native calden (Prosopis caldenia Burkart) forest in the south of the province of Córdoba, Argentina. Materials and methods: The study area corresponds to a remnant forest of 37 648 ha. The willingness to pay (WTP) was obtained from a contingent valuation survey; 361 questionnaires were applied. The sampling unit was the household. A multistage cluster sampling was used in the city of Río Cuarto and a simple random sampling in Villa Huidobro. Results and discussion: The estimated WTP showed goodness of fit and most of the estimated coefficients were statistically significant (P < 0.05) and consistent with what was theoretically expected. The WTP increases with household income and decreases as the consulted amount of money to pay increases. The average WTP for a conservation program of the native calden forest is 52 ± 8 ARS (11.45 ± 1.76 USD) monthly per household. Conclusion: The majority of the urban population of southern Córdoba does not use forest ecosystem services; however, they are willing to pay to maintain or increase forest ecosystem services.