Embedding Preference Uncertainty for Environmental Amenities in Climate Change Economic Assessments: A “Random” Step Forward

While there is a considerable debate regarding the choice of proper discount rates for assessing climate change projects and policies, only a tiny body of literature emphasizes “what to discount”. Usually, climate change economic assessments rely on tools and methods that employ strong simplifications, assuming, among others, given and fixed preferences about the values of man-made and environmental goods. Aiming to fill a gap in the literature, this paper leaves aside the issue of discounting and focuses on the nature and impact of preference uncertainty on the economic estimates of future climate change damages on ecosystem non-market goods and services. To this end, a general random walk-based stochastic model is proposed, combining a number of parameters, e.g., the growth of income, depletion of environmental assets, the elasticity of income and demand, and the change in preferences towards the environment. The illustrative application of the model shows that the value of environmental losses is significantly affected by the change in preferences. By doing so, the model allows the analyst to visualize future paths of preference evolutions and to bring future values of damaged environmental assets realistically to the fore. If these elements are neglected when estimating climate change-related future damages to environmental goods and services, the results may be too narrow from a policy perspective

A new adaptive marine policy toolbox to support ecosystem-based approach to management

4 p.As a consequence of increasing threats to the marine ecosystems, new decision support tools are necessary to support the implementation of the Ecosystem-Based Approach (EBA) to management in order to ensure their sustainable exploitation whilst ensuring their preservation. *To operationalize Ecosystem-Based Approach (EBA) to management and translate scientific knowledge into decision tools, an innovative Adaptive Marine Policy Toolbox has been created. It provides policymakers with necessary framework and resources to develop adaptive policies according to the EBA. *The Adaptive Marine Policy Toolbox provides a one-stop single location to access all the guidelines and resources necessary to design and implement adaptive marine policies according to the Marine Strategy Framework Directive. *The toolbox presents a high transferability to additional regulations calling for the Ecosystem-Based Approach to management such as the Ecosystem Approach of the Mediterranean Action Plan and the Black Sea´s Strategic Action Plan. *The Resources existing within the toolbox are presented in a user-friendly format. The presence of assessments and models capable to cope with uncertain conditions allows for high flexibility and adaptation in management strategies when future conditions change

Combining qualitative and quantitative understanding for exploring cross-sectoral climate change impacts, adaptation and vulnerability in Europe

Climate change will affect all sectors of society and the environment at all scales, ranging from the continental to the national and local. Decision-makers and other interested citizens need to be able to access reliable science-based information to help them respond to the risks of climate change impacts and assess opportunities for adaptation. Participatory integrated assessment (IA) tools combine knowledge from diverse scientific disciplines, take account of the value and importance of stakeholder ‘lay insight’ and facilitate a two-way iterative process of exploration of ‘what if’s’ to enable decision-makers to test ideas and improve their understanding of the complex issues surrounding adaptation to climate change. This paper describes the conceptual design of a participatory IA tool, the CLIMSAVE IA Platform, based on a professionally facilitated stakeholder engagement process. The CLIMSAVE (climate change integrated methodology for cross-sectoral adaptation and vulnerability in Europe) Platform is a user-friendly, interactive web-based tool that allows stakeholders to assess climate change impacts and vulnerabilities for a range of sectors, including agriculture, forests, biodiversity, coasts, water resources and urban development. The linking of models for the different sectors enables stakeholders to see how their interactions could affect European landscape change. The relationship between choice, uncertainty and constraints is a key cross-cutting theme in the conduct of past participatory IA. Integrating scenario development processes with an interactive modelling platform is shown to allow the exploration of future uncertainty as a structural feature of such complex problems, encouraging stakeholders to explore adaptation choices within real-world constraints of future resource availability and environmental and institutional capacities, rather than seeking the ‘right’ answers

Valuing ecosystem services on the basis of service-providing units: A potential approach to address the 'endpoint problem' and improve stated preference methods

Standardized methods are required to measure ecosystem services in order to value them. In this paper, we argue that the service-providing unit (SPU) concept may help achieve this objective by promoting the systematic quantification of the key components of nature that provide services (e.g., population density of a key pollinator) and linking these with measurable outcomes for human well-being. We discuss and provide examples of the potential role of the SPU concept in improving economic valuation of ecosystem services. Further, we suggest the concept may contribute to addressing the endpoint problem, which can be defined simply as the inability of researchers to communicate the implications of environmental change in a way that is understood by a broad cross-section of society. The endpoint problem is of particular relevance to stated preference approaches, and we discuss the capacity of the SPU concept to refine these approaches. We argue that the concept enhances interdisciplinary collaboration, promoting more validated, well-informed valuation applications. It also has the potential to minimize 'warm glow effects' and put the notion of marginal changes in the provision of ecosystem services in a new light.Ecosystem services Ecosystem values Service-providing unit Endpoint problem Stated preferences

Exploring the factors influencing energy efficiency in the Greek hotel sector

The current paper aims at enhancing the existing literature of studies discussing the parameters, which formulate the phenomenon of the energy efficiency gap in hotels. Specifically, the obtained outcomes, as resulted by the conduction of a stated preference survey are presented and discussed. The survey was carried out on a representative sample of hotels in Greece in the context of the “Consumer Energy Efficiency Decision making (CONSEED)” project. Emphasis was given on various issues related to the energy efficiency gap, such as the impact of EU labelling scheme, the linkage of the pro-environmental behaviour with the willingness to invest in more energy-efficient technologies and equipment, the lack of information about electricity prices and the imperfect understanding of energy operating costs. The findings of the survey can be used to explain the role of the behaviour in the decision-making procedures for the further promotion of energy efficiency. Theoretical models can be developed with the collected data to examine the energy efficiency gap phenomenon and to quantify the contribution of different factors to its formulation including the calculation of the implicit discount rate. Finally, the design of more effective policies can be supported with the findings of the paper maximizing the private and social benefits, which are associated with the purchase of energy-efficient technologies and equipment in the hotel sector

Multivariate Mixed Models for Open-Ended Contingent Valuation Data: Willingness To Pay For Conservation of Monk Seals

Although dichotomous choice (DC) contingent valuation (CV) has been recommended by the US NOAA 'blue-ribbon' panel for large-scale contingent valuation studies, useful information can still be obtained from smaller, open-ended (OE) studies, often undertaken as a precursor to a DC survey. The CV study considered here was carried out in Greece and looked at willingness-to-pay (WTP) for protecting the Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus-monachus) in the Aegean area. This is the most endangered seal in the world, and the application of the CV methodology was the first such application in Greece. The OE data consist of two responses: first, a binary response detailing whether or not respondents were in principle prepared to pay for the protection of this seal; secondly, those respondents who answered 'yes' to the first question were then asked to state their maximum WTP for such protection. A multivariate binomial – log-normal mixture model is used to develop a bid function including explanatory variables such as income, sex, age and education. Such a modelling approach provides an alternative to more commonplace tobit estimation. However, the model is extended to include further information which was collected on: (a) an increased WTP amount given in response to information that the initial WTP amount may not be enough to prevent the extinction of the seal; (b) respondents were asked to divide their final WTP amount between use, option and existence values, the latter requiring a multivariate model with four binary and four continuous responses per individual in the same model. The discussion focuses on the methodological issues raised with some comment on the substantive interpretation of results. Copyright Kluwer Academic Publishers 1998contingent valuation, willingness-to-pay, open-ended data, multivariate mixed discrete-continuous models,