Public Attitudes and Preferences for Upland Landscapes - Defra
Public Attitudes and Preferences for Upland Landscapes - Defra
Public Attitudes and Preferences for Upland Landscapes - Defra
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cover over the current l<strong>and</strong>scape which may explain the overall preference in the sample <strong>for</strong> an<br />
increase in blanket bog <strong>and</strong> associated increase in important birds <strong>and</strong> mammals 13 . These<br />
examples also highlight that the degree to which respondents value the l<strong>and</strong>scape <strong>for</strong> cultural<br />
services such as recreation is closely linked to respondents’ awareness of <strong>and</strong> views on the other<br />
services delivered by the upl<strong>and</strong>s. In the absence of the provision of additional in<strong>for</strong>mation to all<br />
respondents, the latter will depend on their respondent’s existing level of knowledge; the<br />
demographic implications of this are evident from Hanley et al.’s unsurprising finding that<br />
individuals educated to higher levels had greater environmental awareness (2007). The fact that<br />
respondents take factors such as biodiversity into account when thinking about their overall<br />
preferences <strong>for</strong> l<strong>and</strong>scape also highlights the difficulty of disaggregating preferences <strong>for</strong> the<br />
cultural services from preferences <strong>for</strong> the upl<strong>and</strong>s as a whole. This reflects some of the<br />
challenges associated with the ecosystems approach highlighted in the introduction to this<br />
review.<br />
Based on a robust sample covering 5 English regions, Hanley et al (2007) found that WtP<br />
<strong>for</strong> upl<strong>and</strong> features such as moorl<strong>and</strong> l<strong>and</strong>scapes also varied spatially. Possible reasons <strong>for</strong> this<br />
heterogeneity include differences in regional cultures, in incomes, <strong>and</strong> in the relative scarcity of<br />
l<strong>and</strong>scape features (as marginal WtP is expected to depend on the current abundance of a given<br />
l<strong>and</strong>scape feature within a given area). In addition, the underlying reasons <strong>for</strong> l<strong>and</strong>scape<br />
preferences also vary between regions. For example, income has a significant relationship with<br />
WtP <strong>for</strong> upl<strong>and</strong> features in both Yorkshire <strong>and</strong> Humber <strong>and</strong> the South East, but this relationship is<br />
positive in Yorkshire <strong>and</strong> Humber (with individuals with a higher income being more likely to want<br />
to pay <strong>for</strong> <strong>Public</strong> goods associated with the upl<strong>and</strong>s) <strong>and</strong> negative in the South East. Based on<br />
regional differences in preference, the authors raise the potential policy implication that payments<br />
to farmers should differ by region (to reflect the value of the public goods they deliver). For<br />
example, based on the findings from this study, payments <strong>for</strong> heather moorl<strong>and</strong> conservation<br />
would be highest in the West Midl<strong>and</strong>s, lowest in the North West <strong>and</strong> zero in Yorkshire <strong>and</strong><br />
Humberside. However, the authors acknowledge the obvious practical <strong>and</strong> political implication of<br />
this.<br />
Only a minority of the studies explicitly looked at the impact of in<strong>for</strong>ming the public about<br />
the link between management practices <strong>and</strong> impacts on the l<strong>and</strong>scape. Black (2009) tried to<br />
take into account the impact of giving respondents additional in<strong>for</strong>mation about the management<br />
practices (with particular reference to managing grouse moors <strong>for</strong> shooting) <strong>and</strong> found that<br />
having additional in<strong>for</strong>mation did not appear to impact on how much respondents were willing to<br />
pay <strong>for</strong> preferred l<strong>and</strong>scapes. However, it is possible that having in<strong>for</strong>mation about management<br />
practices impacted negatively on the amount that respondents were willing to pay <strong>for</strong> specific<br />
features, e.g. heather moorl<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> grassl<strong>and</strong>.<br />
6.3. Role of preference strength<br />
A final point that should be emphasised (<strong>and</strong> which can be addressed to an extent using<br />
economic valuation techniques) is that it is important to take into account the strength of<br />
individuals’ preferences as well as the preferences themselves. For example, although only a<br />
minority of respondents in Willis <strong>and</strong> Garrod’s sample favoured ab<strong>and</strong>oned, conserved or<br />
sporting l<strong>and</strong>scapes, those respondents who did prefer these l<strong>and</strong>scapes were, on average,<br />
willing to pay more <strong>for</strong> them than those who favoured today’s l<strong>and</strong>scape were willing to pay to<br />
maintain the status quo (1993). To an extent, strength of individuals’ preferences could be<br />
explored further by considering samples of individuals who have a more specialist engagement<br />
with the upl<strong>and</strong>s – e.g. those who use the upl<strong>and</strong> l<strong>and</strong>scape <strong>for</strong> specialist activities such as<br />
climbing or field sports. This was done by Grijalva et al. (2002) <strong>for</strong> National Parks in the United<br />
States but no comparable study <strong>for</strong> the UK was identified in the searches conducted <strong>for</strong> this<br />
literature review.<br />
13 Although it’s also likely that people favoured an increase in mammals <strong>and</strong> birds associated with an<br />
increase blanket bog because these species are likely to be more emblematic than plants <strong>and</strong> insects. A<br />
number of studies have shown that the public are more likely to pay to preserve more emblematic species.<br />
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