Total Economic Value of Maasai Mau, Trans Mara and Eastern Mau ...

land use practices that meet the standards set by the EQIP plan of operations developedin conjunction with the land owners that undertake appropriate conservation practiceor measures needed to address identified natural resource concerns. The practices aresubjected to technical standards adapted for local conditions. The land owners are paidup to a maximum based on a valuations framework that ensures that fair prices arepaid to participating landowners and that avoids excessive or wastage of resources.7.4 DisincentivesThe promotion of land use practices that conserve ecosystems services in most cases arebacked by strong policy and legislative frameworks with strong punitive measures thattend to discourage adoption of practices that conserve and protect ecosystems. Legalsections usually present a series of consultations and penalties that will be meted out tolandowners who do not conform to specified practices. Such regulations tend toantagonize local people who might otherwise cooperate with conservation efforts. Thus,regulations that impose costs on the local people with minimal benefits may prove to becounterproductive and may not attain the intended outputs. Before any conservationscheme is implemented, therefore, the potential impacts of such activities on theeconomic bottom lines of the local people should be fully evaluated. Recent studieshave shown that most regulations impose high costs on local people withoutcompensating benefits for their participation in forest conservation. The ultimatereactions have been to adopt strategies that minimize such exposure through wellcalculated plans that negate the achievement of the desired conservation values.Such experiences indicate that equitable negotiated voluntary schemes may be moreeffective than punitive regulations in winning the support of local people inconservation projects. It is expected that modest financial incentives can producesignificant ecological gains at modest cost and can motivate local people to participatein ecosystems conservation efforts. It is advisable that less emphasis should be placedon punitive actions that are likely to create perverse incentives that work againsteffective ecosystem conservation of forests.Potential Role of LVBC Incentives SchemesThese incentives schemes can be piloted in the three forests through voluntaryagreements with KFS or the Narok County Council to determine which conservation69