Natural Resource Damage Assessment: Methods and Cases

of the resources damaged, and shows that compensation tables were the most frequently used
tool for damage assessment. Habitat equivalency analysis and market price methods were the
second and third most frequently used methods. The frequency of use of sophisticated economic
valuation methods was only about 20%. Two cases had used methods other than those discussed
above, including the replacement cost method and the restoration planning approach. Figure 3.4
shows that the 29 cases considered here also involved damages to natural resources other than
groundwater, such as surface water, wetlands, air, fish, wildlife, and cultural resources.
Damage assessment methods often vary with the type of resource damaged. Some
methods are more suitable for assessing damages to certain resources. For example, the travel
cost method may be more suitable to measure damages to recreational values and surface water
than to groundwater. Figure 3.5 shows that agencies have tended to use a greater variety of
methods as the number of resources damaged increased.
CV
9%
averting exp.
4%
HEA
16%
travel cost
9%
market price
11%
other
4%
71
appraisal
4%
own tool
34%
benefits transfer
9%
Figure 3.3 Frequency of Use of Alternative Methods for Groundwater Damage Assessment