Estimating values of environmental impacts of dairy farming in New Zealand

Abstract

Adverse environmental impacts from intensification of dairy production include excessive levels of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, excessive amounts of nitrate leaching to waterways, water usage for irrigation, and loss of scenic views. Objectives of this study are to estimate the average Willingness-to-Pay (WTP) of Canterbury households for reduction in the environmental impacts caused by dairy farming and create advance modeling incorporating sources of preference heterogeneity – both observed and unobserved heterogeneity.