Assessing New Zealand public preferences for native biodiversity outcomes across habitat types: A choice experiment approach incorporating habitat engagement

Abstract

• A central policy priority for New Zealand national biodiversity strategy concerns the protection of indigenous habitat within highly threatened environments. However, comparison of New Zealand’s protected areas with threatened environments suggests that the current budget-constrained allocation of management resources is scarce in the most threatened habitat environments, such as urban and farmed landscapes. • The development of management effort prioritisation between protected and threatened environments could be practically informed by expanding current understanding of public values for native habitat outcomes in these environments. In the first New Zealand application of its kind, this report presents an economic assessment of public values for native habitat outcomes across threatened and protected environments through the application of non-market valuation method. We assess public values for native biodiversity outcomes across urban, lowland freshwater, native forest, farmed landscape and marine environments. • While the direct costs associated with native biodiversity management are observable in market transactions, such as the costs of pest control, many of the benefits do not have associated market signals with which to measure the value of native biodiversity outcomes. A non-market valuation methodology, Choice Experiments was therefore used. • This report details the development and application of a Choice Experiment by the Agribusiness and Economics Research Unit at Lincoln University and LandCare Research Ltd to identify and measure New Zealand resident’s preferences for native biodiversity outcomes across different threat level environments where management effort could be applied. • The Choice Experiment involved an online survey of NZ residents in November 2015, using a research panel, of 985 residents and achieved a good representation of key population demographics. • The Choice Experiment shows that respondents place substantial value on native biodiversity outcomes. 90 per cent of respondents are willing to pay something to improve native biodiversity outcomes above current levels. • We collected GIS data on respondent’s level of engagement with each environment type, where-they-go, and what-they-do, and use this information to condition modelling of willingness to pay values. In the last 12 months the median respondent engaged in activities in: • Urban environments 46 times; Marine environments 10 times; Native forest 9 times; Lowland freshwater 3 times; Farmed landscapes 25 times • Modelling shows that the number of times respondents engage in each environment type is a key determinant of their preferences for native biodiversity outcomes in those environments. The influence on preferences is found to strengthen as engagement levels increase.