Herdsmen's willingness to accept compensation for grazing ban compliance: Empirical evidence from pastoral China

Abstract

Payment for ecosystem services (PES) has gained popularity in balancing environmental degradation and economic development. However, many of its key features, particularly price differentiation, are often not considered during design and implementation. Taking China's grassland ecological compensation policy as an example, we empirically examine herders' willingness to accept (WTA) compensation for grazing ban compliance, based on a survey dataset of 352 herder households in the pastoral areas of the Gansu and Qinghai provinces in China. A double-bounded dichotomous choice contingent valuation design was adopted, with interval regression and bivariate probit models adjusted for potential bid anchoring utilized to obtain reliable WTA estimates. The results show that the mean WTA ranges between CNY 193 and CNY 274 per mu, which is significantly higher than the present universal compensation level. Herdsmen's WTA is significantly and positively associated with household size and having migrant worker family members, while it is negatively influenced by age, environmental perception , household income, and sandy soil. We suggest that the basic institution of China's grassland ecological compensation policy (GECP) should be reformed to allow price differentiation, bottom-up participation, and performance-dependent payments. • We examine herdsmen's willingness to accept (WTA) for grazing ban compliance. • A double-bounded dichotomous choice contingent valuation design is adopted. • Estimated WTA is substantially larger than the current compensation level. • WTA decreases with herdsmen's environmental perception. • Price differentiation and bottom-up participation should be allowed.