Project evaluation models in payment for environmental services: a literature review

Abstract

Worldwide, Payment for Environmental Services (PES) programs have become a popular economic incentive strategy for environmental conservation. As they are considered recently new policies, the evaluation models of these programs are still incipient and require research in the area. Simultaneously, this study sought to understand, through a systematic review of the literature, how the literature has reported the methods of evaluating projects in PES in the light of the Theory of Change (ToC). Based on the analysis of 22 scientific documents, it was identified that the reports related to the theme are still recent in the literature and very concentrated in the rural area. It was also clear the diversity of PES objectives that go beyond the issue of environmental conservation and encompass the social sphere. The survey also identified many studies that permeate developing countries, where PES schemes contribute to socioeconomic development. Regarding ToC, it was noticed that this theory is closely linked to sustainable development and is strongly linked to the issue of measuring the efficiency of projects. Still, the existing PES project evaluation models are disparate and diverse and very much based on qualitative analysis, suggesting the need to quantify measurement data for such schemes to detect the possible impacts of the adoption of a scheme and its counterfactual impact in the socio-environmental environment.