Willingness to Pay for Recreational Benefits using Contingent Valuation: A Case Study of Lake Bababu

Abstract

Dinagat Islands aimed to become the ecotourism center of the Caraga Region, in which Lake Bababu is one of its outstanding sites. Promotion of its ecotourism with much consideration on its sustainable ecological conservation. Hence, this study focused on the economic valuation of Lake Bababu through a Contingent Valuation Method by determining the respondents’ Willingness To Pay (WTP) for the protection and conservation of the area. A dichotomous iterative approach was applied to get the maximum willingness to pay of the tourists. A total of 357 tourists were interviewed based on the 4,884 total visitors in the area in 2018. As a result, 55% expressed willingness to pay the bid amount to support the conservation of cultural and natural values of the lake and to further support the protection of the undisturbed nature of the lake. Through regression analysis, the bid amount was found to have significantly influenced the tourists’ WTP. The income variable of the respondents came out as one of the factors that influenced the tourist’s WTP. The mean WTP was calculated at approximately Php 51.00. Thus, the total recreational benefits of Lake Bababu is amounting to Php 249,084 as what the tourists do want the next generations to enjoy. It is therefore recommended to the management of the area to increase the entrance fee from Php 30 to Php 51 for the conservation, protection, and sustainability of the area.