Journal of Forest Economics > Vol 14 > Issue 2

User fees, equity and the benefits of public outdoor recreation services

Anni Huhtala, anni.huhtala@mtt.fi , Eija Pouta, eija.pouta@mtt.fi
 
Suggested Citation
Anni Huhtala and Eija Pouta (2008), "User fees, equity and the benefits of public outdoor recreation services", Journal of Forest Economics: Vol. 14: No. 2, pp 117-132. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jfe.2007.06.003

Publication Date: 01 Apr 2008
© 0 2008 Anni Huhtala, Eija Pouta
 
Subjects
 
Keywords
JEL Codes:D63H4Q26
Consumer surplusIncomeIncome elasticityWillingness to pay
 

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In this article:
Introduction 
Conceptual background and statistical methods applied 
Data 
Results 
Discussion 

Abstract

The paper addresses the question of who benefits from public recreation areas. Employing a set of survey data from users and nonusers of state-owned recreation and conservation areas in Finland, we derive two measures for distributional analysis. The first, the income elasticity of willingness to pay for recreation services, indicates that public provision of recreation benefits lower-income groups more than higher-income groups. The second, a welfare measure including efficiency loss, reveals ambiguous impacts depending on the level of the fee implemented. Low fee levels decrease recreation visits among lower-income users, whereas high fees reduce the welfare level of higher-income users in particular.

DOI:10.1016/j.jfe.2007.06.003