A Web-Based Guidance System to Conduct Contingent Valuation Method

    A WEB-BASED GUIDANCE SYSTEM TO CONDUCT CONTINGENT VALUATION METHOD FOR ECOSYSTEM SERVICES

 1*Choong Weng Wai, 2Wan Nor Azriyati binti Wan Abd Aziz, 3Low Sheau Ting,

4Razlin binti Mansor, 5Chiam Chooi Chea

1,3,4, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia

2 University of Technology Sarawak

5 Open University Malaysia

ABSTRACT

The increasing demand for ecosystem services has led to greater exploitation of natural resources. The lack of associated costs or monetary value hinders policymakers and the public from recognizing the benefits of these services. Property valuers, relying on traditional valuation approaches such as market, cost, and income, may not capture the true value of ecosystem services, as these approaches depend solely on market value. While valuers are interested in assessing the economic value of ecosystems through the contingent valuation method (CVM) for second opinion, they often lack familiarity with this approach. Therefore, a tool is needed to assist them in conducting surveys, calculating economic values, and generating reports. This research has developed a web-based guidance system for conducting CVM for ecosystem services. Building on a foundational framework from a previous NAPREC project, the researchers created a web-based system to aid valuers in ecosystem valuation. The developed system, accessible at https://stagingsrv.me, comprises three key stages: preparing inputs, conducting interviews, surveys and generating reports. Based on the data input by users, the system can generate questionnaires, calculate economic values, and produce report. The system has undergone user acceptance testing, with iterative enhancements based on expert feedback and continuous bug resolution. For future research, we suggest improving the system by integrating double-bounded dichotomous choice solutions and travel cost methodologies to address the current system's limitations.

Keywords: Valuation, Ecosystem Services, Web-based System, Automation