Valuing a managed realignment scheme: what are the drivers of public willingness to pay?
Abstract Offering several advantages over traditional “hold the line” flood defences, including increases in the supply of ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration and habitat provision, managed realignment is increasingly being used as a flood defence option. This paper seeks to add to the growing literature on public perceptions of the benefits of managed realignment by examining local resident's knowledge of estuarine management issues and identifying their willingness to pay towards a new managed realignment scheme on the Tay Estuary, Scotland. Results showed that the majority of respondents were not aware of flood risk issues on the estuary or of different flood defence options. Household mean willingness to pay for a specific managed realignment scheme was calculated at £43 per annum. Significant drivers of willingness to pay included respondents perceived flood risk and worries about the state of existing flood defences. There was also spatial heterogeneity with those living closest to the scheme being willing to pay the most. Prior knowledge of flood risk issues were found not to significantly influence willingness to pay.