Study On The Assessment Of The Economic Value Of Recreational Resources In The Ecological Resort Spots

Ecological resort spots are often nature reserves and parks with an excellent natural environment. Wulingyuan Resort Sport and Huangguoshu Resort Sport are one of the foremost national natural resort spots in China. Wulingyuan is not only a national nature reserve but also was listed "the world nature heritage" in 1992. After the two spots have speedily developed for nearly twenty years, the contradiction has being become more and more prominent between the demand of tourism market and the supply of recreational resource. Therefore, such a question comes up that on earth we will continue to increasingly develop to meet the demand of the market or limit its development to protect the recreational resource to remain a sustainable state. Ground on this point, the economic values of the recreational resource protection of Wulingyuan and Huangguoshu are discussed in the survey in order to manage to look after the balance between the development and the protection of the recreational resources in ecological resort spots, and to provide the academic bases for our government to establish the policies of developing and protecting the recreational resources.In the paper, the academic bases of the value of the recreational resources discussed are the same as that of the value of the environmental resources. Mainly complying with the value theory in Economics, the recreational value is divided into use value and non-use value. The methods of assessment depend on the experiential models of Travel Cost Method and Contingent Valuation Method. The academic bases of those models are Marshall Demand function and Hicks Compensating Function and Expending Function. The models of calculating consumer surplus, WTP and WTA can be established by using the functions between variations and utility.The first-hand information in the survey mainly is gained from the respondents by interviewing them face to face in the destination. At first, we twice had test-investigation before official investigation. The goal is to decide the range of the bids in the Questionnaires, to improve the contents of questionnaires, and to try our best to decrease the bias in questionnaires because of their shortcomings. Then, a payment card is chosen to presume the bids in the official questionnaires (including WTP bid and WTA bid), and the information needed by TCM is put together in WTP questionnaires and WTA questionnairesWhen went to Wulingyuan to interview a lot of respondents from different provinces in our countries, we respectively put out 2000 questionnaires to the tourists in the two scenic resorts (WTP is respectively 1000, WTA is also respectively 1000). We received 800 validity questionnaires of WTP (validity receiving rate is 80%); 726 validity questionnaires of WTA (validity receiving rate is 72.6%); 877 validity questionnaires of TCM (validity receiving rate is 87.7%). When we had a questionnaire investigation in Huangguoshu, we received 931 validity questionnaires of WTP (validity receiving rate is 93.1%); 943 validity questionnaires of WTA (validity receiving rate is 94.3%); 924 validity questionnaires of TCM (validity receiving rate is 92.4%). As a result, more over 40,000 datum are gained; in addition, a number of the second-hand information and datum are gained by looking up the reports and documents published by the authoritative departments, and by interviewing the local tourism administration and industries.Depending on those datum, we employ SPSS13.0 and Eviews5.0 statistical soft to, synthetically analyze them by a lot of methods. At first, respectively those datum are dealt with by using descriptive statistical analysis, and the relation between individual attributes and WTP, the relation between individual attributes and WTA are respectively across analyzed. We choose the Mean Calculation, Linear Logarithm Models (Log-likelihood function), Linear, Expontial, Quadratic as the models of computing WTP, WTA and CS. Secondly, the values among those results are taken as the most right values which are assumed as the values of estimating the two spots. Thirdly, gained WTP and WTA are compared with the fee of admission by interviewing and actual fee of admission; the interviewed rate are compared with the actual rate, of the rate deducted from the fee of admission. Finally, WTA and WTP are respectively compared with CS of TCM; WTA is compared with WTP as well. Thus, the important results and the conclusions as follow. The expect values of WTP and WTA of Wulingyuan and Huanggusohu are computed by applying mean calculating, linear logarithm models. The results showed:the mean value of the WTP of Wulingyuan tourists is within 64.51?89.09 yuan/person, its middle point mean value is 76.8yuan/person; the WTP expect value gained by linear logarithm model is 84.72 yuan/person. The mean value of the WTA of Wulingyuan tourists is within 180.48?224.34yuan/person, its middle point mean value is 202.13 yuan/person; the WTA expect value gained by linear logarithm model is 180.06yuan/person. The mean value of the WTP of Huangguoshu tourists is within 90.52?123.94yuan/person, its middle point mean value is 107.2yuan/person; the WTP expect value gained by linear logarithm model is 102.81yuan/person. The mean value of the WTA of Huangguoshu tourists is within 133.68?175.06yuan/person, its middle point mean value is 156.37yuan/person; the WTA expect value gained by linear logarithm model is 129.05yuan/person.The use values of the two resort spots are estimated by applying TCM to compute the consumer surplus of Wulingyuan and Huangguoshu. That is to say, firstly the tourists going to Wulingyuan are divided into 20 home sites; the tourists going to Huangguoshu are divided into 19 home sites, who are from 31 provinces in our country. Secondly,12 models can be gained by adopting 3 different regression functions in Zonal TCM respectively to regress the rate of their tourists with their travel cost including four different scarce opportunities. Thirdly, the results computed by 12 models are shown the CS of Wulingyuan is in 115.41534×108?131.23248×108 yuan, the CS of Huangguoshu is in 62.13097×108?76.99873×108yuanMoreover the results computed by linear logarithm model are chosen as aggregates when assuming T-test is significant at the 0.05 level. The WTA values of the two spots are decided as the estimating value of non-use value according to the features with environmental public articles. By T-test significant at the 0.05 level and depending on the scarce opportunity adopted in most literatures, namely, the CS values calculated by quadratic model and the scarce opportunity of 1/3 of a day's salary are taken as the aggregates of Wulingyuan and Huangguoshu, the former is 119.96147×108 and the latter is 67533.78X 108. So that, overall recreational value in an ecological travel spot =the whole travel cost+the whole CS+WTA. As a result, the overall recreational value of Wulingyuan is 348.77527×108yuan; that of Huangguoshu is 217.4585×108yuan.It can be found that the WTP values are easily affected by the individual attributes and behaviors of respondents, contrarily the WTA values are less affected by them, through comparing the WTP and the WTA of Wulingyuan and Huangguoshu with their variations. On the other hand, the ratio of WTA/WTP is respectively 3.48?2.13?1.93?1.26. Those values close to the lower study results appearing in most literatures.By comparing the results of CVM with the results of TCM, it is shown: TCM/WTP is in 4.11-9.72; TCM/WTA is in 2.41-4.11.Therefore it can be suspected that the results of CVM especially its WTP are underestimated. Although there are many reasons causing the low assessing values, there are another 6 main facts in the survey, apart from the psychological facts in behavioral economics. Hence,it can be considered that only WTP value is used to estimate the value of the recreational resource of an ecological spot, which can result in underestimating its value, consequently, which can have disadvantageous effect on sustainable development of recreational resources. Therefore when we assess recreational resources and the assets with the features of public articles, we should employ WTA values to represent the values their willing to pay depending on the facts of our country.In the paper, the important contributions:(1) A sort of estimating values gained by a kind of method are not used to assess the economic value of some spot, but 2 kinds of estimating values gained by applying 2 methods are used to assess the economic value of 2 spots. (2) T-test is used to examine whether the results computed by those models are different in statistics or not, in order to decide the last aggregate of the values. (3) The needed information of CVM and TCM is simultaneously written in WTP and WTA questionnaires, so that time and money are not only saved but also they are advantageous to be analyzed. (4) When we select the spots of interviewing respondents, we select railway stations and airports where the tourists often collect after finishing their sightseeing, thus the questionnaires can be received at high rate. (5) Putting up a new opinion. It is suggested that we should use WTA value to express people's actual willing to pay in our country according to the results of this study.