Drovers’ Roads as Environmental Assets: Use Value for Recreational Purposes of the Cañada Real del Reino de Valencia

Abstract

Drovers’ roads have been a key part of transhumant pastoralism for decades, being the routes on which to drive livestock, and it is for this reason that they are protected by Spanish law, specifically Law 3/1995, by which they were declared public goods. At the same time, their particular nature also means that they also possess characteristics which are typical of other types of public goods; therefore, in order to estimate their value, market-based techniques cannot be used. This study centres on a project for the restoration for recreational purposes of the Ca?ada Real del Reino de Valencia, a drovers’ road in the Valencia region of Spain. In order to establish its economic value, the contingent valuation method has been used: this is the most commonly used technique for the valuation of non-market goods and it is widely attested in the economic literature, being used in a large number of different settings. Assuming a useful life of 25 years and a social discount rate of 5%, the value of the Ca?ada Real del Reino de Valencia has been estimated at €441.82 million, indicating the value which society places on the drovers’ road. This estimation may assist in improving the efficiency of public spending policies.

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Guaita-Pradas, I. and Río, B. (2014) Drovers’ Roads as Environmental Assets: Use Value for Recreational Purposes of the Cañada Real del Reino de Valencia. Journal of Environmental Protection, 5, 1495-1508. doi: 10.4236/jep.2014.516142.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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