Understanding the Effectiveness of Payment for Ecosystem Service Programs

University Of Maryland Baltimore County, Baltimore MD

Investigators

Abstract

This project considers the effectiveness of Payments for Ecosystems Services (PES) programs in Costa Rica. PES programs are a rapidly proliferating conservation mechanism whereby landowners are paid for the "downstream" ecological benefits of their forested land. These programs are increasingly implemented worldwide, however, the conditions under which such payments produce new forms of forest cover are poorly understood. Knowing the extent to which payments for ecosystem services produces additional forest cover is critical for gauging the effectiveness of this program as payments that go toward status quo forms of land cover are an inefficient use of scarce conservation funds. Despite the importance of this issue, there remains a paucity of empirical work concerning the conditions under which ecosystem service payments actually produce additional forest cover among specific social groups. For example, little is known about the outcomes of PES among smallholding farmers that enroll in this program. In addition, the social conditions of agricultural production under which payments to smallholders can produce new forest cover remains poorly understood. This project will address these issues by evaluating whether PES is a viable mechanism for producing new forest cover among smallholding farmers in Costa Rica. Data on household land-use change will be collected through the use of participatory mapping exercises as well as interviews. In addition, smallholders who receive PES, and a control group of non-PES smallholders, will be asked to identify changes in their land using high-resolution remote sensing images and aerial photos at three different times. Data from a land-use survey will be used in order to analyze the extent to which PES has produced additional forest cover. A household livelihoods survey will be concurrently undertaken in which households are queried on their assets, expenditures, production, and income. Data from the household survey will be used to conduct a cost-benefit analysis in order to determine the types of land uses that have the most potential for PES to convert into forest. Survey data will also be used to construct regression models in order to identify the household characteristics that are likely to produce forms of land-use with the most potential for PES-induced forest conversion. This project will provide new insights into the effectiveness of PES by empirically evaluating whether PES produces additional forest cover among smallholders. This research will also advance knowledge about the future potential of PES by delineating the specific on-the-ground conditions that allow for smallholder land uses that PES can potentially convert into forest. This research also has resonance beyond PES-specific scholarship as it will advance knowledge on tropical forest transitions by explicitly studying the complex policy and institutional context that shapes the land-use decisions of households. The project includes the participation of both graduate and undergraduate students and findings will be disseminated in the academic as well as the policy communities.