Willingness to Pay of Domestic Water Users for Improved Conservation of Mt. Banahaw de Lucban Watershed, Quezon, Philippines

Many ecosystem services (ES) are provided by watersheds to downstream populations at no cost to them. To ensure sustainability, those who benefit from these services should be engaged in the protection and management of the watershed. The Mt. Banahaw de Lucban (MBdL) provides non-market values that are not considered in management planning; thus, the underestimation of its ES adversely affects its provisioning capabilities. Adding to this shortcoming is the insufficiency of funds to sustain the current watershed conservation initiatives. This study assesses the value that domestic water users have for sustained water supply resulting from the improved conservation of the MBdL watershed through contingent valuation. The willingness to pay (WTP) of 500 respondents from Lucban, Pagbilao, and Lucena City was estimated using logit regression to develop the model. Results revealed that 95% of the respondents voted yes to the referendum and that about 65% support the improved watershed conservation program. Bid amounts, years of education, household size, occupation, and income have a significant influence on WTP. The mean WTP estimate is PHP 71.53/household/mo. The approximate present amount of improved MBdL conservation is PHP 21.50M/yr. The net present value is estimated at PHP 76 M for five years. The potential fund, if collected, may contribute to the sustainability of any watershed conservation program for MBdL.