On the value of tap water quality: Evidence from revealed and stated preference methods
Event details
| Date | 25.03.2014 |
| Hour | 12:15 › 13:00 |
| Speaker | Bruno Lanz |
| Location | |
| Category | Conferences - Seminars |
Abstract :
We use different sources of data to estimate the demand for qualitative aspects of tap water supply, in particular its hardness and its aesthetic quality in terms of taste, smell and appearance.
One source of data on households' preferences is the amount they spend on water softener devices and on substitutes for the aesthetic quality of tap water, which mainly includes bottled water, water filter devices, or adding squash or cordial before drinking. We survey more than 4,500 households in England and Wales. We find that a substantial share of households spend substantial amounts of money on such devices or substitutes. We also estimate the impact of better water quality on these expenditures.
Next to these revealed preferences, we also elicit preferences through discrete choice experiments. We address specifically a frequent problem of such experiments, the disproportionate frequency of status quo (SQ) choices. In our experiments, we either improve or deteriorate water services and environmental amenities , so that the SQ is not necessarily the least-cost option. We also vary other features of our experiments, which allows us to confirm the importance of choice task complexity and ‘protest’ motives. More importantly, our results suggest that SQ choices are determined by preferences for unobserved SQ characteristics.
We use different sources of data to estimate the demand for qualitative aspects of tap water supply, in particular its hardness and its aesthetic quality in terms of taste, smell and appearance.
One source of data on households' preferences is the amount they spend on water softener devices and on substitutes for the aesthetic quality of tap water, which mainly includes bottled water, water filter devices, or adding squash or cordial before drinking. We survey more than 4,500 households in England and Wales. We find that a substantial share of households spend substantial amounts of money on such devices or substitutes. We also estimate the impact of better water quality on these expenditures.
Next to these revealed preferences, we also elicit preferences through discrete choice experiments. We address specifically a frequent problem of such experiments, the disproportionate frequency of status quo (SQ) choices. In our experiments, we either improve or deteriorate water services and environmental amenities , so that the SQ is not necessarily the least-cost option. We also vary other features of our experiments, which allows us to confirm the importance of choice task complexity and ‘protest’ motives. More importantly, our results suggest that SQ choices are determined by preferences for unobserved SQ characteristics.
Practical information
- Informed public
- Free
- This event is internal
Organizer
- Décanat ENAC
Contact
- Eaves Joëlle