Economic assessment of environmental hydrological services of native forest in the Schwarzenberg brook watershed, Eldorado, Misiones

• Autores: Mantulak, Mario José; Martínez Duarte, Juan Antonio; Arenhardt, Orlando Ernesto; Bernio, Julio César; Wanderer, Ricardo Joaquín; Martínez, Oscar Martín
• Año de publicación: 2014
• Idioma: inglés
• Tipo de recurso: artículo
• Materia: Valuation; Environmental services; Protection; Watersheds; Native forests
• Institución: Universidad Nacional de Misiones

Fil: Mantulak, Mario José. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ingeniería; Argentina.
Fil: Martínez Duarte, Juan Antonio. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Forestales; Argentina.
Fil: Arenhardt, Orlando Ernesto. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Forestales; Argentina.
Fil: Bernio, Julio César. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Forestales; Argentina.
Fil: Wanderer, Ricardo Joaquín. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Forestales; Argentina.
Fil: Martínez, Oscar Martín. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Facultad de Ciencias Forestales; Argentina.
The problem of this research is to determine the economic value that the eldoradenses assign to hydrological services of the native forests. The general objective of this project is to evaluate the hydrological environmental services that native forests provide to the Schwarzenberg watershed, for a forest restore project. The following activities have already been developed: a compilation of antecedents; characterization of the present watershed´s condition; the determination of protection services provided by the native forests; and the economic valuation of environmental service, using the contingent valuation method. The results indicate that the eldoradenses have assigned a monetary value of 2,025 pesos per hectare per year to the environmental service, and the conclusion was that without the surrounding protective forest, the maximum flow and the torrential condition of the basin increase. Families are willing to pay for the hydrological environmental services that native forests provide to the basin; and it is recommended to do more studies to outline a payments system for environmental services, considering that the Schwarzenbergs watershed drains into the Piray Mini stream, a short distance upstream from the outlet of the public water supply system of the Eldorado.