Benefit Transfer

Previous chapters of this book have described how to conduct an original nonmarket valuation study. However, original research can be time-consuming and expensive. What can you do if your time and/or funding prevents you from conducting an original study? For example, suppose the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP) is deliberating on whether to grant a permit for a coal mine. Suppose a decision must be made within 60 days. The agency wants to balance the benefits derived from extracting the coal with the environmental damages caused by mining. One impact is the loss of recreational fishing downstream from the mining site. WVDEP wants to know the value of fishing on this stream. How could you provide this information? Even if WVDEP had the necessary funds to conduct a primary study, obviously there is not enough time. In this chapter, we describe how existing data or summary statistics from previous research can be used in different decision contexts. We use the term benefit transfer to describe the use of information from previous research to inform decisions.