Description
This paper reports results from a discrete choice experiment conducted with Oregon residents regarding possible policy changes in spatial management of nearshore habitat. We evaluate public preferences across several policy scenarios, each characterized by varying levels of marine reserve size (bounded areas where extractive activities are prohibited), coastal jobs generated or lost, and carbon sequestration by seagrass beds, tidal marshes and kelp forests(blue carbon habitat expansion), with models estimated in both utility and willingness to pay (WTP) space. Each of these attributes across all models displays positive, monotonic marginal WTP. Scenario analysis reveals that an “optimistic” policy package (+50 % reserve size, +200 jobs, +100 % blue carbon) commands a mean WTP of $465–704 per year, whereas equivalent contractions generate larger welfare losses, indicating “loss aversion” among citizens. Preference varies by recreational coastal use: non-fishing recreationists exhibit the highest WTP for attribute improvements, while recreational fishers exhibit lower WTP and would otherwise require greater compensation to accept the status quo. These findings indicate broad public support for policies that support and potentially expand blue carbon habitat, and suggest that tiered financing or carbon-credit mechanisms may be viable strategies to secure stable funding while maintaining stakeholder acceptance.
Author ORCID Identifier
Arthur Caplan https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2435-3973
Marcelo Pignatari https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9623-276X
Sarah Klain https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3798-9436
Kreg Lindberg https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7881-1992
Document Type
Dataset
DCMI Type
Dataset
File Format
.csv, .lim
Viewing Instructions
Special software required to use data: Excel and NLOGIT
Publication Date
1-16-2026
Funder
Utah Agricultural Experiment Station
Publisher
Utah State University
Methodology
Data collected and compiled through Qualtrics system. Data has been processed in a excel spreadsheet.
Location
Oregon
Language
eng
Code Lists
see README
Disciplines
Natural Resource Economics
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Caplan, A. (2026). Coastal conservation and blue carbon: Willingness to pay for changes to nearshore management in Oregon [Data set]. Utah State University. https://doi.org/10.26078/VJP2-WH98
Checksum
0e7e3f787f2185e6ce57eeacc229bb62