Environmental economic assessment of the Varginha Zoobotanical Park: Application of the Travel Cost Method

Abstract

In recent decades, environmental economic valuation has become a useful and necessary tool for decision-making processes involving the sustainable use of natural resources. In view of this reality, it was decided to carry out this study, for which the objective was to estimate the recreational use value of the Varginha Zoobotanical Park, in the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil, the only one of its kind in the region with the presence of species of Brazilian and universal flora and fauna. It was used the Travel Cost Method, recognized as one of the most important in estimating revealed preferences, specifically in obtaining the value of recreational use of natural areas, from the calculation of travel costs associated with their visits. The data for the study were obtained by applying an online questionnaire that allowed for the calculation of travel costs, permanence costs, total cost of their trips, their respective demand curve, the consumer's surplus and, thus, the estimation of their recreational use value. The results demonstrated the importance of the park for the inhabitants of the region and, in turn, represent a relevant contribution to the design of future environmental policies and the reordering of the conception about the need for an integration of ecosystem services in local and regional development planning.

Keywords

• método de costo de viaje
• métodos de preferencias reveladas
• valoración económica ambiental
• parque zoobotánico de varginha