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The Hedonic Approach: No Panacea for Valuing Water Quality Changes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 May 2017

Cleve E. Willis  and
John H. Foster
Cleve E. Willis
Affiliation:
Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
John H. Foster
Affiliation:
Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
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Abstract

The hedonic approach has been advanced recently as an important tool for assessing the value of non-market environmental attributes. In its most usual form, the method involves an attempt econometrically to capture differential prices for homes attributable to variations in the environmental characteristic. This technique has been applied with success for a variety of attributes – most notably the study of air pollution. However, the case studies reported here for water quality valuation were much less successful. We advance several reasons why the hedonic approach may be ill-suited to measuring the value of water quality.

Type
Contributed Papers
Information
Journal of the Northeastern Agricultural Economics Council , Volume 12 , Issue 1 , Spring 1983 , pp. 53 - 57
Copyright
Copyright © Northeastern Agricultural and Resource Economics Association 

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Footnotes

This research was supported by a grant from the Office of Water Resources Research and Technology, WR B-076. The assistance of Ken Sewall, George Hunt, and Meg Postle and the helpful comments of Tom Stevens and the anonymous reviewers are gratefully acknowledged. As always, remaining shortcomings are the sole responsibility of the authors.

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