Does the Value of Water-Related Ecosystem Services Capture Water Scarcity? Application to Rice Farming in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam?

Abstract

This study utilized the contingent valuation method to estimate the value of water-related ecosystem services (ES) in Vietnam, focusing on provisioning and regulating services for addressing water scarcity (WS) in rice farming. By incorporating gender and climate change perceptions, it expanded the existing literature on valuing river ecosystem services. The findings showed a significant number of households experiencing severe water scarcity in the past five years, with over 70% facing occasional or regular WS in the last 12 months. Rice farmers were willing to adopt coping measures and preventive practices to preserve water-related ES, recognizing their importance for sustaining rice cultivation. Farmers demonstrated willingness to contribute financially to restore and maintain water-related ES in rivers and canals. The median willingness to pay for restoration was VND188,300/ha, with estimated values of US$2,898,133 for a 10% affected area and US$23,185,068 for an 80% affected area over five years. Perception of WS severity and associated risk positively influenced households’ decisions to contribute financially. These findings have policy implications and provide insights for effective coping strategies against WS, enhancing water-resilient agriculture in the Lower Mekong Basin.

Valuation of a Heatwave Early Warning System for Mitigating Risks Associated with Heat-Related Illness in Central Vietnam

“…Table 6 presents empirical findings concerning the determinants of individuals' WTP for an HEWS aimed at mitigating heat stress in central Vietnam. The variable bid is significant at 1%, showing that as bid levels rise, the likelihood of a "yes" response falls, which is consistent with the earlier literature [36,54]. The results indicate that the cost of illness items including the annual direct medical cost and direct non-medical cost are significant determinants of WTP for HEWS, indicating that individuals who perceive a higher direct medical and direct non-medical cost of illness attributed to heat stress are more inclined to have a higher likelihood to pay for the HEWS.…”

“…Strategic bias is effectively mitigated by using a single-bounded dichotomous choice (SBDC) question [58]. The SBDC question were utilized to prevent potential bias and were used in previous CVM studies in Vietnam [36,54]. Finally, reliance on self-reported data may introduce the potential for response bias.…”

“…Also, the adoption of certain coping strategies such as air conditioners [22], or fans [31] may influence the awareness of the risks associated with heatwaves and thus the WTP for preventive measures against heatwaves. Regarding socio-economic characteristics, some key covariates such as income [12,26,[28][29][30]32,33], education [12,20,26,27,30,33,34], age [7,20,21,29,30,[34][35][36], and gender [22,29,32,33,35] play a critical role in comprehending individuals' WTP for heat-related illnesses. These factors can potentially affect an individual's WTP for an EWS aimed at mitigating the risks associated with heat-related illness.…”

Understanding the Safeguarding Role of Forest Resources and Its Determinants During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Insights from Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia

“…The COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated this problem, particularly in remote forest-dependent communities that face limited access to public services and information, leading to socio-economic challenges (see Appendix 3 for problem trees of forest dependence in the three study sites). Despite the extensive documentation of the pandemic's impacts on public health, the economy, and the environment (Ali et al, 2020;Amador-Jiménez et al, 2020;Lindsey et al, 2020;Laudari et al, 2021;Njana et al, 2021;Maraseni et al, 2022;My et al, 2023), studies focusing on the safeguarding role of forests in the study area are still limited (Sapkota, et al, 2022). Moreover, there is limited research on the livelihood impacts of the pandemic on forest-resource use, particularly in developing countries within Southeast Asia.…”

Co-financing irrigation water services: farmers' perspectives in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam

“…A number of studies have been conducted regarding co-financing initiatives involving individuals and households to promote environmental improvement, improve life quality, and mitigate the impacts of climate change. Most of the research in this area has focused on topics such as forest environmental services (Thuy et al, 2013), wastewater treatment (Le & Aramaki, 2019;Trang, Rañola, & Song, 2018), improving urban water supply systems (Bui et al, 2022;Hue, 2018), protecting groundwater (Vo & Huynh, 2017), restoring mangrove forests (Pham et al, 2018), ecosystem conservation (My, Kien, Hung, & Anh, 2023), and improving urban air quality (Nguyen, Nguyen, Le, & Kaneko, 2022). Our empirical review suggests a dearth of literature that delves into farmers' attitudes towards participating in the co-financing of irrigation water services to facilitate agricultural irrigation, notwithstanding their critical significance and urgency.…”