Estimation and Comparison of the Economic Value of Conservation and Recreational Functions of the Lasem Watershed, Mazandaran Province

Natural ecosystems such as rangelands have considerable economic potential and a function, the need to pay attention to them in pursuit of sustainable economic development in a country such as Iran is necessary. Accordingly, the goal of this research is determining recreation and conservation value of Lasem summer rangelands in Amol, Mazandaran province by 1335 ha area with CVM method. So, dual selection questionnaire and logit quality model were used. Model parameters were estimated based on the maximum right-sided method. The questionnaire was completed for 230 visitors in the one-year period (2017-2018). The results showed that in both estimations, the variables effect of bid and education at level 5 and 1 percentage had significant effect on wtp. The results of the research showed that average willingness to pay each family per visit for protecting each hectare of Lasem rangelands were 44526 rials and for recreation usage were 85012 respectively. Annual value of recreation and conservation of each ha of Lasem rangelands were 2183445 rials and 543212.5 rials respectively. Also, the results showed that, total annual recreational and conservation value of summer rangelands of Lasem, were 2.9 million rials/year and 1.5 million rials/year. The willingness to pay approximately 2 times of visitors for recreational value relative to the conservation value reflects that if people do not use this waterfall directly for recreation, will have less willingness to pay. On the other hand, the low conservation value of the area compared to its recreational value, caused by the ignorance and disregard of people about the environmental services in this area. So, we will have a double effect if environmental policies go hand in hand with training and proper notification. So, pay attention to training and educational promotions to encourage environmental conservation of the region, will be very important.