Introduction

Abstract

Yangtze finless porpoises (YFPs) are the only fresh water adapted ­porpoises in the world, living in the middle and downstream of the Yangtze River, in China. They are facing the threats include: illegal fishing and overfishing, sand dredging and shipping, and water pollution caused by industry and agriculture. Owing to these threats, the porpoise population is falling and urgent conservation is needed. Poyang Lake is the largest freshwater lake in China and also the best habitat for YFPs. It is proposed a nature reserve for YFPs in Poyang Lake in order to avoid their extinction. The overall goal of the study is to quantify the economic benefits of the porpoise ­conservation in Poyang Lake in China using a deliberative valuation approach, called the valuation workshop. Within this overall goal, three sub-goals are pursued in the Poyang Lake valuation study, which seek to close specific gaps in the research on contingent valuation. Firstly, this study aims at finding a way that enables people to value an unfamiliar species, which mainly consists of non-use values. Secondly, it is to test empirically the role of the distance decay on WTP. Thirdly, the mean WTP for the porpoise conservation is compared between China and Germany.