Preferences in Farmland Eco-Compensation Methods: A Case Study of Wuhan, China

Abstract

Successful farmland eco-compensation projects need to reflect the heterogeneous preferences both from suppliers and beneficiaries. This paper tries to answer this question by investigating both citizen and farmer preferences for different farmland eco-compensation methods in Wuhan, China, and explore some of the socio-demographic characteristics that contribute to their preferences. Based on the data of 288 citizens and 331 farmers, the multinomial logit model was employed to analyze their preferences for the four farmland eco-compensation methods (monetary compensation, in-kind compensation, technology compensation and policy compensation), respectively. The results show that: (1) Monetary compensation is the most welcomed farmland eco-compensation method among both citizens and farmers. (2) Despite farmers and citizens both putting a high value on monetary compensation methods, citizens are more likely to provide compensation methods that can help farmers improve their living standards in a sustainable method (in-kind compensation, technology compensation and policy compensation). Farmers are less likely to choose the in-kind compensation method. (3) The preference for farmland eco-compensation systems of farmers and citizens are influenced by different socio-demographic characteristics. The results can help the government to design more aimed farmland eco-compensation methods for farmers with different socio-demographic characteristics.