USING CONTINGENT VALUATION IN ENVIRONMENTAL-PLANNING

A problem in applying benefit-cost analysis to planning issues is the difficulty of imputing values to public goods like water quality. Duri ng the past thirty years, the contingent valuation (CV) survey method has been institutionalized as a technique for valuing these types of g oods. This article traces the development of the method and summarizes recent federal guidelines. Examples from three recent studies, involv ing willingness to pay for nonpoint-source pollution controls, are use d to illustrate issues about the technique. Considerations for planner s who must undertake or evaluate CV studies are discussed.