Economic considerations of privately owned parks

Privately owned parks continue to proliferate worldwide. Their rapid expans ion represents an important yet little understood private sector incursion into an activity long dominated by governments. This paper examines economi c issues surrounding establishment and operation of privately owned natural areas. We interviewed owners of 68 private parks in Costa Pica to learn mo re about reserves' underlying economics. Key findings include: (1) private parks require an expanded definition of optimal reserve size - one in which quality of protection takes precedence over quantity of land protected; (2 ) profit was a powerful motivator behind private reserve operation, even th ough many owners did not rely on their reserves for revenue generation; and (3) an important non-market value of private parks was the high bequest va lue owners placed on them. test, we identify key information gaps that reso urce economists can help fill regarding this increasingly popular conservat ion tool. The analysis contributes to our understanding of private reserves on both theoretical and empirical levels. It should be of interest whereve r biodiversity remains threatened, wherever new conservation partners are b eing sought, and wherever private reserves are being established, which inc ludes most of the industrialized and developing world. (C) 2000 Elsevier Sc ience B.V. All rights reserved.