Estimating the economic value of ultrafine particles information: A contingent valuation method

Global concern regarding ultrafine particles (UFPs), which are particulate matter (PM) with a diameter of less than 100nm, is increasing. These particles-with more serious health effects than PM less than 2.5 micrometers (PM2.5)-are difficult to measure using the current methods because their characteristics are different from those of other air pollutants. Therefore, a new monitoring system is required to obtain accurate UFPs information, which will raise the financial burden of the government and people. In this study, we estimated the economic value of UFPs information by evaluating the willingness-to-pay (WTP) for the UFPs monitoring and reporting system. We used the contingent valuation method (CVM) and the one-and-one-half-bounded dichotomous choice (OOHBDC) spike model. We analyzed how the respondents' socio-economic variables, as well as their cognition level of PM, affected their WTP. Therefore, we collected WTP data of 1,040 Korean respondents through an online survey. The estimated mean WTP for building a UFPs monitoring and reporting system is KRW 6,958.55-7,222.55 (USD 6.22-6.45) per household per year. We found that people satisfied with the current air pollutant information, and generally possessing relatively greater knowledge of UFPs, have higher WTP for a UFPs monitoring and reporting system. The results can be used to establish new policies response to PM including UFPs.