Scope effects and willingness to pay for deep sea management practices within and beyond national jurisdictions

This study uses split-sample discrete choice experiments to investigate public preferences within and between countries for proposed deep-sea management policies within and beyond national jurisdictions. The surveys were carried out in Norway and Scotland. A comparison of willingness-to-pay within each country (e.g., Mingulay/Lofoten-Vesterålen vs. Flemish Cap) indicates that the Scottish were willing to pay more for managing deep-sea ecosystem services in international versus national waters, while Norwegians were less willing to pay for all attribute-level improvements associated with international waters, regardless of management attribute considered. Comparing willingness-to-pay across the countries (e.g., Mingulay vs. Lofoten-Vesterålen and Scotland-Flemish Cap vs. Norway-Flemish Cap), the Scottish have lower willingness-to-pay for protecting ecosystems in national waters compared to the Norwegians, while the opposite is the case for international water ecosystem protection. Overall, the public in both countries were willing to pay for deep-sea management measures whether in national or international waters, though they prioritized measures protecting non-use values over blue economic growth. These findings underline the public preference for improved stewardship and conservation, as well as sustainable use of not only waters within national jurisdictions but also high-sea areas. The study also employs tests for attribute scope sensitivity. The results present evidence of both sensitivity and insensitivity to changes in attribute levels, the latter consisting of diminishing marginal utility with respect to the amount of protection.