• Environmental and Resource Economics Review
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.1-27
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• 2003

Urban forests have various environmental benefits, contributing to the quality of urban life. However, these values have been underestimated or never been reflected in the urban development planning in Korea. As a result, a number of forests in urban areas were either partly or wholly destroyed without their public's values being assessed explicitly. The objective of this paper is to estimate the economic benefits attached to Mt. Kwanggyo in the Capital Region using contingent valuation method, aiming to provide policy-makers with useful information to make an informed public decision in urban development planning. The survey was carefully designed and implemented to meet a number of recommendation rules suggested in the literature. The overall results show that the respondents well accepted the contingent market and would be willing to pay a significant amount for the proposed program of conserving the mountain. Total economic benefits for the population amounted to approximately 3.8 billion Korean won per year. This quantitative information can be used in cost-benefit analysis of urban development plans.