A Recreation Demand Model of the North Carolina For-Hire Fishery

Abstract

In this paper we measure the recreational economic benefits of the for-hire recreational fishery in the coastal region of North Carolina. We estimate a single trip random utility model for primary purpose and secondary purpose anglers with data from a field survey of charter and head-boat passengers. We find that primary and secondary purpose anglers exhibit significantly different behavior with regards to cost. However, once costs are weighted for secondary purpose anglers the value of catch is not statistically different across groups. For primary purpose anglers, the willingness to pay per trip is between $1800 and $2000 for one additional billfish (per angler), between $55 and $65 for one additional coastal migratory pelagic fish, $39 for one additional mackerel, and the willingness to pay per trip for an additional snapper-grouper is between $61 and $94. The net economic value for a charter boat trip averages $624 per angler per trip, and net economic value for a head boat trip is $102 per angler per trip.

Keywords: recreation demand, fishing, charter boat, head boat, willingness to pay, fish catch

JEL Classification: Q22, Q26