Valuing water quality in the United States using a national dataset on property values.
other · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 37011190.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1073/pnas.2210417120 and PMC identifier 10104588.
- Licence recorded as CC BY-NC-ND.
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Abstract
High-quality water resources provide a wide range of benefits, but the value of water quality is often not fully represented in environmental policy decisions, due in large part to an absence of water quality valuation estimates at large, policy relevant scales. Using data on property values with nationwide coverage across the contiguous United States, we estimate the benefits of lake water quality as measured through capitalization in housing markets. We find compelling evidence that homeowners place a premium on improved water quality. This premium is largest for lakefront property and decays with distance from the waterbody. In aggregate, we estimate that 10% improvement of water quality for the contiguous United States has a value of $6 to 9 billion to property owners. This study provides credible evidence for policymakers to incorporate lake water quality value estimates in environmental decision-making.