Payments for environmental services supported social capital while increasing land management.

ABSTRACT: Payments for environmental services (PES) programs incentivize landowners to protect or improve natural resources. Many conservationists fear that introducing compensation for actions previously offered voluntarily will reduce social capital (the institutions, relationships, attitudes, and values that govern human interactions), yet little rigorous research has investigated this concern. We examined the land cover management and communal social capital impacts of Mexico's federal conservation payments program, which is a key example for other countries committed to reducing deforestation, protecting watersheds, and conserving biodiversity. We used a regression discontinuity (RD) methodology to identify causal program effects, comparing outcomes for PES participants and similar rejected app

SUBMITTER: Alix-Garcia JM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6142241 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature