Peter C. Wiley

Correcting response bias in tourist spending surveys

Abstract Many studies that estimate economic impact, use onsite tourist contacts followed with mailed expenditure surveys. Typically, response rates to such surveys are under 50%. A recent study of tourism impacts in the Florida Keys (USA) had similar problems. Response bias was considered to be a significant concern. This paper documents the tests for response bias used to identify socioeconomic factors related to survey response and expenditures per tourist. These included income, age, race, and domestic residence. Corrective weights were developed from the four variables. Uncorrected expenditure means underestimated average spending slightly for the summer season, but overestimated it for winter by almost 9%.

“The Coast” is Complicated: A Model to Consistently Describe the Nation’s Coastal Population

Our nation’s coast is a complicated management area where no single delineation provides all of the demographic statistics needed to address the full range of policy and management issues. As a result, several different coastal delineations are currently being used, yielding a variety of US coastal population statistics. This paper proposes a simple model for generating and applying coastal population statistics at the national and regional level to increase consistency in coastal policy discussions and improve public understanding of coastal issues. The model includes two major components. The first component is “the population that most directly affects the coast,” represented by the permanent US population that resides in a standard suite of Coastal Watershed Counties, where land use and water quality changes most directly impact coastal ecosystems. The second component is “the population most directly affected by the coast,” represented by the permanent US population that resides in a standard suite of Coastal Shoreline Counties that are directly adjacent to the open ocean, major estuaries, and the Great Lakes, which due to their proximity to these waters, bear a great proportion of the full range of effects from coastal hazards and host the majority of economic production associated with coastal and ocean resources.

Applying Ecosystem Services to the Practice of Coastal Management: An Overview

Abstract In the coastal science and management community of practice, the concept of ecosystem services (ES) is an approach to valuation that is growing and developing, through practice, to mean different things to different people. It is for these reasons that The Coastal Society, in partnership with the Coastal Management Journal editorial board, developed a special edition of the journal with the theme “Applying Ecosystem Services to the Practice of Coastal Management – Understanding Values.” This special edition sought papers on ES research and practice that examined the mix of ecological and social science research, stakeholder engagement, and communication that occurred throughout these efforts. In this introductory essay, the special edition co-editors and colleagues explore common themes across these papers, which span a range of location, practices, and experiences. Themes include the use of the ES approach, methodologies developed and deployed, connecting ES with people and society, reflections on challenges experienced, and reflections on applications for decision-making and management. This paper concludes with reflections on work that is yet to be done, in ES research, training, and application, to improve methods of measuring and communicating the values of our coasts and thus better prepare managers for the complexities of 21st-century management challenges.