Title: Recreational satisfaction and conservational nexus in Sundarbans mangrove forest in Bangladesh: Application of contingent valuation method

Abstract

The degree to which present prosthetic recreational and conservational assessments of the Sundarbans illuminate sustainable forest strategy policy and speculation choices is muddled. To additional knowledge in this field, existing evidence gaps and method design should be recognized, therefore informing the plan regarding future research. This study examines the tourists’ willingness to pay (WTP) because of policy changes based on group discussion and surveys. Following the random sampling technique, a well-designed dichotomous preference-based questions and contingent valuation method were employed to disclose stated preference (SP) data and estimating WTP for recreational satisfaction-induced conservation of Sundarbans. Tourists’ age, monthly income, educational status, and trip expenditure are influential factors of WTP. Positive values of the lower and upper WTPs for the conservational scheme imply that investment in this scheme provides greater return from the collected revenue from the tourists and mobilize it for forest landscape restoration, nurture mangrove and other native tree species, control water pollution, and ecotourism. Probit logistic regression models disclosed tourists’ recreational satisfaction through WTP and their preference-based conservation measures of Sundarbans. It also provides research avenues and offers a framework for valuing conservation practice in forest. Understanding the tourists’ preferences provides information that could improve recreational satisfaction and other potential tourism policy implications to sustainable management practice for the conservation of Sundarbans.