Gathering society's opinion of the sustainable management and economic value of the coastal zone

This study explores people's perceptions of marine ecosystem services and sustainable coastal zone management. More specifically, it investigates the relationship between respondents' attitudes and motives for placing economic value on the coastal zone, expressing their intention to pay for coastal zone quality improvement. Primary data were obtained from a sample of 468 people living on the coastline of the Pagasitikos Gulf. Respondents' attitude was measured using questions that include issues related to the marine ecosystem. Our empirical findings reveal that ‘people's responsibility’ and respondents' perception of ‘endangered species’ are the main factors explaining their attitude towards the marine environment. In a second stage, we explore the relationship between people's intention to pay for coastal zone quality improvement in the region and ‘people's responsibility’.