Economic evaluation of willingness to pay and its background by recreational fishermen at a stream area where the ban on fishing was lifted

The willingness to pay (WTP) to engage in recreational fishing in a specific area of a mountain stream where a fishing-ban has been lifted and the factors affecting WTP were examined using an Internet-based contingent valuation method. The most popular information sources used to select a fishing site included “I have come here before” and “introduced by an acquaintance”, with selection rates of 70%. With regard to stream conditions in the selection process, “clear water” was the most popular at 73.3%. To increase fish numbers, a “method to improve the stream environment” was the preferred method at 68.5%. Recreational fishermen were willing to pay a premium of more than 20%, on average, once the ban was lifted. A higher degree of WTP was found for fishermen who valued factors such as “I have come here before”, as well as those who wanted to “catch large-sized fish” and “catch wild fish”. In addition, respondents who valued areas where there “are few anglers” and “the attitude of the anglers is good” when selecting a stream, and those who stated “create pools and rapids” as a preferred method to increase fish numbers, also had higher degrees of WTP. These respondents were generally characterized as living in households with higher annual incomes, and as having many years of experience in stream fishing.