Protected areas are places that provide diverse ecosystem services, including cultural ecosystem services. At the same time, the development and unbalanced use of natural resources in protected areas often create environmental threats and social conflicts. This study estimates the economic value of environmental consequences derived from the construction of an airport in a national park in Korea. We employ a discrete choice experiment to assess economic values and consider a key part of the tradeoffs derived from the airport construction at Heuksan Island of Dadohae Marine National Park in Korea. The results show that social benefits related to improved accessibility and tourism opportunities would be generated but at substantial costs resulting from environmental degradation and the reduction in bird populations. A segmentation analysis also reveals that heterogeneous preferences exist based on variables reflecting individuals’ visit experiences and trust in the government. The findings indicate that considering environmental impacts is important when evaluating the feasibility of a development project in a protected area.

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In order to maintain the provision of high-quality ecosystem services in wetlands, it is important to protect the ecosystems through the designation of protected areas. However, the process of designating protected areas can potentially give rise to social conflicts or problems by the acquisition of private lands. As an alternative, the institution of payments for ecosystem services (PES) can be a more viable solution. This study intends to propose reasonable contract standards for PES that consider the preferences of both beneficiaries and providers, which are necessary for the successful introduction of PES in wetland protection areas in Korea. In doing so, we employed choice experiments to estimate the willingness to pay (WTP) and willingness to accept (WTA) of different stakeholders. Our findings indicate that both beneficiaries and providers had a positive perception of PES contract terms. Moreover, the WTP and WTA values were comparable, suggesting that the unit price of PES could be determined within a reasonable range. These results can serve as a foundation for acquiring additional funds required for the introduction of PES in wetland protected areas.