Willingness to Pay and Participate in Improved Water Quality by Lay People and Factory Workers: A Case Study of River Sosiani, Eldoret Municipality, Kenya

Abstract

This paper examines the willingness to pay for and participate in volunteer activities for the restoration of the Sosiani River in Eldoret, Kenya. The willingness to pay is examined through two scenarios which differ in the organizations conducting the proposed project. The study focuses on factory workers situated in textile industries and lay people living in the area, who are divided into two groups: respondents living downstream, who are situated mostly in town centers and at the mid/lower parts of the river and the respondents living upstream, mainly found at the upper parts of the River Sosiani. The study employs the double-hurdle model to identify the factors that influence the willingness to pay (WTP) for improved water quality in the area. An ordinal regression model is used to analyze the willingness to participate and its influencing factors. The results of the study show that an average of 74.4% of the 279 respondents studied were willing to pay for river restoration in the area. The mean willingness to pay for the government proposed scenario was KSh 182.51 (1.66$) per household/month and KSh 169.28 (1.54$) per household/month for a non-governmental proposed project. Within the groups upstream and downstream, inhabitants had higher mean scores for a non-government project as compared to a government project, while the reverse was observed in the factory group. The empirical results of this study show that risk perception, trust and socio-demographic variables were significant factors on the stated amount and the decision to participate of the respondents. The characteristics of respondents with zero WTP, who comprised a significant amount of the respondents (25.6%), are also analyzed in depth shaping the recommendations of this study. The empirical results show that the number of years lived in the community is a major determinant on willingness to participate and pay for environmental restoration projects in the area. The results of this study could influence decision makers in general and have potential implications that can be applied in other sectors not necessarily related to water issues.

Cost Estimations of Water Pollution for the Adoption of Suitable Water Treatment Technology

“…The contingent valuation question was presented in a fashion aimed at understanding the participants' valuation of the resource in question. As reported by Mumbi and Watanabe (2021) [31], a hypothetical scenario where the expected activities and the recurring benefits from these activities were enumerated as follows:…”

“…The program would lead to major ecological benefits in the area such as improved water quality and water clarity in the river leading to improved water quality within the required standard. The river water will also be improved for use and in a much better condition as a result of the activities [31].…”

“…The CVM data reported in the study have been published in our previous publication [31]. The data were collected using a questionnaire survey with a pretest survey of 50 respondents completed prior to the actual survey.…”

“…The data were collected using a questionnaire survey with a pretest survey of 50 respondents completed prior to the actual survey. As reported, the 300 questionnaire surveys were administered randomly to the community in the study area displayed in Figure 1 [31]. The respondents included both residents living close to the river and factory workers in the selected areas (see Figure 1).…”

“…The residents were divided into two groups based on their location relative to the river, that is, upstream and midstream/downstream. The factory group surveyed was restricted to only factory workers in three selected factories [31]. The questionnaire was developed to solicit the respondents' willingness to pay and willingness to participate in environmental remediation projects.…”