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Public support for river restoration funding in relation to local river ecomorphology, population density, and mean income
Author(s) -
Schläpfer Felix,
Witzig PieterJan
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1029/2006wr004940
Subject(s) - geography , population , voting , distribution (mathematics) , political science , sociology , demography , mathematics , politics , mathematical analysis , law
In 1997, about 140,000 citizens in 388 voting districts in the Swiss canton of Bern passed a ballot initiative to allocate about 3 million Swiss Francs annually to a canton‐wide river restoration program. Using the municipal voting returns and a detailed georeferenced data set on the ecomorphological status of the rivers, we estimate models of voter support in relation to local river ecomorphology, population density, mean income, cultural background, and recent flood damage. Support of the initiative increased with increasing population density and tended to increase with increasing mean income, in spite of progressive taxation. Furthermore, we found evidence that public support increased with decreasing “naturalness” of local rivers. The model estimates may be cautiously used to predict the public acceptance of similar restoration programs in comparable regions. Moreover, the voting‐based insights into the distribution of river restoration benefits provide a useful starting point for debates about appropriate financing schemes.