Open AccessPooling Expert Opinion on Environmental Discounting: An International Delphi Survey
Author(s) -
José M. MartínezPaz,
Carmen Almansa,
Valero L. Casasnovas,
José Colino
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
conservation and society/conservation and society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.04
H-Index - 35
eISSN - 0975-3133
pISSN - 0972-4923
DOI - 10.4103/0972-4923.191162
Subject(s) - pooling , discounting , expert opinion , delphi , economics , environmental resource management , computer science , artificial intelligence , medicine , finance , intensive care medicine , operating system
The primary aim of this study is to examine the various issues involved in environmental discounting using a Delphi survey of a worldwide panel drawn from specialists in issues relating to discounting and long-term investment evaluation. The environmental discount rate is applied when performing cost–benefit analysis (CBA) on projects with environmental impact, in order to aggregate tangible and intangible effects. A review of the preceding literature shows that, after decades of academic debate, opinions have gradually converged. Furthermore, public administrations have begun to echo the need for a new look at the long-term discounting. One of the main findings of this study is the virtual unanimity of experts regarding the need to modify the approach to intergenerational discounting. The survey also yields a proposal for specific values for discount rates, based on the time horizon for the project under evaluation. The application of the resulting rates in the socio-economic evaluation of a project of environmental restoration provides numerical evidence of the importance of the choice of both discount rate and discount strategy