Recreation use value of Wondo Genet wetland ecosystem - Ethiopia

Abstract: Wondo Genet Resort Hotel is one of the most well-known nature-based recreation sites in Ethiopia. The main attractions of the site includes: the hot spring water for bathing and swimming; the forested landscape, streams, birds and other wildlife in the surrounding; and the cafeteria, bar and bedroom services. The attractive quality of the site for many of the users is its nature-based resources. The natural ecosystem of the area can be described as wetland which can be categorized under fresh water or geothermal springs or streams and creeks category according to RAMSAR, (1971) classification of wetland types. Over the past decades, considerable conversion of the natural ecosystem into other land uses mainly to agriculture, settlement and plantation has occurred; and recurrent occurrences of fire and illegal overexploitation of timber has been going on in the sub-catchment, where the recreation site is part of the area suffered by the impacts. The value of the site in terms of its recreation service to society and how this service is being affected by the prevailing land use practices in the surrounding is not known. The primary objective of this study was to estimate the recreation use value of the site, and connected to it, the main site quality attributes for visitor attraction is identified and the possible impact of the native forest disappearance in the sub-catchment to the wetland ecosystem service is highlighted based on findings of other studies. To estimate the recreation use value of the site, single site travel cost model was applied. Application of truncated count data models for consumer surplus estimation per single recreation visits to the site on average resulted in 184 birr and 271 birr for daily and overnight visitors, respectively. Accordingly, the aggregate consumer surplus is estimated as 18 million Birr and 1.5 million Birr for daily and overnight domestic visitors respectively; which amounts in total to around 20 Million Birr per year (equivalent to USD$ 2.2 million per year). The primary recreation attraction of the site is its water based services and its natural landscape with its birds and other wildlife contents. Over 88% of the total respondents had their main interest in bathing, swimming and in the landscape scenery for making their visit to the site. Other site attributes mountain trekking, bird or other wild animals watching, photographing, cafeteria, bar and bed room services are preferred lesser in their order. The impact of the above mentioned native vegetation conversion practices in the sub-catchment to the wetland ecosystem of the site can be for the most part negative according to inferences from other studies. The result of this study indicates that even the conservative estimate of the economic value of recreation benefit from the site is very big and it also indicates that the domestic recreation demand to the site is high. Therefore, it can be suggested that guiding the existing land use practice based on practicable land use planning that takes in to account the suitability of the land for its different uses and to its role in maintaining the ecological system in the sub-catchment is essential.