Optimization of wildlife management in a large game reserve through waterpoints manipulation: A bio-economic analysis

Surface water is one of the constraining resources for herbivore populations in semi-arid regions. Artificial waterpoints are constructed by wildlife managers to supplement natural water supplies, to support herbivore populations. The aim of this paper is to analyse how a landowner may realize his e...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of environmental management Vol. 114; no. 15; pp. 352 - 361
Main Authors: Mwakiwa, Emmanuel, de Boer, Willem F., Hearne, John W., Slotow, Rob, van Langevelde, Frank, Peel, Mike, Grant, Cornelia C., Pretorius, Yolanda, Stigter, Johannes D., Skidmore, Andrew K., Heitkönig, Ignas M.A., de Knegt, Henrik J., Kohi, Edward M., Knox, Nicky, Prins, Herbert H.T.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: England Elsevier Ltd 15.01.2013
Academic Press Ltd
Subjects:
Analytical modelling
Animal populations
Animals
Antelopes
Arid regions
Arid zones
Artificial waterpoint
Associated Private Nature Reserves
Biodiversity
Conservation
Conservation of Natural Resources
Consumptive use
Ecology
Economic analysis
Economic models
Economic problems
Economic theory
Economics
Ecosystem
Elephant
Elephantidae
Elephants
Games
herbaceous vegetation
Herbivores
impact
income
Indirect effects
kruger-national-park
Landowners
Management
managers
Manipulation
Models, Economic
Optimization
Profits
profits and margins
provision
Revenue
Semiarid zones
south-africa
Southern Africa
Subsidies
Surface water
surface-water availability
Sustainability management
systems
Taxation
taxes
Tourism
Water
Water Supply
Water-dependence
Wildlife
Wildlife management
Artificial waterpoint
Southern Africa
Elephant
Water-dependence
Analytical modelling
Biodiversity
Associated Private Nature Reserves
ISSN:0301-4797, 1095-8630, 1095-8630
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Surface water is one of the constraining resources for herbivore populations in semi-arid regions. Artificial waterpoints are constructed by wildlife managers to supplement natural water supplies, to support herbivore populations. The aim of this paper is to analyse how a landowner may realize his ecological and economic goals by manipulating waterpoints for the management of an elephant population, a water-dependent species in the presence of water-independent species. We develop a theoretical bio-economic framework to analyse the optimization of wildlife management objectives (in this case revenue generation from both consumptive and non-consumptive use and biodiversity conservation), using waterpoint construction as a control variable. The model provides a bio-economic framework for analysing optimization problems where a control has direct effects on one herbivore species but indirect effects on the other. A landowner may be interested only in maximization of profits either from elephant offtake and/or tourism revenue, ignoring the negative effects that could be brought about by elephants to biodiversity. If the landowner does not take the indirect effects of waterpoints into consideration, then the game reserve management, as the authority entrusted with the sustainable management of the game reserve, might use economic instruments such as subsidies or taxes to the landowners to enforce sound waterpoint management. ► When environmental costs are internalized, the optimum stock level of the herbivore is reduced. ► The landowner needs to consider both direct and indirect ecological economic effects of a control tool at his disposal. ► The game reserve management may use economic instruments to enforce sound ecological management of waterpoints by landowners.
Bibliography:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2012.10.029
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ISSN:0301-4797
1095-8630
1095-8630
DOI:10.1016/j.jenvman.2012.10.029