Factors Influencing Landowners’ Decisions for Income-Generating Activities on Private Coastal Wetland in Louisiana

The coastal zone of Louisiana contains more than 3 million wetland acres and has the highest acreage of salt marsh of any state. However, Louisiana accounts for 80 percent of the nation’s coastal land loss. The loss of Louisiana’s coastal wetlands results in changes in economic and ecological benefits on local communities. The purpose of the study is to investigate the factors that motivate private coastal landowners to participate in income-generating activities and the level of income derived from their coastal wetland parcels and to gauge their opinion of potential policy instruments for coastal wetlands stewardship. A double-hurdle model was applied to econometrically identify the determinants on the participation and level of participation in income-generating activities using data collected from a sample of coastal wetland owners. The results based on the estimated parameters and marginal effects revealed that decisions to participate and the level of participation are related to physical characteristics of the wetland and socioeconomic characteristics of the landowner. For example, the type of wetland is the primary factor influencing the decision to participate and the level of participation. In addition, understanding the landowner’s attitude toward wetland restoration program provides the opportunity for policymakers to better evaluate current and potential policies for coastal management in Louisiana.