Explanation of the Variables Used in the Choice Models
| Variable | Description | Coding and Units |
|---|---|---|
| Length of the river section that would be restored | Choice attribute; indicates the length of the river restoration project | Continuous variable; in kilometers |
| Walking along the river | Choice attribute; indicates whether river restoration would provide an option to walk along the river | Dummy variable, 1 = Walking along the river is possible |
| Swimming in the river | Choice attribute; indicates whether river restoration would provide an option to swim in the river | Dummy variable, 1 = Swimming in the river is possible |
| Barbecuing on the river bank | Choice attribute; indicates whether river restoration would provide an option to barbecue on the river bank | Dummy variable, 1 = Barbecuing on the river bank is possible |
| High biodiversity | Choice attribute; indicates whether river restoration would increase biodiversity to a high level | Dummy variable, 1 = High biodiversity level is achieved (100% of potential plant and animal species are present) |
| Medium biodiversity | Choice attribute; indicates whether river restoration would increase biodiversity to a medium level | Dummy variable, 1 = Medium biodiversity level is achieved (75% of potential plant and animal species are present) |
| Price | Choice attribute; indicates an increase in annual canton taxes per person for the purpose of river restoration | Continuous variable; in Swiss francs |
| Walking attribute × Respondents who walk when visiting the rivers | Interaction term between the choice attribute for walking and a dummy variable indicating whether the respondent usually walks when visiting the rivers | Dummy variable, 1 = Walking along the river is possible and respondent usually walks when visiting the rivers |
| Swimming attribute × Respondents who swim when visiting the rivers | Interaction term between the choice attribute for swimming and a dummy variable indicating whether the respondent usually swims when visiting the rivers | Dummy variable, 1 = Swimming in the river is possible and respondent usually swims when visiting the rivers |
| Barbecuing attribute × Respondents who barbecue when visiting the rivers | Interaction term between the choice attribute for barbecuing and a dummy variable indicating whether the respondent usually barbecues when visiting the rivers | Dummy variable, 1 = Barbecuing on the river bank is possible and respondent usually barbecues when visiting the rivers |
| ln(Road distance to the Thur + 1) | Natural logarithm of road distance between respondent’s home and the river Thur | Continuous variable; road distance in kilometers |
| Road distance to the Töss | Road distance between respondent’s home and the river Töss | Continuous variable; in kilometers |
| Road distance to the valued river × Respondents living in urban areas | Interaction term between the linear road distance to the valued river and a dummy variable indicating whether the respondent lives in an urban area (towns with >20,000 inhabitants) | Continuous variable; in kilometers |
| Longitudinal distance to the valued river | Euclidean (air) distance between respondent’s home and the valued river site in the East-West direction | Continuous variable; in kilometers; positive (negative) values indicate East (West) |
| Latitudinal distance to the valued river | Euclidean (air) distance between respondent’s home and the valued river site in the North-South direction | Continuous variable; in kilometers; positive (negative) values indicate North (South) |
| cosθ | Cosine of the angle between respondent’s home and the valued river site | Continuous variable; range: –1 to 1; positive (negative) values indicate East (West) |
| sinθ | Sine of the angle between respondent’s home and the valued river site | Continuous variable; range: –1 to 1; positive (negative) values indicate North (South) |