Residents' valuation of ecosystem services in a Mediterranean coastal dune ecosystem: The case of the Ritoque dunes in central Chile

Coastal dunes provide a variety of cultural and ecological ecosystem services to local communities. However, most of these ecosystems are globally threatened by anthropic factors. Chile is home to important dune eco-systems such as the emblematic Ritoque coastal dunes located in the hotspot for biodiversity conservation in central Chile where there is a delicate relationship between conservation and human development interests, among local communities and authorities. Here, we performed a choice experiment study to determined will-ingness to implement conservation measures in the Ritoque dunes. In particular, we assessed residents' prefer-ences for improvements of the current state of local ecosystem services such as scenic beauty, biodiversity and archaeological sites. Residents showed preferences for improvements in Ritoque coastal dunes' ecosystem ser-vices, and a high willingness to pay for protecting biodiversity and archeological sites, rather than for recrea-tional infrastructure. Our study highlights the importance of place-based research that specifically addresses residents and stakeholders' conservation priorities, which could be used to design and implement effective conservation management strategies for coastal ecosystems and coastal cities near them.