Vittel as a model case in PES discourse: Review and critical perspective

Logan Robert Bingham

Ecosystem Services, 2021, vol. 48, issue C

Abstract: The Vittel case serves as a salient reference point in academic and policy discussions related to user-financed payments for ecosystem services (PES), but critical views are scarce. Part I introduces Vittel and outlines how discourses about model cases may shape PES theory and practice. Part II presents a review and analysis of 72 recent PES articles referencing Vittel, finding that just six mention any limitations, while 91% rely exclusively on a single, largely favorable report. Part III revisits the broader Vittel literature to challenge the dominant framing of the scheme as ideal in terms of its process, structure, or outcomes. It emphasizes how well-resourced actors can exert non-obvious influences over the terms of negotiations and suggests potential limitations for Coasean bargaining in the presence of large power differentials between parties. The paper concludes with a call for increased scrutiny of this famous case and greater integration between the English- and French-language literatures surrounding it.

Keywords: Payments for ecosystem services; Watershed management; Coasean bargaining; Process equity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S221204162100005X
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ecoser:v:48:y:2021:i:c:s221204162100005x

DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoser.2021.101247

Access Statistics for this article

Ecosystem Services is currently edited by Leon C Braat

More articles in Ecosystem Services from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().