Using non-market valuation and cost-benefit analysis to prioritise introduced predator control strategies for threatened species’ recovery

This thesis uses the non-market valuation technique of discrete choice experiments and cost-benefit analysis to improve guidance on prioritisation of conservation projects. Through a case study at an ecologically important Western Australian conservation site where fox and feral cat control is crucial for the survival of two endangered marsupials — Numbats and Woylies — this research finds that including socio-economic values for the threatened species and social preferences for introduced predator control strategies, as well as the specific metrics used in cost-benefit analysis, can make important differences to prioritisation outcomes, and highlights the possible adverse consequences of poorly designed analyses.