Evaluating urban services using economic valuation techniques :towards better urban environmental quality and promotion of sustainable development

Abstract

This PhD thesis examines and evaluates the importance of urban services in environmental quality using economic evaluation techniques. It is a consensus that one of the features of countries that are under development is the rapid growth of urbanization. Rapid urbanization is followed by an intense demand for qualitative and quantitative development in physical dimensions and urban systems. An efficient urban management system is required to tackle and solve the problems of urbanization, using appropriate policies, methods and data to ensure that not only has the urban population got access to the labour market, housing and urban services, but also urban environments are organized to enhance the quality of life for its citizens. Consequently, this research seeks to assess and define a method to help local authorities and policy makers in affective decision making and efficient city management. Thus, the main objective of this thesis is to establish a non-market benefits valuation models for use in current and future policy applications with the aim of better built environment quality and promoting sustainable development. This research shows that allocating appropriate urban services plays a key role in promoting urban environmental quality, and fostering essential amenities such as comfort, safety, aesthetic, attractiveness etc. to citizens. Distribution and accessibility of urban services plays an important role in people’s movements, forming the city size, shape, and density, and importantly living quality in the city. This research reveals how economic valuation techniques can be used to define the market and the value of the urban services and assesses public preferences by determining willingness to pay for better access to preferred urban services. By employing the perspective of welfare economics to identify the structure of public preferences, including preference differences between socioeconomic groups, this study provides valuable information which should help to inform public policy deliberations over city management and land use planning objectives of promoting sustainable development and increasing quality of life and environment.