Empirical Valuation of Prairie Potholes: Five Case Studies

Dollar values were estimated for four prairie potholes and a wetland complex in North Dakota. Assessing these values required careful consideration of the ecological values and the societal values on a site-specific basis. Assessments of value were made from four perspectives owner, user, regional, and social. Values of specific outputs and total values varied among the five study sites. Annual per hectare values varied from the $10 owner value for the Nome wetland to the $921 regional value for the Alice wetland. The greatest analytical obstacle to obtaining more refined estimates was the physical and biological data needed to technically quantify wetland functions (e.g., groundwater recharge rates, groundwater flow paths and flow rates, run-off water storage capacity, impacts of run-off timing on flood synchronization, and sedimentation rates)