Beyond 'dusty archives' the economic benefits of preserving recorded heritage

Libraries and archives are increasingly under pressure to justify the cost of preserving the recorded heritage. This paper addresses the real need to identify and measure the benefits of preservation of the recorded heritage in the UK. Stated preference techniques are well established in the field of environmental economics, and they are also appropriate for the valuation of cultural heritage. The authors develop and test a methodology to estimate people's preferences for the preservation of the recorded heritage through two stated preference case (pilot) studies. All library and archive materials supporting the written and documentary heritage of the chosen case studies have been considered. The benefits of preservation are identified as those associated with the use of the recorded heritage (for example, by schools, commercial organisations, academics and other interested parties), the option of using it in the future, and the value placed on its existence by the general public, even if they have no intention of using it. The main advantage of estimating the benefits of preservation in monetary terms is that these can be compared with the costs of preservation to determine whether any given project or policy is worthwhile, or indeed to choose among competing projects for the allocation of funds