Overview
Ponds provide ecological, economic, and aesthetic benefits to Cape Cod. The value of ponds, lakes, and their ecosystems extends below the water’s surface and beyond the pond’s shoreline. They attract tourists and make Cape Cod a desirable place to live for year-round and seasonal residents. Ponds and lakes are valuable components of the region’s environment and community well-being; consequently, it is the community’s responsibility to protect and restore them.
As part of the Freshwater Initiative, the Cape Cod Commission contracted with the Eastern Research Group (ERG) in the fall of 2022 to develop an assessment of the economic value of freshwater resources on Cape Cod.
The goal of the economic assessment is to broaden understanding of the impact of ponds and lakes and their respective water quality on housing and rental markets, pond visitation, spending, and public perceptions about freshwater resources. The results of these analyses will help inform decisions about future freshwater restoration and preservation efforts.
Approach
ERG implemented four separate tasks on behalf of the Cape Cod Commission between November 2022 and November 2023:
- A survey of the perceptions of freshwater resources on Cape Cod.
- An analysis of how proximity to and quality of freshwater resources affect property and rental values (in economics, this is referred to as a “hedonic analysis”).
- An economic benefits analysis to better understand the economic value that people place on different pond attributes (in economics, this is referred to as a “discrete choice experiment”).
- An on-site intercept survey to count pond visitors and survey pond-goers to understand their spending and visitation.
Key Findings
- Cape Cod ponds and lakes are popular destinations. 82% of Cape residents, non-resident homeowners, and tourists reported sometimes or frequently visiting ponds and lakes. There are between 1.34 million and 1.70 million visits to Cape Cod ponds and lakes annually, with 66% of those visits coming between June and August.
- People prefer to visit ponds and lakes with clean water and clean beaches. We see a positive association between water quality and visitation, with “better” ponds being more highly recreated. Additionally, residents, non-resident Cape homeowners, and Cape tourists reported that they are more likely to visit ponds and lakes that are free of bacteria, post signs containing water quality information, and are free of litter.
- Cape residents and non-resident homeowners value clean ponds. 90.8% either “agree” or “strongly agree” that ponds and lakes are important to the Cape Cod environment, and they are willing to pay a premium to live near them. A home near a pond with clear water will sell for $22,300 (5% more than the median sales price) more than a similar home near a pond with algal issues, and a rental property near a pond with clear water will rent for $189 more per week (an 8% increase over median weekly rental value) than a similar rental property near a pond with algal issues.
- Cape residents and non-resident homeowners support targeted pond improvements.
Residents and NROs indicated that the most impaired ponds and lakes, the ones with the highest support for improvement, and the most used/visited should be prioritized. Additionally, Cape residents and NROs overwhelmingly indicated that pond improvement projects with ecosystem benefits should be prioritized. - Lakes and ponds are important to the Cape Cod economy. 83.9% of Cape residents and non-resident homeowners either “agree” or “strongly agree” that ponds and lakes are important to the Cape Cod economy (only 3.3% “disagree” or “strongly disagree”). Spending associated with visits to lakes and ponds contributes between approximately 656 and 833 jobs annually and is responsible for $70 - $89 million of the region’s GDP. Each pond or lake visitor spends an average of $50 locally per visit.
