Appraising the State of Knowledge of the Valuation of Contaminated Freshwater Ecosystem of the Niger Delta

Abstract

The valuation practice utilised in valuing natural resources in the Niger Delta has shown signs of the paucity of professional knowledge, thus necessitating an appraisal of the state of knowledge possessed by valuers practicing in the Niger Delta. This paper assesses the state of knowledge among Niger Delta valuers in contaminated freshwater on the applicability of the methods of valuation for assessing damaged freshwater resources. With reference to freshwater ecosystem valuation, a survey of practicing valuation firms was conducted on 102 valuation firms using census sampling, and (11) expert valuers were interviewed purposively. Findings indicate a poor knowledge of environmental valuation techniques and a constant recourse to using a predetermined compensation rate in valuing contaminated natural resources. It thus recommends the intensive training and education of practicing valuers on methods of environmental valuation and the valuation of contaminated natural resources.