Dataset on the environmental and social preferences of the local population of Vittel (France) during recreational activities

The Vittel watershed in the Vosges department covers more than 10 000 hectares, including farmland and forests. In the past, these activities contributed to nitrate pollution of the water, which threatened the long-term viability of the bottled water business of Nestlé Waters (formerly Société Générale des Eaux Minérales de Vittel). In 1992, the company decided to set up a subsidiary, Agrivair, to oversee the implementation of various measures (planting hedges, reducing the use of pesticides, etc.) to improve the quality of bottled water.

These measures also contribute to improving the recreational experience of the local population by modifying the landscape or eliminating the use of pesticides. The following dataset presents the survey conducted among the local population between November 2019 and August 2020. They were asked some questions about the number and places of visits to the forest and/or countryside in the last 12 months (location, activities, etc.) and also to choose between alternative hypothetical scenarios of recreational visits described by several attributes (choice experiment). Some 673 questionnaires were collected face to face. The results of this survey are detailed in the following publication:

Amiri, T., Abildtrup, J., Garcia, S., Montagné-Huck, C. (2022a). The impact of water protection measures in the Vittel impluvium on recreational values: A choice experiment with local residents. Revue française d’économie. Vol. XXXVII. pp. 145-204. doi: 10.3917/rfe.222.0145