محسن شرافتمندراد

Considering the significant role of natural parks in providing an appropriate recreational services ‎for the increasing population worldwide, this study sought to examine the recreational value of ‎Jabalbarez Natural Park (located in Jiroft, Kerman province, Iran) using the regional travel cost ‎method. To this end, a questionnaire was administered to 198 visitors of the Park who were ‎randomly selected, enquiring them regarding their socio-economic status and their opinion about ‎the Jabalbarez Natural Park. The results indicated that the education level (R2=0.546, p<0.001) ‎and income (R2=0.863, p<0.001) had significant positive effects on people's willingness to pay for ‎the entrance fee of the Park, with 74.2% of the respondents expressing their approval to pay the ‎entrance fee. Moreover, it was found that the willingness of the respondents to visit the Park ‎decreased significantly with an increase in the distance from the Park and the travel costs (R2=-‎‎0.571, p<0.001). The results of estimating the recreation demand function of the park also showed ‎that travel costs, income level, age, and education level of the visitors exerted a significant ‎influence on the number of visitors (p<0.01). ‎ On the other hand, the annual recreational value of the Jabalbarez Natural Park was estimated ‎as 12536089250 Rials by calculating the subsurface of the recreational demand curve. Jabalbarez ‎Natural Park in Kerman province is less known to Iranian people than similar areas in the country. ‎Therefore, this study revealed the importance of paying attention to recreational management and ‎development in the area.‎