DRAFT VERSION DO NOT QUOTE A Contingent Valuation Approach to Community-Based Watershed Management (CBWM) in Beyşehir Lake Basin Fadim YAVUZ 1 Tüzin BAYCAN -LEVENT 2 fyavuz@selcuk.edu.tr tuzin.baycanlevent@itu.edu.tr 1 Research Assist. Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Selcuk University Campus of Alaaddin Keykubad, 42003, Konya, TURKEY 2 Prof. Dr. Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Istanbul Technical University, Taskisla, 34437, Taksim, Istanbul, TURKEY Abstract Community-based watershed management (CBWM) has become more predominant as part of the trend towards more holistic and participatory approaches to water resources management. This paper aims to explore the knowledge and perceptions of the local people about non-point source pollution and CBWM policies in Beyşehir Lake Basin (BLB). In this context local people’s; i) awareness level concerned with BLB problems, ii) attitudes toward non-point source pollution control and watershed management, iii) the socio-economic factors affecting the residents’ participations to watershed management, and iv) proposal strategies to provide sustainability of the basin, and finally v) willingness to pay (WTP) for improving Beyşehir Lake’s water quality is evaluated. The Contingent Valuation Method (CVM) is used to estimate economic value of improving local watershed services for BLB residents. The findings highlight the awareness level, attitude and preference differences between the people live nearby the lake and far from the lake. A better understanding of local people’s knowledge and attitudes toward the watershed management is expected that will greatly help the integration of social progress and stability, economic development and natural resource management, in this way sustainability of the basin. Keywords: Community-Based Watershed Management (CBWM), Non-Point Source Pollution, Beyşehir Lake Basin, Contingent Valuation Method (CVM)