Urban forests in Zurich are used for a wide variety of recreational activities. In order to provide these services in accordance with forest visitors’ needs, Grün Stadt Zürich conducted an impact assessment. In addition, recreational values of Zurich’s forests were analyzed within a research project at the Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL. The main topic of this project was the economic valuation of recreational benefits provided by the forests within the city limits. Furthermore, the project investigated how urban forests are used by inhabitants of Zurich.
Most inhabitants of Zurich use their forests for recreational activities. About 88% of the respondents have visited the urban forests at least once during the past 12 months. The analysis of specific recreational aspects and facilities identified the following fields of action for the management of forests for recreational uses: other visitors’ behaviour, facilities, cleanliness, security, as well as maintenance of the forest and timber production. The monetary value of recreational benefits of the urban forests was assessed with the contingent valuation method. On average, forest visitors value the use of Zurich’s forests for recreational activities at 110 Swiss Francs per person and year. This amount was extrapolated to the residents of Zurich visiting the forests within the city limits at least once a year. Consequently, the recreational benefits of Zurich’s city forests were estimated at 30 million Swiss Francs per year.