Assessing environmental services and recreational value of Jashore Pouro Park in Jashore district of Bangladesh

Jashore Pouro Park is a popular recreational site offering significant environmental and social benefits to the community. This study assesses the Park's environmental services and recreational value using data collected through a standardised questionnaire from 561 visitors aged 18 and above who visited the park solely for leisure purposes. Seasonal data on environmental services and water quality parameters were collected from April 2021 to March 2022, including seasonal pond water sampling (n = 15 spatial subsamples per pond per season; two ponds). Pond water samples showed dissolved oxygen (DO) ranging from 4.86 to 10.71 mg/L, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) from 1.00 to 3.30 mg/L, and chemical oxygen demand (COD) up to 590 mg/L. Descriptive site-specific comparisons indicated pronounced seasonal and between-pond variation in several water-quality parameters; inference is restricted to the two ponds studied. Approximately 48.3% rated safety and security as excellent. Count-data diagnostics supported a negative-binomial travel cost model as the preferred specification because the Poisson model showed severe overdispersion (Pearson χ 2 = 30,306.80; residual df = 554; dispersion ratio = 54.71). The final model included six explanatory variables: travel cost, household income, household expenditure, age, gender, and education. In the preferred negative-binomial model, travel cost was negatively associated with visitation frequency, while household income was positively associated with visitation frequency. Household expenditure, age, gender, and education were not statistically significant predictors at the 5% level. The estimated consumer surplus was BDT 155.38 per visit, and the aggregate annual recreational value was approximately BDT 1.66 million based on an estimated 10,689 annual visits. These findings highlight the park's role in urban planning and management.