Hechuan wetland is located in the mid-Yellow River and at the intersection of Shaanxi, Shanxi and Henan provinces in China. It is the largest hot spring lake wetland in the Yellow River basin and the birthplace of Guanju, a famous poem in theBook of Songs. Based on field investigations and questionnaires, we valued Hechuan Wetland ecosystem services, considering use values and non-use values. The annual use value of Hechuan Wetland ecosystem services is 79.236 bilion CNY. The contingent valuation method was applied to value the annual non-use value, which is 6.27 bilion CNY. We examined how the historical and cultural value of theBook of Songs affected respondents’ willingness to pay by establishing a control group. Results suggest that historical and cultural value does have a strong inlfuence on wilingness to pay.
