Urban property values and contaminated sites: A hedonic analysis of Sydney, Nova Scotia

This study examines the impact of contaminated sites on urban property values in Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada. The property value effects are examined using an inverse distance specification from the property to the site. A hedonic method employing ordinary least-square technique was used for model estimation. The results show that the presence of contaminated sites has had significant negative effect on the value of residential property. This negative effect, however, is largely localized to within few hundred metres of the sites. The total property value loss in urban Sydney from the contaminated sites is estimated to be $CDN 36 million.