Bourriaque, Ryan Joseph, B.A. Louisiana State University, 2005 Master of Science, Summer Commencement, 2008 Major: Agricultural Economics Spatial Economics of the Louisiana Wetland Mitigation Banking Industry Thesis directed by Assistant Professor Rex Caffey Pages in thesis, 86. Words in abstract, 265. ABSTRACT Wetland mitigation banking has become prevalent in many states across the US, with the number of banks increasing 780% from 1992 to 2005. Louisiana led the nation in the total number of banks in 2006 with 96. Despite rapid growth associated with this industry, economic data in regards to the market for wetland mitigation bank transactions has been lacking. Mitigation bank transactions were collected (n=165) for the period 1997 through 2006 from the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources and the US Army Corps of Engineers New Orleans District. Data were evaluated for economic, spatial, temporal, and other descriptive characteristics. Average credit price for the period was $6,382, three to seven times lower than prices of wetland mitigation credits in states adjacent to Louisiana. Evidence of bimodal price trends prompted analysis of market segregation. Wetland credit prices ranged from $4,000-$20,000 for coastal mitigation credits and from $3,000-$10,000 for non-coastal mitigation credits. A modified hedonic regression model was developed using spatial econometric and statistical software. Twenty-three variables were evaluated for their influence as price determinants, with 11 factors chosen in the final model (Adj. R2 = .69). Parallel sub-models were developed for coastal and inland markets with marginal effects estimated for significant and continuous variables. Major drivers of credit price included sales volume, proximity to population centers, time, and rural land values. Competition within a particular market (watershed) had a positive influence on price, an indication that demand is exceeding supply in this infant market. Findings and recommendations from this study could prove beneficial to policy advisors, bank sponsors, as well as prospective investors in the industry.

Sales by ornamental nurseries in the United States have grown, recently, at an impressive rate. For example, sales of the greenhouse and nursery crops component increased about 18% from 2000 to 2006 (USDA, 2007). The evolution of a diverse set of market channel alternatives, including the garden center, landscaper, home center, mass merchandiser and re-wholesaler channels, has been one of the reasons for this growth. Knowledge about growers use of the individual marketing channels is indispensable for the development of appropriate sales strategies for better income and profits. Periodic survey data indicates that the re-wholesaler channel is a frequently used alternative, and in recent years, there has been the perception that this is one of the fastest-growing channels in the industry. Utilizing a survey conducted in 2004, this study aims to estimate the impacts of growers business characteristics on (i) market channel choice, and on (ii) proportion of producers sales through each market channel, by firm size and by region. These objectives are achieved by using the multinomial logit model and the two-limit tobit models. The producers choices about marketing channels and the proportion of sales through each of these channels are a function of business characteristics including firm age, categories of plants sold, trade shows attendance, contracts with specific kinds of buyers, and advertising expenditures. The estimated coefficients and marginal effects calculated for each model suggest that producers with a more diversified marketing strategy were associated with higher use of the mass merchandiser and garden center channel. Furthermore, producers selling specific categories of plants chose different marketing channels. Trade shows advertising had a strong positive impact on choice and sales to the re-wholesaler and mass merchandiser channels. The results demonstrate that sales to specific channel are affected by the location of the nurseries. Producers in the West used the re-wholesaler channel more than did producers in the South. Large firms in the Northeast behaved differently than large firms in the South when they used any marketing channel except for re-wholesaler. This studys results support the thesis that nurseries characteristics affect marketing channel choice and sales addressed toward specific middleman.

This study addresses the issue of antidumping investigations and their effect on trade of agricultural products. The question which this study addresses is whether antidumping is helping domestic industries or is simply diverting trade away from the named countries to the non- named countries (countries not mentioned in the antidumping petition). Antidumping has emerged as an important tool in the hands of importing countries over the last two decades The World Trade Organization (WTO) has defined dumping as a situation of international price discrimination. Dumping occurs when exporting countries are selling the product in the international market at a price lower than the prices in the domestic market. By the implementation of the Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (The Antidumping Agreement), dumping is considered as an introduction of any product in the commerce of another country at less than its normal value. According to that article, WTO members can impose antidumping measures if after investigation, the following facts are proved: (i) that dumping is occurring, (ii) that the domestic industry producing the same product in the importing country is affected by material injury, and (iii) that there is causal link between the two. In 2001, at Doha, Qatar the WTO initiated a new round of global trade talks and an agenda was been signed declaring the new trade-remedy laws. The trade-remedy laws, though being in compliance with the WTO, have been viewed by the developing nations as a form of hidden protection for the developed world. This study focuses on the U.S. antidumping investigation cases of agricultural products. Information about the agricultural antidumping investigation cases which were filed during the time period 1994-2004 is considered. The study results suggest that there is no significant trade diversion from the named countries to the non-named countries but that total imports decline as a result of a decline in imports from named countries.

The overall goal of this research is to empirically analyze shrimp fishermen behavior to help improve the management of the Gulf of Mexico shrimp fleet. Given that optimal management requires consideration of more than the net benefits derived from shrimp harvesting, this research also seeks to provide an empirical framework that would allow future investigators to measure benefits lost through bycatch-related management actions. This paper expands on previous fishing behavior literature by focusing on two of the most important short-run decisions confronting Gulf of Mexico shrimp fishermen (where to fish and how long to fish). A better understanding of these factors can provide useful information to policy makers in designing and implementing more effective policies. This study uses panel data for up to 15 years, which is a combination of the Coast Guard Vessel Operating Unit File and the Shrimp Landing File from National Marine Fisheries Service. In the location choice analyses, the U.S. Gulf of Mexico is divided into three areas: FL, LAM, and TX. For each area a conditional logit and mixed logit based on Random Utility Model are run to analyze the influence of fishermens past choice decision on current choice (state dependence), and the fishermens difference in preferences (preference heterogeneity). The results show that past experience does affect current decision, but the influence dies out fast. In addition, fishers are different in their preference in many aspects. Also, it seems that fishermens risk attitudes can change over the years. Their tolerance towards congestion exhibits changes over time too. As for their trip length decision, it seems that diesel price is negatively related to the length of days fished, so is the price difference between large and medium sized shrimp. Further, there seems to be a pattern that the trip length is increasing over the years. The incorporation of unobserved heterogeneity into the location choice and duration models corrects the potential biasedness in estimates and improves the goodness-of-fit considerably, aside from provides intuitive economic interpretations.

The increasing trends of integrated and concentrated broiler production results in a serious threat to environment through excessive litter production and lack of its proper disposal. Production concentration in limited area is a major source of surface as well as ground water pollution. Nonpoint source pollution from broiler litter applied on land remains a major concern in Louisiana and elsewhere in Southeastern USA. This study examines alternative approaches to reduce pollution originating from broiler production. First, I evaluate why some producers adopt BMP faster than others and what kind of factors affect the time to adoption decision. The duration model is employed to allow the censored observation while evaluating the impact of farm and individual specific characteristics on time to adoption decision. The information and awareness about the BMPs and the negative effects of broiler production on water-bodies are found to be the main factors to encourage the adoptions. Larger farmers are also the early adopters of BMPs. The existing literature finds voluntary BMP implementation serves only as complementary-instrument to economic-incentive-based approaches. Therefore, the option of economic-incentive based approach to mitigate water pollution becomes crucial. I evaluate the factors associated with the incentive level that motivates broiler producers to either terminate the production practices or pay pollution abatement costs so as to reduce pollutant entering water resources. I attempt to answers the question of what is the minimum amount that a broiler producer is willing to accept to forgo the production practice so as to reduce pollution generation. It is found that broiler producers are willing to terminate production only if the government payment is very high as compared to the profit from the production. However, the producers willingness to pay pollution abatement tax is comparatively small, if they were to pay to mitigate the water pollution at their current production technology.

The Louisiana dairy production region (LDPR) is located in southeast Louisiana and includes five parishes (Tangipahoa, Washington, Livingston, St. Helena, and St. Tammany). It is home to approximately 90% of the states dairy industry and is a major contributor to nonpoint source pollution (NPS) in the areas watershed through nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment effluents. While point source (PS) effluents are easily identified and subject to federal and state regulations, NPS mitigation efforts must address uncertainties such as location of the NPS as well as stochastic parameters such as rainfall and its effect on nutrient and sediment flow. This dissertation presents three strategies to mitigate the effects of the NPS pollution. The first strategy is to identify dairy specific Best Management Practices (BMPs) that best mitigate NPS at the lowest cost. Using geographical information system (GIS) software to simulate nutrient (Nitrogen and Phosphorus) runoff and sediment flow, a suite of seven BMPs are identified that lead to high N reduction with a minimal cost solution. The second strategy uses point source PS/NPS trading to achieve mitigation. A section of the LDPR is identified containing approximately 162 dairy farmers, six point sources, and two weather stations. Using a trading ratio to capture uncertainty inherent with NPS pollution, trading ratios are identified for a range of values for both BMP efficacy and reliability of NPS variance estimates. The less assurance the researcher has in the validity of these parameters, the higher the trading ratio and the more effluent credits the PS will be required to purchase for the NPS in lieu of further PS abatement. The final strategy uses the Hazard model to identify entry and exit BMP adoption characteristics of dairy farmers. The effectiveness of NPS mitigation was found to increase if a BMP is adopted for a longer duration. Research concludes that higher level of education of the farmer and the longer that the dairy farmer has been in operation, the longer the adoption of the BMP.

In the past several decades, the international rice market has undergone major changes experiencing a strong expansion in traded volumes and in the volatility of rice prices. International rice prices are, furthermore, expected to remain at relatively high levels because of higher fertilizer and fuel prices, especially as stocks held by those exporters still allow unrestrained sales. With this instability in the world rice market, we need to consider the structure, conduct, and performance (S-C-P) of the world rice market. The main objective of this dissertation will be to examine the world rice market based on S-C-P methods. This dissertation consists of three essays relating to the structure, conduct, and performance of the world rice market. The first essay is entitled Structure and Conduct of the World Rice Market. This chapter analyzes the working of the world rice market within the confines of the structure-conduct-performance framework and uses annual data from 1970 to 2007. The second essay is entitled The Relationships of Trade, Economic Growth, and Market Power: The Case of Rice Exporting Countries. This essay aims to analyze the relationship between rice exports and how this relationship affects economic growth in the top four rice exporting countries as well as the effects market power has on economic growth using annual data from 1994 to 2007. The third essay will be entitled An Empirical Estimation of the Import Demand Model and Welfare Effects: The Case of Rice Importing Countries. This section estimates an import demand function and analyzes the welfare effects for the world rice market using annual data from 1994 to 2007. Results show that market power exists in the international rice market based on static calculation and hypothesis test, the international rice trade and economic growth for major rice exporting countries (which is a bi-directional relationship), and reductions of consumer surplus all combine to have a crucial effect on major rice importing countries due to the recent trends in export rice prices.

Some of the literature about foreign direct investment (FDI) analyzes the location of FDI. It tries to identify the factors that affect FDI flows. On the association between remittances and growth, this is still an open discussion. This journal style dissertation is an attempt to investigate about the associations between remittances and FDI and growth in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The first paper investigates the effect of remittances on U.S. FDI outflows to LAC. It uses data on 14 LAC countries for the period 1983-2003. The results show that market size is one of the main determinants of FDI, which is in line with the market size hypothesis, and that remittances have a positive and significant effect on U.S. FDI, but only if the host country has a minimum threshold of per capita GDP. Thus, remittances reinforce the effect of the market size in these economies. The second paper analyzes the effect of remittances on FDI inflows to LAC. It uses data on 14 LAC countries during the period 1983-2003. The results show that market size is one of the main determinants of FDI; this is in line with the market size hypothesis. Remittances have a positive effect on FDI inflows but it depends upon the host country having a minimum threshold of per capita GDP. Hence, remittances strengthen the market size effect in these countries. The third paper evaluates the impact of remittances on growth through human capital in LAC. It uses panel data analysis for a sample of 14 LAC countries during the period 1975-2000. The results indicate that the level of human capital has a positive and significant effect on growth. Remittances have a positive impact on growth, but the realization of it holds only when the remittance receiving country has a minimum threshold of human capital stock.

The pressures for reform within the World Trade Organization have led to the European Union (EU) reforming its sugar policy with a price cut phased from 2006 and scheduled to end in 2009. The reform will have an impact on the sugar protocol African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries that have a preferential market access to the European Union with a protected price. This study investigates the effect of EU sugar policy reform has on these ACP sugar countries. First, it examines how the protocol countries sugar supply and demand determinants. While the determinants of supply in some countries performed as expected, others did not show sign of an improvement due to the sugar protocol. On the demand side we found that in some countries price does not affect the decision of the consumer. Second it explores the protocol countries transfer benefits before and after the reform. Before the reform, the countries were enjoying substantial transfer benefits. After the reform, there are some countries that will no longer be able to make profits by selling to the European Union. Finally, we develop a quota market analysis to examine negotiated transfer quota outcomes between ACP countries. We allow for the countries that can no longer make a profit to sell their quota rights to the countries that can still make a profit. We assumed equal bargaining powers and unequal bargaining powers. In the equal bargaining power case, total profit is equally divided between seller and buyer. In the unequal bargaining power case, we consider two scenarios. The first scenario where the world sugar price is not affected by EU sugar policy reform revealed that the sellers would have greater bargaining power and a larger share of the profit. The second scenario where the world sugar price is increased by thirty percent revealed that the buyer would exercise superior bargaining power relative to the seller and would have a larger share of the profit. Buyers can expand their production and sellers can use the revenues to diversify away from sugar.

Conventional drainage systems and poorly drained soils tend to increase row crop agriculture nutrient and sediment effluent loads. Best management practices help reduce row crop production environmental pollution. This dissertation looked at nutrient and tillage management practices that could help farmers address future total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) for the Cabin-Teele sub-watershed, within the lower Mississippi River Basin. The dissertation had two objectives. The first objective was to examine the economic and environmental impact of tillage and nutrient management practices in reducing agricultural pollutants to meet TMDL requirements. Relative cost effectiveness of different tillage and nutrient management practices were analyzed as part of this objective. The second objective was to evaluate and compare social net economic benefits of achieving specific sediment and nutrient criteria reductions; nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment reductions individually, and concurrently (reducing all three simultaneously) given a set of agronomic practices in the watershed. Results showed reduced tillage system were preferred to either conventional tillage or conservation tillage in Cabin-Teele because of their higher net revenue per acre. Additionally, the intermittent occurrence of hardpan soils (due to heavy rainfalls) in this watershed required disking every four to five years to help maintain yields. Simulated results showed that nitrogen fertilizer management, and conservation tillage, were cost-effective in helping reduce nutrient effluent runoff. Changes in tillage management helped producers reduce sediment loading in the watershed. In the scenario with nutrients and sediment reduced simultaneously, the most binding cropland pollutant was phosphorus.