<p> This dissertation links human and ecological systems research to analyze resource management decisions for elodea, Alaska&rsquo;s first submerged aquatic invasive plant. The plant likely made it to Alaska through the aquarium trade. It was first discovered in urban parts of the state but is being introduced to remote water bodies by floatplanes and other pathways. Once introduced, elodea changes freshwater systems in ways that can threaten salmon and make floatplane destinations inaccessible. The analysis integrates multiple social and ecological data to estimate the potential future economic loss associated with its introduction to salmon fisheries and floatplane pilots. For estimating the effects on commercial sockeye fisheries, multiple methods of expert elicitation are used to quantify and validate expert opinion about elodea&rsquo;s ecological effects on salmon. These effects are believed to most likely be negative, but can in some instances be positive. Combined with market-based economic valuation, the approach accounts for the full range of potential ecological and economic effects. For analyzing the lost trip values to floatplane pilots, the analysis uses contingent valuation to estimate recreation demand for landing spots. A spatially-explicit model consisting of seven regions simulates elodea&rsquo;s spread across Alaska and its erratic population dynamics. This simulation model accounts for the change in region-specific colonization rates as elodea populations are eradicated. The most probable economic loss to commercial fisheries and recreational floatplane pilots is $97 million per year, with a 5% chance that combined losses exceed $456 million annually. The analysis describes how loss varies among stakeholders and regions, with more than half of statewide loss accruing to commercial sockeye salmon fisheries in Bristol Bay. Upfront management of all existing invasions is found to be the optimal management strategy for minimizing long-term loss. Even though the range of future economic loss is large, the certainty of long-term damage favors investments to eradicate current invasions and prevent new arrivals. The study serves as a step toward risk management aimed at protecting productive ecosystems of national and global significance.</p>

<p> This dissertation comprises of three papers that address the use of stated preference (SP) choice experiment techniques to better understand how people value the methods and consequences of alternative climate change adaptation strategies. Specifically, it addresses two fundamental issues coastal communities face when making adaptation decisions: 1) tradeoffs between natural systems and built assets and 2) uncertainty regarding future climatic conditions. These issues pose methodological challenges for SP research, with potentially significant welfare and policy implications. The first chapter explores how survey choice scenarios should be designed to generate valid and well-defined welfare estimates given the causally related biophysical processes underlying the tradeoffs between natural systems and built assets. The second chapter explores whether and how the provision of numerical probabilities associated with future climatic conditions helps respondents make more informed choices. The final chapter investigates the implications for welfare estimation of using choice scenarios that provide multiple outcomes of the risk-related attribute compared to the two-outcome approach currently standard in the literature. </p><p> Chapter 1 first presents a theoretical model that clarifies why valuation scenarios must include information on all primary ecological and protection outcomes to generate unbiased welfare estimate for coastal adaptation methods. I subsequently use valuation scenarios consistent with this theoretical model to generate welfare estimates for adaptation methods in two coastal New England towns (Old Saybrook and Waterford). This work therefore makes use of advances in the ecosystem service valuation literature to contribute to the growing SP literature that generates willingness-to-pay (WTP) estimates for climate change adaptation. I find that residents are willing to pay relatively large amounts for the protection of natural systems, even in the absence of any additional flood protection to private homes. In contrast, I find no evidence that residents are willing to pay for increased hard defenses alone, even in the absence of negative effects on natural systems. </p><p> Chapter 2 contributes to a small but growing literature which finds that embedding numerical probabilities in valuation scenarios influences welfare estimates. I argue that it is not clear whether this influence is due to numerical probabilities per se or due to increased choice task complexity. To explore whether numerical probabilities alone influence welfare estimates, presumably helping respondents make more informed choices, I compare the results of one survey which provides numerical probabilities prior to valuation scenarios to those of an otherwise identical survey that altogether omits numerical probabilities. I find that the two surveys yield statistically indistinguishable WTP values. This suggests that lay individuals may not process numerical probabilities as expected by researchers, a result consistent with numerous studies from psychology and branches of economics outside SP valuation. </p><p> The final chapter also contributes to the emerging SP literature that investigates the effects of the provision of risk information on welfare estimates. In this literature, risk-related environmental outcomes are communicated to respondents using valuation scenarios that allow for only two possible outcomes, each distinguished by a single numerical probability of occurrence (i.e., the probability of policy failure versus the probability of policy success). In reality, however, few environmental phenomena can be characterized by only two possible outcomes. To explore the effects of this reframing of real-world conditions on welfare estimates, I compare the results of a survey which presents a more complex and accurate valuation scenario to those of an otherwise identical survey that maintains the traditional two-outcome approach. Results suggest increased choice task complexity but show also that multiple risk-related outcomes provide additional information on respondents&rsquo; risk preferences and WTP values. Together with the results of Chapter 2, this suggests that a multiple-outcome treatment of risk-related attributes may represent a complementary or&mdash;depending on research objectives&mdash;an alternative way of communicating and accounting for risk and uncertainty in SP research. </p>

<p> <i>Plethodon</i> salamanders may serve as important indicators of forest ecosystem integrity due to their niche, physiological sensitivity, abundance, site fidelity, and association with forest structures. Forest ecosystems provide direct and indirect services and products that benefit society. Monitoring the quality and status of these direct and indirect use values is important to manage and maximize the benefit to people. An ecological indicator is something that may indicate the state of a system. Indicators are widely used in a variety of fields including forestry, economics, and environmental management to monitor the state of desired systems. The IndVal method is a statistical analysis used to determine the efficacy of a species as an indicator species, by determining the association between the species of interest and site groups or habitats. I sought to determine if the red-backed salamander is an indicator of forests based on the IndVal method, and if the red-backed salamander may be used as an indicator of use values. I hypothesized that red-backed salamanders may be used as an indicator of standing mature forested areas. I hypothesized that salamander abundance would be highest in forested areas and may act as an indicator species of forest habitats. I hypothesized that red-backed salamander abundance would have a positive correlation with indirect use values and a negative correlation with direct use values. The study area consisted of Forestland, Timberland, and Agriculture land-uses within northwestern Pennsylvania. I used visual encounter surveys and drift fences for capturing of red-backed salamanders (<i>Plethodon cinereus</i>) for abundance estimates. Visual encounter surveys were done within area constrained (10 &times; 10m) plots and a time constraint of roughly 30 minutes. I measured environmental variables within each plot. An N-mixture model of <i>P. cinereus</i> was used to estimate abundance based on repeated counts data. I used a principal components analysis (PCA) to determine which environmental variables were associated with study sites. I used a Kruskal-Wallis test and post-hoc Dunn&rsquo;s test to determine differences between land-use in red-backed salamander abundance. I applied the IndVal method to red-backed salamander abundance in association to land-use and habitat. I estimated indirect use values through cost replacement methods for water purification, water cycling production, nitrate treatment, and soil erosion. I obtained direct use values through land-owners and the U.S. Forest Service archives, which the cost of production and gross value of production were used to determine the net and gross value. I used a Spearman&rsquo;s Rank correlation to determine the relationship between red-backed salamander abundance and the direct and indirect use values of land-uses. The PCA 1 axis described an environmental gradient of closed to open canopy. Forestland sites had the lowest sunlight values, Agriculture having the highest, and Timberland intermediate between the two. Canopy percent cover was the most informative variable in the N-mixture model. Red-backed salamander abundance was greatest, mean = 434, on Forestland sites and was significantly (p-value &lt; 0.05) different from Timberland and Agriculture. The red-backed salamander was highly associated with Forestland with an indicator species value of 0.876, and 0.972 for forests. Red-backed salamanders held a significant strong positive relationship with indirect use values, rho = 0.84. <i>P. cinereus</i> abundance had a significant strong negative relationship with gross direct use values, rho = &ndash;0.95, and net direct use values, rho = &ndash;0.92. The strong correlation between <i>P. cinereus</i> abundance and indirect use values suggest that red-backed salamander abundance may have applications as an indicator of indirect use values for forest ecosystems.</p><p>

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2003. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Available also from UMI Company.

<p> This study was undertaken to examine the perceptions of social responsibility as enacted by the micro-financial institution Caja Popular Tamazula, in Jalisco Mexico. The objective was development of insight regarding perceptions held by cooperative members regarding the impact and practices of the microfinance institution within this developing region of Mexico. This survey examined awareness of and satisfaction with the practices of corporate social responsibility exhibited by the micro-financial institution. Research assistants gathered responses from two participant groups: employees (Internal) and local residents (External). The data were compared to examine the manner the institution communicates its endeavors with cooperative members. Generally, satisfaction with the institution was reported. However, limited awareness of the specific social responsibility practices was noted. The findings identified the efforts of the MFI that were perceived by cooperative members as supportive and beneficial for the development of a flourishing community. Actions for future consideration and policy development were proposed. Alternative research approaches should be considered to elicit details from cooperative members regarding perceptions and relational dynamics of the micro-financial institution within this community.</p>

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago, Irving B. Harris Graduate School of Public Policy Studies, June 2002. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

<p> Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, known as a major cause of climate change, have been emitted by the combustion of fossil fuels over the past few decades. The transportation sector contributes significantly to global GHG emissions. Inspired by the successful implementation of tradable credit schemes (TCSs) in pollution control programs, this dissertation focuses on multi-period TCSs to minimize vehicular emissions. In this scheme, a central authority (CA) allocates travel credits to travelers (credit allocation scheme) and then, charges them to travel on each link (credit charging scheme). Travelers are able to trade credits amongst themselves in the market. </p><p> To address the long-term planning goals of the CA, the dissertation proposes the concept of a multi-period TCS framework. This framework enables the CA to achieve steady progress toward system-level goals, i.e., reducing traffic congestion and GHG emissions, over the long-term planning horizon. First, a TCS-based multi-period equilibrium modeling framework is developed to address the planning problem of a CA that seeks to achieve system-level goals by varying the credit supply and the link usage credit charging schemes across the various periods of the planning horizon. Further, the CA seeks stable credit prices across these periods to provide them as information to travelers in an operational context. Based on this information, bank interest rate and their travel needs, travelers determine their actions in terms of the consumption or sale of credits in the current period or the transfer of credits to future periods. It is proved that the credit price volatility is dampened by the ability to transfer credits. Since a TCS is subject to market manipulation and the artificial control of credit price, a transfer fee, which is shown to be an effective instrument to control hoarding among travelers, is proposed. </p><p> Using the proposed multi-period TCS framework, the dissertation develops different system optimal (SO) TCS designs, as bi-level models, to derive credit allocation and charging schemes to achieve system-level goals. In the first SO multi- period TCS design, the CA minimizes the vehicular emissions in the upper level over the long-term planning horizon. This enables the CA to plan the trajectory of vehicular emissions during the planning horizon. This trajectory can be used to predetermine the emissions standard for each period to use in the second SO multi-period TCS design, which aims to minimize total system travel time, in the upper level, over the planning horizon. These designs include bounds on increases in travel costs, allowing travelers to better adapt to the TCS implementation. The lower-level models are the equilibrium conditions in which travelers minimize their costs under the obtained multi-period TCS in the upper level. </p><p> To enhance realism in capturing the equilibrium conditions under the multi-period TCS, this dissertation factors different travelers&rsquo; characteristics and bank interest rates. In making route choices, travelers factor value of time (VOT) and tradeoff credit consumption and travel costs. Hence, travelers&rsquo; heterogeneity in terms of VOT is factored. It is shown that if the CA does not factor VOT in SO TCS design, it leads to a socially inequitable policy in practice. Further, the heterogeneity of travelers in terms of perceived future credit prices is factored. Travelers decide to consume or transfer credits in each period based on several factors, including future credit prices. However, due to the uncertainty in traffic network demand/supply forecasts over the long-term horizon, the CA cannot provide an accurate forecast of future credit prices <i>a priori</i>. It is shown that as the difference between travelers&rsquo; perceptions of future CPs and the actual CPs set by the CA for each period increases, the effectiveness of the SO TCS design in minimizing total system travel time decreases; this has implications for traffic congestion management. </p><p> Fourth, the dissertation investigates the robust design of multi-period TCS to account for travel demand uncertainty and achieve system-level goals. To minimize vehicular emissions, the CA leverages the TCS to promote zero-emissions vehicles (ZEVs), which circumvents the need for current subsidy-based incentive policies. The incentive to shift to ZEVs is fostered by allocating more credits and charging fewer credits to ZEV travelers compared to other travelers. To factor the uncertainty in travel demand forecasts, this research proposes a robust multi-period TCS design that minimizes the worst-case vehicular emissions, i.e. maximum vehicular emissions, under different traffic network demand scenarios. It is shown that the robust TCS design increases reliability in achieving system-level goals, compared to the SO TCS design that does not factor travel demand uncertainty. </p><p> Finally, the dissertation analyzes the ability of a TCS to manage morning commute congestion while factoring the market loss aversion of commuters. (Abstract shortened by ProQuest.) </p><p>

<p> This dissertation presents a three-part study in modern empirical environmental economics. In these three studies, I focus on five core economic issues&mdash;equity, incentives, environmental quality, consumer behavior, and causality&mdash;and ask what environmental economics can teach us about three common topics: energy consumption, cannabis legalization, and pesticide application. </p><p> The first chapter examines how residential natural gas consumers respond to changes in the price of natural gas. With 70 million consumers, residential natural gas has grown to a first-order policy issue. This first chapter provides the first causally identified, microdata-based estimates of residential natural-gas demand elasticities using a panel of 300 million bills in California. To overcome multiple sources of endogeneity, we employ a two-pronged strategy: we interact (1) a spatial discontinuity along the service areas of two major natural-gas utilities with (2) an instrumental-variables strategy using the utilities' differing rules/behaviors for internalizing upstream spot-market prices. We then demonstrate substantial seasonal and income-based heterogeneities underly this elasticity. These heterogeneities suggest unexplored policies that are potentially efficiency-enhancing and pro-poor. </p><p> The second chapter explores what may be unintended&mdash;or unconsidered&mdash;results of cannabis legalization. Cannabis legalization advocates often argue that cannabis legalization offers the potential to reduce the private and social costs related to criminalization and incarceration&mdash;particularly for marginalized populations. While this assertion is theoretically plausible, it boils down to an empirically testable hypothesis that remains untested: does legalizing a previously illegal substance (cannabis) reduce arrests, citations, and general law-enforcement contact? The second chapter of this dissertation provides the first causal evidence that cannabis legalization need not necessarily reduce criminalization&mdash;and under the right circumstances, may in fact increase police incidents/arrests for both cannabis products and non-cannabis drugs. First, I present a theoretical model of police effort and drug consumption that demonstrates the importance of substitution and incentives for this hypothesis. I then empirically show that before legalization, drug-incident trends in Denver, Colorado matched trends in many other US cities. However, following cannabis legalization in Colorado, drug incidents spike sharply in Denver, while trends in comparison cities (unaffected by Colorado's legalization) remain stable. This spike in drug-related police incidents occurs both for cannabis and non-cannabis drugs. Synthetic-control and difference-in-differences empirical designs corroborate the size and significance of this empirical observation, estimating that Colorado's legalization of recreational cannabis nearly doubled police-involved drug incidents in Denver. This chapter's results present important lessons for evaluating the effects and equity of policies ranging legalization to criminal prosecution to policing. </p><p> Finally, the third chapter investigates the roles pesticides play in local air quality. Many policymakers, public-health advocates, and citizen groups question whether current pesticide regulations properly equate the marginal social costs of pesticide applications to their marginal social benefits&mdash;with particular concern for negative health effects stemming from pesticide exposure. Additionally, recent research and policies in public health, epidemiology, and economics emphasize how fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations harm humans through increased mortality, morbidity, mental health issues, and a host of socioeconomic outcomes. This chapter presents the first empirical evidence that aerially applied pesticides increase local PM2.5 concentrations. To causally estimate this effect, I combine the universe of aerial pesticide applications in the five southern counties of California's San Joaquin Valley (1.8M reports) with the U.S. EPA's PM2.5 monitoring network&mdash;exploiting spatiotemporal variation in aerial pesticide applications and variation in local wind patterns. I find significant evidence that (upwind) aerial pesticide applications within 1.5km increase local PM2.5 concentrations. The magnitudes of the point estimates suggest that the top decile of aerial applications may sufficiently increase local PM2.5 to warrant concern for human health. </p><p> Jointly, the three parts of this dissertation aim to carefully administer causally minded econometrics, in conjunction with environmental economic theory, to answer unresolved, policy-relevant questions.</p><p>

This dissertation investigates the impact of organic farming for achieving the environmental and social objectives of sustainability in Europe over the past 20 years. Organic farming is considered the poster child of rural development in Europe, often seen as a model of the integration of small-scale production with environmental considerations. Since this model runs counter to the logic of developing capitalist structures in agriculture, I revisit the Marxian predictions regarding the "agrarian question". Furthermore, I trace the discursive changes in support of small-scale production in the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), and assess whether small farms have improved their situation under the revised CAP. Subsequently, I use statistical analysis in order to assess the socio-economic and the environmental consequences of the rise in organic farming. Contrary to what is often assumed, organic farms in Europe display larger average sizes and lower rates of labor intensity than their conventional counterparts, casting doubts on the efficacy of organic farms to allow family farmers to remain in the countryside as high-value producers. I argue that this development should be viewed as further evidence of the "conventionalization" of organic farming. In order to explain the process which led to such an outcome, I proceed to explain the different ways through which organic farms could overcome traditional problems which impeded the capitalist development of agriculture. Regarding the environmental implications, I evaluate the rise of organic farming by assessing its impact for different countries' overall pesticide and fertilizer intensity. My results are mixed, with higher organic shares being correlated with decreased application of fertilizer, but less significant results for pesticide intensity. Finally, I present evidence from qualitative work conducted in 2010 in rural Greece which points to the absence of well-established networks among organic producers, and between them and other actors in the chain of distribution. Small producers who switch to organic methods appear unable to reap the benefits from the higher prices and the institutional support for organic farming. Hence, it is larger enterprises which dominate the organic sector. I also examine the role of certification agencies, as a prime recipient of surplus transfers, and question the safeguards of organic enterprises against recent developments in agricultural labor relations, which are highly exploitative of immigrant labor.

No description available.