Oregon's land use planning system is often recognized as having been successful in its goals of limiting urban sprawl and protecting resource lands from development. However, it is difficult to quantify the impact of these regulations, because we cannot observe what would have happened in the absence of land use planning. The three essays in this dissertation explore the effects of Oregon's land use planning regulations on development patterns in the state, and also examine how the land use regulations are administered at the local level. The first essay in this dissertation asks if Oregon’s land use regulations have successfully restricted sprawl outside of urban areas. Urban containment policies, including Urban Growth Boundaries (UGBs), are a common tool used by city planners to promote compact development. We analyze how well UGBs do in containing development using fine-scale GIS data on cities in Oregon. Earlier studies on UGBs yield mixed results, with some authors finding no effects of UGBs on housing market variables and urbanization rates and others finding significant effects. A challenge in measuring these effects is that the location of the UGB is unlikely to be an exogenous determinant of a land parcel's value for development. The panel structure of our dataset allows us to estimate the UGB's effect on the probability of development using a difference-in-difference estimator. This estimator controls for time-invariant unobservable variables and common temporal effects among parcels, thereby mitigating the potential for biased estimates due to the endogeneity of the UGB's location. We also pursue a novel approach to controlling for time-varying factors inspired by regression discontinuity design. We find that UGBs are effective in containing development in many of the Oregon cities we examine, although there are some cities in which development rates are the same inside and outside of the UGB. Our results show that we would greatly overstate the effects of the UGBs were we to evaluate cross-sectional differences in development rates, as is common in previous studies. Besides the creation of UGBs, another goal of Oregon's land use regulations is to encourage citizen involvement in the planning process. The second essay in this dissertation examines the use of voter annexation as a form of citizen involvement. More specifically, this paper addresses the following two questions. First, does voter annexation cause changes in city demographics and characteristics? Second, assuming that a city votes for amendments and annexations to the UGB and city limits, what factors impact the outcome of the vote? We analyze the first question using the method of propensity score matching, which has not previously been used to explore this topic. This allows us to account for the endogeneity that stems from the fact that cities with certain characteristics may be more likely to use voter annexation in the first place. The second question, which is only evaluated for cities that employ voter annexation, is analyzed with the use of the logit model. Oregon's land use regulations must be approved at the state level, but are administered locally. Therefore, unlike past studies, we are able to isolate specific differences in the way the program is administered, and are not evaluating the stringency of the program itself. Previous studies have found that voter-approved annexation causes developers to provide more public goods and increase the scale of development, thereby shifting community demographics. Once a land use decision is on the ballot, it is also noted that cities that are whiter, wealthier, and more liberal are more likely to pass referenda that promote preservation and restrict development. For the first question, we compare specific demographic indicators between the two groups of cities. Contrary to the results of previous studies, we find no effect of voter annexation on these indicators. Our results for the second question indicate that the characteristics of the voting process itself impact the outcome more than community characteristics, which also differs from the results of previous analyses. The third essay in this dissertation is an extension of the first essay, and focuses on the impact of Oregon's land use regulations on the protection of land in riparian corridors and land that has been designated for exclusive farm use (EFU). Riparian corridors are protected with the use of Oregon Goal 5, which focuses on development of natural resource lands inside of UGBs, while EFU land is protected with the use of Oregon Goal 3, which focuses on protection of agricultural land at the county level. The LCT dataset that was used in the first essay is also used in this essay. EFU land by definition has no probability of development in the initial period. Land located in riparian corridors may also face different initial levels of protection than other land. We deal with this endogeneity, and also account for location inside or outside of a UGB, with the use of the difference -in-difference-in-differences estimator. This is an approach that has not been used to explore the effect of Oregon's land use regulations on these land categories. Most of the past studies that have examined the impact of land use planning on development of agricultural land in Oregon have relied on analysis of general trends and indicators, and have concluded that land use regulations have been successful in protecting this land. Previous research on riparian zone protection has focused on protection of aquatic wildlife, and for the most part has not examined the protection of riparian corridors inside of UGBs. The limited studies that have studied the effect of these regulations in UGBs have determined them to be effective in slowing, but not stopping, development in these areas. Overall, we find that Oregon's land use regulations have been successful in protecting both county level agricultural land and riparian corridors located inside of UGBs from development. It is less clear whether these regulations have protected riparian corridors located inside of UGBs from other anthropogenic uses. / Graduation date: 2012

The aim of this study is to explore ways to maximise the economic returns of road infrastructure investment. In order to achieve this objective, the study was divided into five parts involving the following: analysing the nature of road infrastructure, determining the relationship between road infrastructure investment and economic development, considering aspects of economic modelling, developing a formula of road investment, and refocusing road investment practices. In the first part the characteristics of road infrastructure are examined and the demand and supply approaches to road investment outlined. The focus is on the balanced approach versus the unbalanced approach to infrastructure investment. The second part analyses the causal relationship between road investment and economic development. Four components are highlighted, namely the investment component, the network-performance component, the transport economic component and the economic development component. The third part analyses the applicability of modelling techniques. In the fifth part, the formula of road investment and economic development is focused on four markets. Finally, it is argued that road infrastructure investment must be refocused. The following was found: Road infrastructure investment must be demand led. This is because of the characteristics of roads, namely their indivisibility, long gestation period, lumpiness and high cost. Road infrastructure investment can only realise economic development if the four causality components are complied with simultaneously. Input-output modelling is preferred in South Africa. The modelling strategy developed in this study is recommended for transport economic studies. The probability of economic returns of road infrastructure investment is a function of the real estate market, the land development market, the urban economic market and the infrastructure market. An agenda for reform in the road investment industry was also proposed. The study clearly identifies the relationship between road infrastructure investment and economic development, and the proposed formula is an appropriate tool for a first-order priority system. / Transport Economics, Logistics and Tourism / D. Com. (Transport Economics)

Environmental degradation is a global challenge that affects all. One of the most prominent impacts of environmental degradation is the climate change phenomenon. The adverse impacts of climate change have given rise to responses aimed at retarding, halting and learning to live with the already present effects of climate change. These responses to climate change fall into two broad categories: mitigation and adaptation. Mitigation addresses the climate change challenge through seeking a reduction or elimination of anthropogenic generated greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. Adaptation on the other hand addresses climate change through reducing the adverse impacts of climate change as well as exploiting economic and social opportunities presented by climate change. Green procurement has been identified as one of the climate change intervention measures. This is because research shows that procurement policies and practices of both the public and private sectors have the potential to influence environmentally friendly modes of production and the provision of ‘greener’ goods and services that include infrastructure. In many developing countries the big spending power of the public sector, particularly municipalities, makes them influential players in the nature of goods and services production and provision. Against this background, this study investigates the role of South African metropolitan municipalities in addressing environmental decay through green procurement. Specifically, the study aims to assess the levels of green procurement practices of goods and services within South Africa metropolitan municipalities. This is achieved through; (i) determining the level of understanding of sustainable development, and (ii) determining the extent to which green procurement is practiced in South African metropolitan municipalities, and identifying policy and legislative requirements (if any) that support green procurement practices. Given the complexity of means, policy and practices around the green procurement drive; the study employed a mixed method approach. The mixed method approach employed three methods namely: document analysis, interviews and the use of a questionnaire. Analysis of data included content analysis, inductive thematic analysis and basic numerical analysis of the questionnaire, using MS Excel. The study made two broad findings; (i) there is generally a good understanding of the sustainable development discourse among South Africa’s metropolitan officials; and (ii) policy response to green procurement shows that the older metropolitans that include the City of Cape Town, City of Johannesburg, City of Tshwane, Ekurhuleni, eThekwini and Nelson Mandela Bay have made greater progress making explicit reference to green procurement in different policies compared to the younger metropolitans such as Buffalo City and Mangaung. Despite the general understanding of the sustainable development discourse and evidence of explicit reference to green procurement in some metropolitan policy documents there is a general lack of comprehensive implementation of green procurement practices across all the metropolitan municipalities. The current implementation is sporadic and largely through a number of projects that are not always linked to give rise to effective synergies. The study concludes that there is limited implementation of green procurement policies and strategies in all metropolitans. This may be attributed to limited policy understanding and lack of education and training around green economy transition and green procurement issues. The study recommends the mainstreaming of the green procurement concept into already existing policies and to establish new policies where there are none. There is a need to translate the policies into legislation and regulations that carry incentive to reward and encourage the desired green procurement practices. There is further need to put in place sanctions to discourage and halt undesired procurement practices. / Environmental Sciences / D. Litt. et Phil. (Environmental Management)

Made available in DSpace on 2017-07-10T18:33:15Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Sergio Luiz Kuhn.pdf: 3134624 bytes, checksum: ac2659507be7e18c9d37260631ac9790 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-03-07 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / This research aims to "analyze the Creative Economy in peripheral municipalities of Paraná". The research was based on the understanding of the creative economy, from its founding father, John Howkins, focused on intangible asset that generates wealth and is the fastest growing economy in the world. Was based on data from secondary sources, bibliographies and especially also by the official as well as on primary data. To this end, these were searched in 20 municipalities with less than 7,000 inhabitants, having as target a purposive sample of 13 leaders, representatives of public-private, institutional and public bodies, totaling 260 respondents. The research instrument was a questionnaire with objective and subjective questions applied in situ and accompanied by an interview. As a result, it was found that approximately 80% of the leaders are male and which is the predominant training graduation. It was found that the counties recorded in the last decade a negative density of 1.7% (1,563 inhabitants). It was noticed that the different stakeholders surveyed believe in the Creative Economy as an alternative socio-economic and cultural development, and should be a structural and design a public-private and institutional policy. Pointing to an average growth of 103.8% of their numerous activities, areas and structures, with the greatest potential for implementation in the short and medium term the newspaper itself, rural and eco tourism, eco parks and travel plans, the vocational and language schools, the municipal theater, recycling and reuse of materials with added value, drawing, painting and others. The áreas of Pato Bragado, Quatro Pontes, Entre Rios do Oeste, Maripá, Mercedes e Serranópolis do Iguaçu are among the top municipalities performers in Creative Economy. However, the 20 studied municipalities need to overcome several bottlenecks difficulty with skilled labor, since they lose workforce of young talent for the regional centers that have higher job creation and greater opportunities for employment, income, studies and others. It has high dependence on agriculture, as well as federal and state public resources, as well as several critical social indicators of GDP, HDI, municipalities dormitories, among others. It is concluded that the Creative Economy through diversification of activities, gathers strength and expertise to leverage the growth and development of the peripheral municipalities, through their main public and private actors, organizations, institutions and citizens, among others. / Esta pesquisa tem o objetivo de analisar a Economia Criativa nos municípios periféricos do Oeste do Paraná . A pesquisa pautou-se na compreensão da Economia Criativa, a partir do seu fundador e pai, John Howkins, focada no bem intangível que gera riquezas e que é a economia que mais cresce no mundo. Fundamentou-se em dados de fontes secundárias, em especial de bibliografias e também junto aos órgãos oficiais, bem como, em dados primários. Para tal, estes foram pesquisados nos 20 municípios, com população inferior a 7.000 habitantes, tendo como público alvo uma amostra intencional de 13 lideranças, representantes de órgãos público-privados, institucionais e cidadãos, totalizando assim 260 pesquisados. O instrumento de pesquisa foi um questionário com questões objetivas e subjetivas aplicado in loco e acompanhado de entrevista. Como resultado, identificou-se que aproximadamente 80% das lideranças são do gênero masculino e cuja formação predominante é o da graduação. Constatou-se que os municípios registraram na última década uma densidade demográfica negativa de 1,7% (1.563 habitantes). Verificou-se que os diferentes atores pesquisados acreditam na Economia Criativa como uma alternativa de desenvolvimento socioeconômico e cultural, devendo ser um projeto estruturante e uma política público-privada e institucional. Apontando para um crescimento médio de 103,8% de suas inúmeras atividades, áreas e estruturas, tendo como maior potencial de implementação a curto e médio prazos o jornal próprio, o turismo rural e ecológico, os parques ecológicos e os roteiros de viagens, as escolas profissionalizantes e de idiomas, o teatro municipal, a reciclagem e reutilização de materiais com valor agregado, o desenho, a pintura e outros. Estão entre os melhores desempenhos na Economia Criativa os municípios de Pato Bragado, Quatro Pontes, Entre Rios do Oeste, Maripá, Mercedes e Serranópolis do Iguaçu, entre outros. No entanto, os 20 municípios pesquisados precisam superar vários gargalos, como à dificuldade com a mão de obra especializada, visto que perdem a força de trabalho de jovens e talentos para os polos regionais, que oferecem maiores oportunidades de empregos, renda, estudos e outros. Tem ainda, alta dependência da agropecuária, bem como, dos recursos públicos federais e estaduais, assim como, vários com indicadores sociais críticos de PIB, IDH, municípios dormitórios, etc. E por fim, conclui-se que a Economia Criativa, pela diversificação de atividades, formas e âmbitos, reúne forças e expertises para alavancar o crescimento e o desenvolvimento dos municípios periféricos, por meio dos seus principais atores públicos e privados, organizações, instituições e cidadãos, entre outros.

The transport and urban economics literature applies different labor supply approaches when studying economic or planning instruments. Some studies assume that working hours are endogenous while the number of workdays is given, whereas others model only decisions on workdays. Unfortunately, empirical evidence does hardly exist on account of missing data. Against this background, we provide an assessment of whether general effects of transport policies are robust against the modeling of leisure demand and labor supply. We introduce different labor supply approaches into a spatial general equilibrium model and discuss how they affect the welfare implication of congestion policies. We, then, perform simulations and find that in many cases the choice of labor supply modeling not only affects the magnitude of the policy impact but also its direction. While planning instruments are suggested to be quite robust to different labor supply approaches, the way of modeling labor supply may crucially affect the overall welfare implications of economic instruments such as congestion tolls. Based on these findings it becomes clear which labor supply approach is the most appropriate given specific conditions. Our study also emphasizes the need for better micro labor market data that also feature days of sickness, overtime work used to reduce workdays, the actual number of leave days, part-time work, days with telecommuting etc.