Research Tools In Natural Resource And Environmental Economics

Key Features:First book of its kind in the fieldExamines and analyzes how key tools are used to conduct theoretical and empirical research in natural resource and environmental economics in contemporary timesCompiles various articles and accounts concerned with the relevant pedagogical discussionWritten by recognized experts and prominent international researchers in the field.

Thomas Sterner's book is an attempt to encourage more widespread and careful use of economic policy instruments. The book compares the accumulated experiences of the use of economic policy instruments in the U.S. and Europe, as well as in rich and poor countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Ambitious in scope, it discusses the design of instruments that can be employed in any country in a wide range of contexts, including transportation, industrial pollution, water pricing, waste, fisheries, forests, and agriculture. While deeply rooted in economics, Policy Instruments for Environmental and Natural Resource Management is informed by political, legal, ecological, and psychological research. The new edition enhances what has already been widely hailed as a highly innovative work. The book includes greatly expanded coverage of climate change, covering aspects related to policy design, international equity and discounting, voluntary carbon markets, permit trading in United States, and the Clean Development Mechanism. Focusing ever more on leading ideas in both theory and policy, the new edition brings experimental economics into the main of its discussions. It features expanded coverage of the monitoring and enforcement of environmental policy, technological change, the choice of policy instruments under imperfect competition, and subjects such as corporate social responsibility, bio-fuels, payments for ecosystem services, and REDD.

When approached by Warren Samuels, the series editor, about organizing a volume on natural resource economics, I was at a loss as to how one might possibly capture in "several major essays plus several shorter comments thereon" all of the diverse activities that fall within this exciting discipline. I was further asked to have the book take an "affirmative but constructively critical look at its subject. " The volume was to be interpretative, it was to be reasonably comprehensive, and yet it was to attempt to present divergent views on the "development, tensions, present status, and, especially, possible lines of development of each field. " Upon reflection, I decided to have the book focus on natural resource economics as a distinctly applied policy science. Hence the title: Natural Resource Economics: Policy Problems and Contemporary Analysis. While this allowed clarification of a particular sort, it did little to narrow the range of policy issues that ought to be considered candidates for inclu sion. But it did seem, after some thought, that three broad issues persist at center stage in natural resource policy.

The tools of environmental economics guide policymakers as they weigh development against nature, present against future, and certain benefits against uncertain consequences. From reluctant-but-necessary calculations of the value of life, to quandaries over profits at the environment’s expense, the policies and research findings explained in this textbook are relevant to decisions made daily by individuals, firms, and governments. The fourth edition of Environmental Economics and Natural Resource Management pairs the user-friendly approaches of the previous editions with the latest developments in the field. A story-based narrative delivers clear, concise coverage of contemporary policy initiatives. To promote environmental and economic literacy, we have added even more visual aids, including color photographs and diagrams unmatched in other texts. Ancillaries include an Instructor’s Guide with answers to all of the practice problems and downloadable slides of figures and tables from the book. The economy is a subset of the environment, from which resources are obtained, workers and consumers receive sustenance, and life begins. Energy prices and environmental calamities constrain economic growth and the quality of life. The same can be said about overly restrictive environmental policies. It is with an appreciation for the weighty influence of this discipline, and the importance of conveying it to students, that this textbook is crafted.

Over the last decade, economists have increasingly recognized the role of meta-analysis and value transfer in synthesizing knowledge and efficiently exploiting the existing pool of knowledge. Comparative Environmental Economic Assessment explores the potential significance of using these techniques, particularly in environmental economics. Both meta-analysis and value transfer constitute major research tools which efficiently use knowledge previously acquired from other studies. The book focuses on the potential role and usefulness of these tools in environmental economic research, and goes on to address their validity, relevance and applicability. A future agenda for research is also illustrated.

A comprehensive dictionary of environmental economics, compiled by leading academics in the field. Each expression or phrase is explained clearly in non-technical language, with references given to its use in the growing literature on the subject area. From abatement to zonal travel cost method (ZTCM), there are over 1000 cross-referenced entries covering topics such as: environmental instruments for policy-making, techniques applied in environmental and natural resource economics, major issues in environmental economics and environmental management, economics of sustainable development, natural resource accounting, and international environmental agreements. As well as providing incisive answers to questions such as 'What is natural capital?' or 'when are crowding diseconomies important?', the dictionary includes a list of commonly used acronyms and abbreviations, and a complete bibliography detailing the major texts in the field is provided.

Teaching Environmental and Natural Resource Economics is a significant contribution to the literature of economics education. Theory and practice, teaching activities and exercises, and pro teaching tips are clearly and expertly presented. This guide will prove invaluable in helping students gain a better understanding of the theory and practice of environmental and natural resource economics.

This edition has been updated to include broader coverage of current research concerns and policy issues; expanded coverage of key real-world topics; and updated examples and applications. The book also includes numerical examples to help students understand abstract concepts more clearly.