Economics 255: Environmental and Natural Resource Economics
Winter 2009
Instructor: Jim Casey
Contact Info: 214 Holekamp Hall, Ext.
8102, Email: Caseyj
Prerequisite: Economics 101
This course meets TTh from 10:45 to 12:10 and 12:20 to 1:45
Office Hours: MWF 10:30 to 11:30 and by appointment
Contents:
(1) Course Objectives
(2)
Readings
(3) Requirements and Grading
(4) Course Outline
(1)Course Objectives: The course is an introduction to both environmental and natural resource economics. Throughout the semester we will see how economic principles can be and are being used in public and private decision making involving the management and use of environmental and natural resources. Aspects pertaining to fisheries, forests, species diversity, agriculture, solid waste and various economic policies to reduce air, water and toxic pollution will be discussed. We will spend a significant amount of time looking at the relationship between energy acquisition and global climate change. The lectures, reading assignments, discussions and papers will be directed at using microeconomic analysis for dealing with environmental and natural resource problems.
By the end of the semester, (1) you should be able to analyze current environmental and natural resource management issues using basic economic models. (2) You should be familiar with the concept of market failure and (3) how non-market valuation techniques are used to value environmental and natural resources. Lastly, (4) you should be comfortable using economic analysis to explain policy interventions aimed at reducing environmental externalities.
(2) Readings:
Kahn, James R. The Economic Approach to Environmental and Natural Resources, Thomson-Southwest, Third Edition 2005.
Selected articles - all available online.
(3) Requirements: For this class, you will be required to write one short policy brief***. You must choose to answer one of the three assigned questions. (Options are at the bottom of the page) You may turn this assignment in at any time during the semester. If you have not turned in your paper by the last Monday of the semester you will receive a zero for the assignment. (1) The paper is worth 10% of your final grade. (2) There will be two exams each worth 30%. (3) 6 random quizzes (on the day's assigned reading) worth 10% and (4) the remaining 20% is for class and blog participation.
***You may choose to substitute ENV 111 - Environmental Service Learning for this part of the course. The person directing ENV 111 will assign your grade and this will replace the 10% for the policy brief. (only the first 10 students to sign up will be admitted)
(1) Paper due Monday, March 30, or ENV 111 --- 10%
(2) Exam 1 Thursday, February 12, Exam 2 due Friday, April 10 --- 60%
(3) Quizzes 1-6 (Not announced) --- 10%
(4) Class discussion and Blog commentary --- 20%
Grading:
|
Grade |
A |
A- |
B+ |
B |
B- |
C+ |
C |
C- |
D+ |
D |
D- |
F |
|
Points |
92.5 |
90.0 |
87.5 |
82.5 |
80.0 |
77.5 |
72.5 |
70.0 |
67.5 |
62.5 |
60.0 |
<60.00 |
This is directly from the course catalogue
GRADES
Grading Scheme
A+, A, A- Superior, B+, B, B- Good, C +, C, C- Fair, D +, D, D- (Marginal), E (Conditional Failure), F (Failure)
(4) Course Outline:
I. Theory and Tools of Environmental and Natural Resource Economics:
WEEK 1:
Tuesday: Introduction and Kahn chs. 1 and 2
Thursday: Kahn ch. 3
WEEK 2:
Tuesday: Kahn ch. 4
Thursday: The Tragedy of the Commons and Conservation Reconsidered
WEEK 3 Updated
Tuesday: Kahn chs. 4 and 5
Thursday: CLASS CANCELED
suggested readings below - will not be covered in class
http://www.rff.org/rff/documents/rff-ib-02-09.pdf
Environment and Development.ppt
WEEK 4:
Tuesday: Chapter 6.
Thursday: finish ch4 and ch 5 - chapters 4 and 5 notes.doc
Herr is an example of a Choice Experiment Survey - Lodging Choice Model Survey.doc
II. Renewable Resources:
WEEK 5: Water and Fisheries
Tuesday: SNOW DAY!!!!!!
Thursday: ch. 11and Marine Protected Areas: Economic and Social Implications
WEEK 6: Forests
Tuesday: Kahn Ch.12 and Review for exam 1
Thursday: Test # 1
FEB. BREAK
III. Energy and climate change
WEEK 7: Introduction
Tuesday: Kahn ch. 8
Thursday: Kahn ch. 9 and ch. 7
WEEK 8: Foundations
Tuesday: Back to the Future: The Great Climate Experiment and The Power Problem (emailed 3/2)
Thursday: http://www.eps.harvard.edu/people/faculty/schrag/publications/CV83.pdf
and stabilization Wedges (must be on campus)
WEEK 9: Economic Analysis
Tuesday: Class cancelled - Forestry/Biofuel conference in NC
Wednesday: 7pm, room 327 - Food, Fuel and other thoughts.
Thursday: RFFClimate and
http://home.wlu.edu/~caseyj/stiglitz.pdf
http://home.wlu.edu/~caseyj/caseygastax.pdf
WEEK 10: Policy
Tuesday: Stabilization wedges and policy proposals
Thursday: Final Thoughts from some random economists.......
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=fiddling-while-the-planet
http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/stiglitz80
http://bostonreview.net/BR32.1/stern.php
AND - the latest news - http://climatecongress.ku.dk/newsroom/congress_key_messages/
IV. Development and Environment
WEEK 11:
Tuesday: Kahn 18 and 19
Thursday: Kahn ch.15
WEEK 12:
Tuesday: ch13
Thursday: Review
Please choose one of the three policy questions. You must answer yes or no and then make a sound economic argument to support your position. We are pretending I am a very busy Senator who only has time to read 2-3 pages. Yet, I must be informed and able to defend my vote.
Should the United States adopt a policy for reductions in carbon emissions?
Should the United States subsidize the development of "alternative" energy?
Should the United States build more coal-fired utility plants?