Economics 255: Environmental and Natural Resource Economics
Winter 2010
Instructor: Jim Casey
Contact Info: 214 Holekamp Hall, Ext.
8102, Email: Caseyj
Prerequisite: Economics 101
This course meets TR, in Huntley 221, from 10:10 to 11:35 and 11:50 to 1:15
Office Hours: W 9:30 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
(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 5 students to sign up will be admitted)
(1) Paper due Monday, April 5, or ENV 111 --- 10%
(2) Exam 1 Thursday, February 18 , Exam 2 Tuesday March 30 --- 60%
(3) Quizzes 1-6 (Not announced) --- 10%
(4) Class discussion and Blog commentary --- 20%
Class Blog - you must comment once a week.
Other Blogs to Read
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. I. Theory and Tools of Environmental and Resource
Economics
WEEK 1:
Tuesday, Jan 12: Intro and Kahn chs. 1 and 2 Kahn\PowerPoint\ch01.ppt and Kahn\PowerPoint\ch02.ppt
Thursday, Jan 14: Kahn chs. 1 and 2 Kahn\PowerPoint\ch01.ppt and Kahn\PowerPoint\ch02.ppt
WEEK 2:
Tuesday, Jan 19: Kahn ch. 3 - Kahn\PowerPoint\ch03.ppt
Thursday, Jan 21: Kahn ch. 3 - Kahn\PowerPoint\ch03.ppt
WEEK 3
Tuesday, Jan 26: Kahn ch. 4 Kahn\PowerPoint\ch04.ppt and Kahn ch. 5 Kahn\PowerPoint\ch05.ppt
Thursday, Jan 28: The Tragedy of the Commons and
Conservation Reconsidered -http://www.rff.org/rff/Events/upload/29660_1.pdf
II. Renewable Resources and Agriculture:
WEEK 4: Water and Fisheries
Tuesday, Feb 2: SNOW DAY
Thursday, Feb 4: Kahn ch. 11and Marine Protected Areas: Economic and Social Implications
http://home.wlu.edu/~caseyj/Marine%20Resourcesch11.ppt
WEEK 5: Forests and Water
Tuesday, Feb 9: Kahn Ch.12 and 13
Thursday, Feb 11: Kahn Ch. 15
WEEK 6: Biodiversity and Agriculture
Tuesday, Feb 16: Kahn ch. 14 and 15
Thursday, Feb 18: Kahn ch. 17
Take Home Exam # 1is due Friday at noon.
III. Energy and climate change
WEEK 7: Introduction http://vimeo.com/9426688
Tuesday, March 2: Kahn ch. 8
Thursday, March 4: Kahn ch. 9 and ch. 7 Kahn\PowerPoint\ch07.ppt
Climate Policy beyond Copenhagen.ppt
http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/ozone-depletion-overview.html
WEEK 8: Foundations
Tuesday, March 9: Back to the Future: The Great Climate Experiment
http://harvardmag.com/pdf/2006/05-pdfs/0506-40.pdfhttp://schraglab.unix.fas.harvard.edu/publications/CV83.pdf
Thursday, March 11: NO CLASS TODAY - I WILL BE IN DC TALKING ABOUT CLIMATE LEGISLATION.
WEEK 9: Economic Analysis
Tuesday, March 16: RFFClimate
Thursday, March 18: RFF CONTINUED
WEEK 10: Policy
Tuesday, March 23: http://www.rff.org/RFF/Documents/RFF-IB%2006-02.pdf
Thursday, March 25 - We will have a quiz on each of these readings today!!!!! Stabilization Wedges AND http://www.rff.org/rff/documents/rff-dp-08-26.pdf and Hydrogen Fuel Cells
IV. Development and Environment
WEEK 11:
Tuesday, March 30: finish climate and energy section -
http://www.bepress.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1718&context=ev
Thursday, April 1: Kahn ch. 6 Kahn\PowerPoint\ch06.ppt
EXAM 2 due - I will send it to you Wednesday Evening
WEEK 12:
Tuesday, April 6: Kahn 18 and 19
Thursday, April 8: TBA
Environment and Development.ppt
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?