Environmental Economics

I like cashews, beets, broccoli, cabbage, brussels sprouts, chestnuts, watermelons, cucumber, fennel, macadamia, mangoes, apricots and almonds...but not strawberries. I'm OK with losing the strawberries.

The honey bees are dying—and we don’t really know why. That’s the conclusion of a massive Department of Agriculture report that came out late last week on colony collapse disorder (CCD), the catch-all term for the large-scale deaths of honey bee groups throughout the U.S. And given how important honey bees are to the food that we eat—bees help pollinate crops that are worth more than $200 billion a year—the fact that they are dying in large numbers, and we can’t say why, is very, very worrying.

...

The problem is that there doesn’t seem to be a single smoking gun behind CCD. The USDA report points at a range of possible causes, including:

• A parasitic mite called Varroa destructor that has often been found in decimated colonies.
• Several viruses
• A bacterial disease called European foulbrood that is increasingly being detected in U.S. bee colonies
• The use of pesticides, including neonicotinoids, a neuro-active chemical

... As Brad Plumer pointed out over at the Washington Post, it’s not that the E.U. necessarily has more evidence about the role that the chemicals might be playing in CCD. This is a classic case of policymaking by the precautionary principle. The pesticides are considered guilty until proven innocent, and so they’re preventively banned, even before the scientific case is rock solid. That’s not unusual for European environmental regulation, especially in regards to chemicals. In the U.S.it’s the reverse—before the federal government is likely to take the step of banning a class of pesticides, and pissing off the multi-billion dollar chemical industry, you’re likely to see a lot more science done.

So what we may get in Europe and the U.S. is a de facto field test of the real impact of neonicotinoids on CCD. In two years, if American bees are still dying and their European cousins are thriving, we might just have our answers. And if not, well, I hope you don’t like cashews, beets, broccoli, cabbage, brussels sprouts, chestnuts, watermelons, cucumber, fennel, strawberries, macadamia, mangoes, apricots, almonds or any of the other dozens of food crops pollinated by our hard-working, six-legged, unpaid farm workers.

via science.time.com

After we won, I announced my decision to go pro

While the Ohio State men’s basketball team was competing in the NCAA Tournament, other members of the university community were working toward a different championship title.

OSU was crowned the winner of the second annual Environmental March Madness Tournament early Tuesday, defeating other schools in the “Sustainable 16” after filing out initial surveys.

The tournament pitted universities against one another based on each college’s environmental curriculum and sustainability efforts and was organized by Enviance, an environmental software company.

As the 2013 national champion, OSU will be awarded a $5,000 grant for its Environment, Economy, Development and Sustainability (EEDS) program. Its director will also get an all-expense paid trip to San Diego to attend the 2013 Enviance User Conference and be a part of a discussion panel in April.

via www.thelantern.com

EEDS is a joint major/partnership between 'my' department (Agricultural, Environment and Development Economics) and our School of Environment and Natural Resources with other partners around campus like the Business School. Visit eeds.osu.edu for more information.

Things I've learned about travel and England

I know many of you are wondering to yourself 'Where is Tim and why hasn't he posted in a few days.  I enjoy Tim's posts so much more than John's."  Well, I'm in England (Plymouth to be precise) for a three day workshop on trends in U.S. and U.K. appraches to ecosystem valuation--I'm representing the U.S. perspective in case you were wondering.  Anyway, I will have more on the workshop later, but for now I wanted to give you things I've learned about traveling to England.  Please keep in mind, as if you needed reminding, I am a stupid American.  

Thoughts (In chronological order):

• Getting up at 3:30AM to catch a flight sucks.
• Getting up at 3:30AM to catch a flight after staying up until 12:00AM the previous night sucks more.
• Getting up at 3:30AM to catch a flight after staying up until 12:00AM the previous night on the night when the the U.S. decides to still observe daylight savings time (or goes off daylight savings time, I can never keep that straight) sucks worse.
• Getting up at 3:30AM to catch a flight after staying up until 12:00AM the previous night on the night when the the U.S. decides to still observe daylight savings time (or goes off daylight savings time, I can never keep that straight) only to learn upon landing at Dulles airport that your flight to London has been cancelled...well you can fill the rest in.
• Twelve hours in an airport is boring.
• I can actually sleep on a plane.
• But I chose to first watch a movie (The Life of Pi), because 1) it was free and 2) I'm stupid.
• At Heathrow airport they make you walk approximately 5K (3.1 miles American--see how I slipped in the European metric there?) to get to customs.  That's a long way after sleeping only 5 hours total in the previous 48.
• Paddington Station does look like the kind of place a cuddly bear in a blue raincoat would really want to hang out.
• People in Paddington Station seem as though they are all in a hurry.
• Everything around Paddington Station looks the same.  It is hard to tell the houses from the hotels from the dentist office.
• Light switches--down is on, up is off? Can we get a little uniformity please?
• You have to turn on the outlets or your computer, cell phone and ipad won't charge.  Just sayin'.
• You have to turn on the outlets?
• Again, Down is on, up is off.
• Even if a shower has a faucet on the wall, and even if you stand to the side, it doesn't mean that if you turn on the water you won't get an unexpected freezing shower from the other facucet on the ceiling.
• The open bus tour is a great way to see London if you only have a few hours.
• Correct that.  The open bus is a great way to see London if you only have a few hours and it is above 0 degrees Celsius (That's 32F for you Americans).  Otherwise, it's freaking cold up there.
• A lot of buildings in London are very old and remind me of that movie Mary Poppins or those books by that Charles Dickens guy.
• Fish and Chips is really just fried fish and French Fries.  I think they named it something fancy to trick us stupid Americans.
• Riding trains is fun.  Especially if you have a backwards seat.
• Sheep.  A lot of them. Just an observation from the window of the train.
• Not sure why England has a reputation for dreary weather with sunsets like this...

I took the Appstate sustainability survey and got the first question wrong!

Here is the first question and my answers:

Here is the answer the survey revealed at the end of the survey:

Sustainable development has a triple bottom line (AKA "the Three Es") -- a healthy environment with functioning ecosystems, economic development that engages local populations, AND social justice and equity.

I like to buy local as much as the next guy (well, maybe, not AS much, but see my Local First card here), but it seems a bit mercantilist to say that autarky is needed for sustainability. Or, am I overreacting?

Ohio State is in the Sweet 16 (and no this isn't a sports related post)

This morning Enviance, in partnership with GreenBiz Group and Qualtrics, introduced the “Sustainable 16,” the country’s top undergraduate environmental studies programs as determined by an expert panel of judges in the Second Annual Environmental March Madness (#EnviroU) tournament.

The panel of judges — comprised of an education author and expert, as well as representatives from the Natural Resources Defense Council, Environmental Defense Fund, Walmart, Forbes, Norfolk Southern and Enviance—­ chose the “Sustainable 16” schools from a competitive group of institutions that showed commitment to the environment through both their environmental studies programs and on-campus initiatives.

The contenders are, in alphabetical order:

• Arizona State University
• Colorado State University
• Emory University
• George Mason University
• Michigan State University
• Middlebury College
• Montana State University
• Ohio State University School of Environment and Natural Resources
• Rochester Institute of Technology
• University of California Santa Barbara
• University of Florida
• University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
• University of the Pacific
• University of Virginia
• University of Washington
• University of Wisconsin-Madison

via blog.enviance.com

 

Because money is not free?

From the inbox:

The Sustainable Development Student Alliance will hold another free market Wednesday, Dec. 12, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Multicultural Room of the student union.

Take a quick lunch break from finals and come trade things for something new. This is a great opportunity to clean out before the New Year, or get Christmas gifts for friends. Bring clothes, books, CDs, artwork, or anything else to trade. This is a free market, so no money will be exchanged, just old items for new. Get creative. Give massages. Play music. Teach something. Take something home.

Everything that remains after 2 p.m. will be saved for the next market.

Let's exchange and get to know each other.

Sustainable Development students aren't required to take an economics course.

High schoolers interested in sustainability?

If anyone knows of outstanding high school students who are looking to major in sustainability at a major land grant university, I happen to know of a new program that just might fit the bill.  It's called Environment, Economy, Development and Sustainability and it just launched this fall. 

Drop me a message if you're interested. 

And just to show you TOSU's commitment to sustainability:

Ohio State on Sunday (9/30) announced it has signed a letter of intent with Iberdrola Renewables to purchase 50 megawatts (MW) of wind energy capacity from the Blue Creek Wind Farm, located in Van Wert and Paulding counties in Ohio. The purchase of clean, renewable wind energy capacity equates to approximately 25 percent of the entire Columbus campus electricity load, and is one of the single largest purchases of actual renewable energy by any university in the country.

The agreement helps Ohio State take a big step toward becoming a "carbon neutral university," a commitment the university has been working toward since President Gee signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment in 2008. The university continues to develop and implement plans to achieve its sustainability goals, including the creation of a campus culture that embraces sustainability.

The top 10 is cool, but not THAT cool

From University News:

For the sixth year in a row, SIERRA magazine is releasing its annual ranking of the nation’s “Coolest Schools,” and this year Appalachian State University has moved into the No. 10 spot.

The rankings salute U.S. colleges that are helping solve climate problems and making significant efforts to operate sustainably.

This is the third year Appalachian’s focus on sustainability has been recognized by the magazine, but the first year the university has been listed as a Top 10 school. Appalachian first participated in the magazine’s “Coolest Schools” survey in 2010. ...

SIERRA magazine’s “Coolest Schools” ranking is open to all four-year undergraduate colleges and universities in the United States. In March 2011, Sierra sent a 12-page questionnaire to 940 schools, a list based on the widest collection of university contacts that the magazine’s researchers could amass; schools that requested a survey were provided one and encouraged to participate. SIERRA received 118 complete responses from schools, which the magazine’s researchers scored and ranked. There was no cost for participation, but schools that did not respond were not included in the ranking.

I would get absolutely killed with a 13% survey response rate.

From the Chronicle of Higher Ed:

Since Sierra has had problems with collecting information and presenting a sensible methodology in the past, the magazine now relies on the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System, a collection of sustainability data supported by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education.

This year, the top five are (in order) the University of California at Davis, the Georgia Institute of Technology, Stanford University, the University of Washington, and the University of Connecticut. UC-Davis was 16th in the 2010 Cool Schools list, Georgia Tech was 18th, and UConn was 49th. (Stanford and Washington were in the top five that year and in 2011, too.)

The methodology probably changes more than the colleges. But anyone in higher education’s sustainability circles would find the “complete list” of participating colleges fairly incomplete. Where is the University of Vermont? Where is American University, which earned a gold rating in the Stars rating system? Where’s the University of Colorado at Boulder, which topped the list only a few years ago?

It’s very likely that they didn’t participate, as the numbers of colleges have been going down year after year. Sierra’s complete list tallied 162 colleges two years ago and 118 last year. Only 96 are listed this year.