Environmental Economics

Is Cuil not cool?

cuil.com (pronounced 'cool') launched today in an attempt to upend Google.  Cuil claims to index three times the web sites of Google.  In my eye, they're not off to a good start (see image at right).

The Value of a Statistical Life is Not the Value of Life

[This is a guest post from Mark Thoma - cross posted here]

This article by Seth Borenstein of the AP generated quite a bit of subsequent commentary:

An American life worth less today, by Seth Borenstein, AP: It's not just the American dollar that's losing value. A government agency has decided that an American life isn't worth what it used to be.

The "value of a statistical life" is $6.9 million in today's dollars, the Environmental Protection Agency reckoned in May — a drop of nearly $1 million from just five years ago. ...

Some environmentalists accuse the Bush administration of changing the value to avoid tougher rules — a charge the EPA denies. ...

Agency officials say they were just following what the science told them. ... EPA officials say the adjustment was ... based on better economic studies. ...

As noted below, the rest of the AP article does a decent job of explaining the reasons for the change in the value of a statistical life, but the headline "an American Life Worth Less Today," and the opening paragraph supporting that claim is what most people heard about in the follow-up coverage.

Some light weekend speculations

1. Matt Kahn calls Weitzman's talk one of the highlights at the NBER meetings last week and speculates on the Big Questions in Environmental Economics.
2. Jim Hamilton speculates on oil prices and economic fundamentals.
3. Business Week's title story argues why oil shouldn't be cheap and comes up with a business case for a price floor. I'm sure there's a speculation in there somewhere.

State-by-state costs of climate inaction

After a brief foray into low-probability high-impact events, back to consensus estimates -- and actual hard numbers -- on the potential costs of climate change. My colleague, Sheryl Canter, lists some highlights from a recent report authored by a team at the University of Maryland:

• The 2007 drought in Georgia caused $1.3 billion in economic damage, mostly from crop losses. An additional 5 percent of crop losses due to climate change would result in direct and indirect economic losses of nearly $110 million per year, and the loss of 533 jobs.
• Colorado is a favored skiing and snowboarding destination, with 23 percent market share and $2 billion in annual revenue. If global warming continues at the current rate, the snow line could rise 1,312 feet, and the snow season could end 30 days earlier. A shortened ski season leading to a 1 percent annual decrease in tourists would cost $375 million and over 4,500 jobs by 2017.
• In Illinois, flooding from the projected increase in heavy precipitation could cause significant damage to infrastructure. Flood damage has increased in recent years. Insured catastrophic losses were $272 million in 2007, ranking the state fifth in the nation.
• Lower water levels in Lake Erie could cost Ohio's shipping industry and related businesses over $1 billion annually. Companies would be forced to spend more on harbor dredging, dock adjustments and other significant infrastructure changes.

[...]

More over at Climate411, including a list of previous US-wide studies.

Friday Environmental Sports Post

From CBS3.com in Philadephia:

Philadelphia Eagles...cheerleaders are the first professional cheerleading organization to produce an eco-friendly themed calendar printed on recycled paper.

The calendar features the team donning bikinis made of recycled plastic soda bottles and organic cotton, all-natural accessories made from glass, clothes hangers, cable wire, CDs, and computer chips. And for the final touches, the girls used environmentally friendly makeup and hair products.

To applaud their efforts to save the environment, I will be visiting their web-site.  Often.

Picture of the Day

A lot of people have been asking me: do you have any pictures from your first trip to Europe since college?* Here is one of a fun-loving environmental economist with 2 hours sleep on day 1 outside the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam (photo credit: another environmental economist). Click on the thumbnail for a larger image (but wear your sunglasses).

*Note: no one has been asking me this.

A "monument"al problem

From AP:

Strolling beside the Reflecting Pool with the Lincoln Memorial in the distance, it's easy to overlook a gentle rise in the landscape a few yards to the north.

The small berm is part of an inconspicuous levee system designed to protect world-famous museums, the National Archives and federal office buildings from flooding.

But the nearly 70-year-old levee is at risk of failing during a major storm -- a catastrophe that could swamp portions of downtown in up to 10 feet of water and cause $200 million in damages, according to federal officials.

Dozens of communities coast to coast are facing similar warnings as authorities re-examine the nation's outdated flood-control infrastructure.

We have built a series of structures and walked away from them historically," said Leonard Shabman, a water resources expert with the think tank Resources for the Future. "If you've got potholes in the road, people go out and fix them; that's not the case with levees."

Where I'll be tonight

No, not speaking in front of a bunch of suits as part of a distinguished panel of economists. Instead, and even better since we're exploring a new economics/music format, you can find me at the Old 97s show at the Orange Peel in Asheville tonight. If you see me I'll insist that you buy me a beer. Maybe two. It is the least you can do.

New opinion poll (finally!)

Register your opinion in the left-hand column (right below the info list). Please note that the first vote was very elitist: "too low."

Hey John, ask and ye shall receive...sort of

In his most recent post, John asks "How much is a boat ramp worth?"  Fortunately, there is an amazing paper forthcoming in Marine Resource Economics* that answers exactly that question...for Oahu.  The table at the right has the results.

The upshot: the value of a ramp ranges from $.01 to $1.83 per angler per trip on Oahu.  This is small because it's an island.  If one ramp closes, another is nearby.  Closure of a regional set of ramps (5 ramps in close proximity) results in losses of $2.64 to $6.80 per angler per trip depending on the set of ramps. 

Do with these numbers what you wish.

*Haab, Hamilton and McConnell, "Small Boat Fishing in Hawaii: A Random Utility Model of Ramp and Ocean Destinations," Forthcoming, Marine Resource Economics.