Environmental Economics

Another step on the way to 5 million green jobs?

From the inbox:

WASHINGTON – On Thursday, July 30, 2009, EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson will hold a press conference in Chicago to announce funding to train workers for green jobs.

The press conference will be held at the Chicago Center for Green Technology at 12:15 p.m. Additional details will be provided in the coming days.

IBM made the first move

Run your regressions with IBM software (IBM to buy software firm for $1.2b):

 International Business Machines Corp. agreed to buy software developer SPSS Inc. for $1.2 billion, expanding Big Blue's software portfolio and adding another deal to the growing list of recent acquisitions in the software industry.

Chicago-based SPSS develops software that analyzes statistical data to make predictions. The software, known as predictive analytics, is used for survey and scientific research along with marketing, government and educational purposes. The companies said they expected to close the deal by year's end. ...

SPSS officials, during a conference call, said they didn't anticipate any anti-trust issues with the deal. SPSS declined to say how it came to an agreement with IBM, but did say IBM made the first move [ed: see below] by approaching SPSS about an acquisition.

I make my undergraduates learn SPSS and they fuss. After fussing they are able to figure it out in about 10 minutes. Let's hope IBM doesn't mess things up!

*Note: Making the first move (adapted from the message boards):

IBM: Should I make the first move?

IBM's friend: Oh heck yeah! I mean, what's the worst that will happen? He'll say 'No thanks' and then you know right then and there that it's his loss.

IBM: lol@ his loss I like the way you boost your ego. You mean your loss since he wasn't even interested to begin with.

IBM's friend: Your my kind of girl, fear of rejection has no place on a warrior. After all the cries of equality, why do women take a back seat to the most important task of selecting a mate? Why, allow the male ego to rule this game?

Housing market update

According to a real estate appraisal (n=1) analysis, home prices have fallen by 20% over the past 2 years in Boone, NC.

Don't forget the SAP webinar tomorrow

Check out this week's SAP webinar where folks will be discussing the economic stimulus package and what it means for different sectors.

Here are the questions I'd like answered:

1. The stimulus is touted as an engine for creating jobs. Yet, the cost per job created seems quite high (e.g., $160,000 per job in renewable and clean energy [page 05]). Is this the best way that the U.S. government could spend money in order to create jobs?
2. Why are there no job creation estimates offered for the energy and water sectors (page 06)? At $160,000 per job, there could be over 300,000 jobs created. Is this number feasible in this sector? Why or why not?
3. What are the job creation implications of Waxman-Markey (page 15). Will it create or cost jobs?

New book received from RFF Press

Water Policy in the Netherlands: Integrated Management in a Densely Populated Delta,Stijn Reinhard and Henk Folmer, editors, June 2009

As a low-lying delta region with a high population density, the Netherlands has long served as a study of successes and pitfalls in water management.  Water Policy in the Netherlands traces the history of water governance in the country, from technological innovations to prevent wide-scale flooding, to strategies focused primarily on improving water quality, to an interdisciplinary, integrated water management approach, which brings together perspectives from economics, hydrology, ecology, water law, and water technology.  ...

If you'd like to review this book for the Env-Econ.net blog then send me an email at john.c.whitehead at gmail dot com.

Update: We've found a reviewer!

Top Party Schools

From the C-J:

The nation's top party schools, according to Princeton Review's 2009 survey of 122,000 students.

1. Penn State University, State College, Pa.
2. University of Florida, Gainesville, Fla.
3. University of Mississippi, University, Miss.
4. University of Georgia, Athens, Ga.
5. Ohio University, Athens, Ohio
6. West Virginia University, Morgantown, W.Va.
7. University of Texas, Austin, Texas
8. University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wis.
9. Florida State University, Tallahassee, Fla.
10. University of California-Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, Calif.
11. University of Colorado, Boulder, Colo.
12. University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
13. Union College, Schenectady, N.Y.
14. Indiana University, Bloomington, Ind.
15. DePauw University, Greencastle, Ind.
16. University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tenn.
17. Sewanee: The University of the South, Sewanee, Tenn.
18. University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, N.D.
19. Tulane University, New Orleans, La.
20. Arizona State University, Tempe, Ariz.

Sewanee, rival of tiny Centre College, home of the Episcopal seminary, and where professors still teach in cap and gown (I think), at #17? ?

Gas price wars

From GoBlueRidge.net:

Lines of vehicles stretched out onto the shoulder of US 321 in Caldwell County as the most recent chapter of the Catawba Valley gas wars was launched yesterday.

The Wilco Hess station at US 321 and Pinewood Road displayed a low $2.129 price for regular gas early Friday morning, that by 5-cents the lowest seen in the immediate area.  Then by late in the afternoon, even though no other area station matched that price, the station lowered the price for unleaded regular to $2.069, and the lines formed.  The station taped off access from Pinewood, leaving one way in and out of the station from US 321, but most gas bargain seekers managed to maneuver through the instant vehicle maze. 

What the H, E, double toothpicks?

Cite my new paper!

From the inbox:

Dear Dr. Whitehead,

The Springer Marketing Team congratulates you on the electronic publication of your article Convergent Validity of Revealed and Stated Recreation Behavior with Quality Change: A Comparison of Multiple and Single Site Demands. The article is now available on SpringerLink http://www.springerlink.com/openurl.asp?genre=article&id=doi:10.1007/s10640-009-9307-3 and will be fully accessible to libraries, institutions and their patrons that have purchased a SpringerLink license. ...

My (SAP) webinar questions

Check out this week's SAP webinar where folks will be discussing the economic stimulus package and what it means for different sectors.

Last week I said:

My contribution is on the topic of what the stimulus package might mean for companies that are in cleantech, environmental services and energy sectors. In the next couple of days I'll be reading the MVP ebook  and coming up with a few questions that will be presented to the panel. ...

Here are the questions I'd like answered:

1. The stimulus is touted as an engine for creating jobs. Yet, the cost per job created seems quite high (e.g., $160,000 per job in renewable and clean energy [page 05]). Is this the best way that the U.S. government could spend money in order to create jobs?
2. Why are there no job creation estimates offered for the energy and water sectors (page 06)? At $160,000 per job, there could be over 300,000 jobs created. Is this number feasible in this sector? Why or why not?
3. What are the job creation implications of Waxman-Markey (page 15). Will it create or cost jobs?

It was unanimous

Tim goes on vacation and I get more work. From the inbox:

On behalf of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council I invite you to serve on our Social and Economic Technical Advisory Panel. At our June 2009 meeting the Council unanimously approved your appointment to the Panel. We greatly appreciate your willingness to serve the Council and the Magnuson-Stevens Act process in this role and look forward to working with you in the future.