A bridge collapsed in the West Deptford area of New Jersey on Friday, sending several train cars carrying toxic chemicals crashing into a creek near the Delaware River, the U.S. Coast Guard said.
Vinyl chloride, a highly toxic and flammable chemical, is believed to be leaking into Mantua Creek, Petty Officer Nick Ameen told CNN. No serious injuries have been reported, but nearby schools are on lockdown, a borough emergency official said, and people in the immediate area have been evacuated.
A representative for Underwood Memorial Hospital told CNN that the hospital has treated 18 patients with respiratory issues.
via www.cnn.com
Professor Hausman's recommendation seems to be rather than rely on stated preference methods, ask an expert. "For public policy purposes, expert analysis...will hopefully avoid the “mistakes” that would arise with the use of contingent valuation and come to better allocative outcomes than if we were to depend on results from contingent valuation surveys that are not consistent with fundamental economic preferences on which we base economic welfare analysis." Although he does not define who that expert should be, or why that expert would know more about the nature of your benefits than do you.
So, let me know how you would go about assessing the social, ecological and health benefits of preventing toxic chemical spills without the use of stated preference survey methods.
*What would Jerry Hausman do?
