Valuing Aircraft Noise: Stated Choice Experiments Reflecting Inter-Temporal Noise Changes from Airport Relocation

http://www.springerlink.com/content/y64286g016v5k346/

Abstract: The relocation of Athens Airport provided a rare experimental context in which residents experienced significant changes in noise levels due to the introduction or removal of aircraft noise. This paper reports the results from surveys around both airport locations, using stated choice experiments to estimate values for aircraft noise. The respondents were offered actual inter-temporal noise change scenarios rather than hypothetical variations, which is uncommon in the literature, incorporating the presence or absence of an airport and other relevant transport attributes that also changed with the airport relocation. Whilst there is some variation in the valuation of the airport closure and opening, when these values are adjusted to reflect the actual change in decibels, there is remarkably little difference between the old and new airports. However, a significant variation in aircraft noise values is identified between different areas, with respect to education and to a lesser extent income. Our preferred estimate of the monthly household willingness to pay for terminating aircraft noise exposure is 13.12€ and for avoiding the onset of aircraft noise is 9.53€.

by Sotirios Thanos, Mark Wardman and Abigail L. Bristow
Environmental and Resource Economics via SpringerLink www.SpringerLink.com 
Volume 50, Number 4; December, 2011; pages 559-583
Keywords: Aircraft noise, Choice experiments, Environmental valuation, Stated choice, Stated preference, Willingness to pay, Willingness to accept compensation

Willingness to Pay for Ancillary Benefits of Climate Change Mitigation

http://www.springerlink.com/content/w6x3523h408t1k80/

Abstract: Assessing the Willingness to Pay (WTP) of the general public for climate change mitigation programmes enables governments to understand how much taxpayers are willing to support the implementation of such programs. This paper contributes to the literature on the WTP for climate change mitigation programmes by investigating, in addition to global benefits, the ancillary benefits of climate change mitigation. It does so by considering local and personal benefits arising from climate change policies. The Contingent Valuation Method is used to elicit the WTP for ancillary and global benefits of climate mitigation policies in the Basque Country, Spain. Results show that WTP estimates are 53–73% higher when ancillary benefits are considered.

by Alberto Longo, David Hoyos and Anil Markandya

Environmental and Resource Economics via SpringerLink www.SpringerLink.com
Volume 51, Number 1; December, 2011; pages 119-140

Do Regulators Overestimate the Costs of Regulation?

http://yosemite.epa.gov/ee/epa/eed.nsf/WPNumber/2011-07

Abstract: It has occasionally been asserted that regulators typically overestimate the costs of the regulations they impose. A number of arguments have been proposed for why this might be the case, with the most widely credited one being that regulators fail sufficiently to appreciate the effects of innovation in reducing regulatory compliance costs. Most existing studies have found that regulators are more likely to over- than to underestimate costs. Moreover, the ratio of ex ante estimates of compliance costs to ex post estimates of the same costs is generally greater than one. In this paper I argue that neither piece of evidence necessarily demonstrates that ex ante estimates are biased. There are several reasons to suppose that the distribution of compliance costs would be skewed, so that the median of the distribution would lie below the mean. It is not surprising, then, that most estimates would prove to be too high. Moreover, we would expect from a simple application of Jensen’s inequality that the expected ratio of ex ante to ex post compliance costs would be greater than one. In this paper I propose a regression-based test of the bias of ex ante compliance cost estimates, and cannot reject the hypothesis that estimates are unbiased. Despite the existence of a number of papers reporting ex ante and ex post compliance cost estimates, it is surprisingly difficult to get a large sample of such comparisons. My most salient finding does not concern the bias of ex ante cost estimates so much as their inaccuracy and the continuing paucity of careful studies.

...

A very thorough comparison of ex ante to ex post estimates of costs was conducted in 2000 by Winston Harrington, Richard Morgenstern, and Peter Nelson. The researchers considered 28 regulations written by EPA, OSHA, and a handful of other regional and international regulators. A number of different industries were covered. Ex ante cost estimates were considered “accurate” if they were within ± 25% of ex post values, and either too high or too low if they fell outside this range. By this standard total costs of regulation were overestimated in 15 instances, underestimated in only three, and deemed reasonably accurate in the remaining 11.

...

The next major retrospective study of the costs of regulation was completed in 2005 by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB 2005). OMB reviewed 47 regulations initiated between 1976 and 1995. EPA issued 18 of the regulations in the OMB sample, the most of any of the five federal agencies included in the study (the others were the National Occupational Safety and Health Administration (13 regulations included), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (8), the Department of Energy (6) and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (2)). As is generally the case with estimates of regulatory costs, the sample was determined by the availability of data, not by any attempt to generate a random cross-section of regulatory activity. The results of the OMB study are less striking than those of some other researchers. Of 40 regulations for which comparable ex ante and ex post data are available, 16 ex ante projections overestimated cost, 12 underestimated them, and 12 were approximately accurate. The OMB study was not completely independent of earlier work, however: for instance, nine of the studies in its sample were adopted from Harrington, et al. 2000.

At least three studies have been conducted of the accuracy of ex ante cost measures in other countries (in addition, Harrington et al. 2000 includes three examples drawn from Singapore, Norway, and Canada among their 28 case studies). While such inquiries obviously consider costs generated under different legal and regulatory structures than prevail in the U. S., they may still be useful in interpreting general approaches to regulatory cost estimation. It might also be noted in passing that international standards for the analysis of regulatory impacts have become more similar over time, with the United Kingdom (MacLeod, et al., 2006) and the European Union adopting such requirements.5 A study conducted by the Stockholm Environmental Institute considered the cost estimates presented by industry in regulatory negotiations, and found them to be consistently higher than ex post realizations of actual costs (Bailey, et al., 2002).

American Carbon Registry Initiates Approval of ... Carbon Offset Methodology for Deltaic Wetland Restoration ... to unlock carbon finance potential for wetland restoration activities

http://is.gd/koCRHH

American Carbon Registry (ACR), a nonprofit enterprise of Winrock International, announces an open public comment period for a ... carbon offset methodology that will both quantify how wetland restoration work can combat climate change and provide a way to help pay for rebuilding the Gulf of Mexico’s disappearing coastal wetland. The methodology, Restoration of Degraded Deltaic Wetlands of the Mississippi Delta, was funded by Entergy Corporation and developed by Dr. Sarah K. Mack of New Orleans-based Tierra Resources LLC, with contributions from Dr. Robert R. Lane, Dr. John W. Day and Tiffany M. Potter.

The new wetland offset methodology is unique not only because it is the first carbon offset methodology to target deltaic wetland restoration, but also because it uses a modular format, which provides flexibility for numerous types of wetland restoration techniques and facilitates methodology expansion. Another key innovation of the methodology is the incorporation of hydrologic management of nutrient-rich waters as a restoration technique, including options for diversion of river water into wetland, introduction of nonpoint source runoff into wetlands and discharge of treated municipal effluent into wetlands. Avoided loss and afforestation are also included wetland restoration techniques.

The primary hurdle to implement Mississippi Delta restoration is the price tag, estimated between $10 billion for near-term restoration to $150 billion for broader restoration and protection measures. Louisiana’s Comprehensive Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast recently estimated that between $20 billion and $50 billion will realistically be available for funding over the next 50 years, but acknowledged a budget up to five times that size could be needed. Under the new methodology, carbon credits created by restoring wetlands can be registered and sold to help finance additional wetland restoration, Dr. Mack said.

...

A ... study .. published [September 14, 2011] by Restore America’s Estuaries, “Jobs & Dollars: Big Returns from Coastal Habitat Restoration,” [and available at http://www.estuaries.org/images/81103-RAE_17_FINAL_web.pdf] confirms that investments in coastal habitat restoration produce jobs at a higher rate than many other sectors -- including oil & gas, road infrastructure and green building retrofit projects. This study coincides with further efforts by Entergy to explore solutions to the environmental and economic impacts facing coastal wetland. In an open dialog to address mitigation of coastal stressors such as hurricanes, coastal erosion and rising sea levels, Entergy’s 2010 study “Building a Resilient Energy Gulf Coast,” produced in cooperation with America’s Energy Coast and America’s Wetland Foundation, presents a picture of what the Gulf coast will look like environmentally as well as economically by the year 2030 if no mitigation or remediation activity is undertaken.

Louisiana boasts 40 percent of the country’s coastal wetland - more than 4 million acres. Of total U.S. coastal wetland loss, 80 percent has occurred in the Mississippi Delta. An estimated 90 percent of current loss occurs in Louisiana -- the equivalent of losing one football field of wetlands every hour. The loss of Louisiana’s coastal wetlands has major national environmental and economic implications. Not only is the Mississippi Delta one of the world’s most unique and diverse ecosystems, but its wetlands and waterways contribute tens of billions of dollars to the national economy every year and support millions of jobs. Much of the U.S. depends on sustaining the navigation, flood control, energy production, and seafood production functions of the Mississippi Delta and river system. Each of those functions is currently at severe risk due to coastal wetland loss.

As a first step toward achieving the massive global GHG mitigation potential from wetland restoration, the methodology is expected to be expanded in the future for wetland restoration in other regions and other wetland restoration practices. The ACR approval process for the methodology, which includes public comment and scientific peer review, is targeted to be complete this spring.

...

The “Jobs & Dollars: Big Returns from Coastal Habitat Restoration,” report (at http://www.estuaries.org/images/81103-RAE_17_FINAL_web.pdf) found:

• Restoring our coasts can create more than 30 jobs for each million dollars invested. That’s more than twice as many jobs as the oil and gas and road construction industries combined.
• During 2010, restoration efforts for the Chesapeake Bay, Great Lakes, and Everglades contributed $427 million in economic output and supported more than 3,200 jobs.
• The $72-million Central Wetlands Unit restoration project in New Orleans is on track to create 280 direct jobs and 400 indirect and induced jobs, for a total of 680 jobs over the project’s life.
• The restoration of Florida’s Everglades is a 4:1 return on investment.

Restoration improves coastal habitats and helps local economies by creating three different types of jobs: direct, indirect, and induced.

• Direct Jobs: People using their skills to restore damaged wetlands, shellfish beds, coral reefs and fish passages.
• Indirect Jobs: Jobs in industries that supply materials for restoration projects, such as lumber, concrete and nursery plants.
• Induced Jobs: Jobs in businesses that provide local goods and services, such as clothing and food, to people working on restoration projects.

American Carbon Registry www.AmericanCarbonRegistry.or

Press Release dated Jan. 18, 2012
Hap Tip/See also http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/19/calculating-the-carbon-value-of-a-swamp/?src=recg

China Gets Rolling on Carbon Trading

http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/index.cfm/go/news.display/id/23316

China's prime minister confirmed the country will increase the amount of non-fossil fuel energy it uses to 11.4% by 2015, and will "vigorously" develop renewable energy as part of its 5-Year Plan. 8.4% of China's electricity came from non-fossil fuel sources in 2010....

...
China's five year plan also calls for reducing carbon emissions per unit of gross domestic product (carbon intensity) 17% by 2015.

To achieve that, China's planning agency, The National Development and Reform Commission, informed seven provinces and cities they need to set emissions caps to prepare for the country's pilot carbon trading program.  They must submit proposals explaining how they will allocate emission permits to achieve the caps, establish a dedicated fund to support the carbon market, and develop a detailed implementation plan, according to Reuters.  Beyond the seven official pilots, 100 other regions and cities want to start carbon exchanges.  Guangdong province has already received approval for its plan....

China is also seriously considering a carbon tax.

For now, China's massive use of coal continues to outstrip its growing use of renewable energy. Coal still provides 70% of electricity, almost half of that burned on our planet. If current use continues, it's on track to consume five billion tons of coal a year by 2020, up from 3.2 billion tons in 2010, reports The Guardian.

Alarmed by the rapid increase, the National Energy Administration is calling for a cap on energy consumption - below 4.1 billion tons of coal equivalent a year by 2015.

In related news, China approved a $913 billion, 300 megawatt offshore wind farm off the coast of its northern Hebei province, to be online before the end of 2015.  China could soon issue a second RFP for 2 GW of offshore wind. The plan is to have 5 GW by 2015, amounting to 5% of total wind capacity.

Here are details of China's 5-Year Plan: http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/index.cfm/go/news.display/id/22006

FOR FULL STORY GO TO:
http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/index.cfm/go/news.display/id/23316 
www.SustainableBusiness.com
January 17, 2012

How has Oregon's land use planning system affected property values?

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264837711000469

Abstract: Oregon's landmark land use planning system has been criticized for imposing large negative effects on landowners’ property values, although evidence to support these claims has been lacking. This paper examines longitudinal data for undeveloped parcels since before adoption of the planning system. The sample includes parcels under different land use regulations, and it compares Oregon to Washington. The results indicate generally that property values have increased at similar rates both inside and outside urban growth boundaries, and across parcels zoned for different uses and across state lines. The results are consistent both with theory and with other studies indicating land use regulations can have positive, neutral or negative effects.
 

Highlights:

► The effects of land use regulations on property values in Oregon are evaluated.

► “Before-and-after” data covering 35 years are examined in Oregon and Washington.

► Results find property values have risen at similar rates inside and outside urban growth boundaries. ► Results find property values have risen similarly across zoning types and state lines.
 

Many states in the USA attempt to manage urban growth so that development is directed to urban areas equipped to accommodate development, and rural lands are preserved for resource and other non-urban uses. The state of Oregon is entering its third decade of what many commentators describe as the nation's most aggressive urban growth management programme administered statewide. This article reports a recent evaluation of the effectiveness of the state urban growth management policies as they are implemented by the metropolitan Portland area. The metropolitan Portland area contains the largest population, employment and land base within a single urban growth boundary in the USA. Using primary data collection and analysis, the effectiveness of the urban growth management and resource land preservation effort is assessed. Nearly all regional development has been directed to the urban growth boundary and away from resource lands. Many problems with administration are found, however. Policy implications are suggested.

...

In Lane County Oregon data show a large difference between real per-acre property values inside and outside the Urban Growth Boundary (UGB). By 2002, this difference was $24,894 per acre. [This implies] that the UGB, by limiting development opportunities, has greatly reduced the value of parcels outside the boundary.  However, this conclusion is not necessarily warranted. While the current average value of land inside the UGB is higher than that outside, the same was true in 1965. The differences in values in 1965 cannot be due to the UGB, as it had not been designated at that time. They likely were due to locational advantages, particularly proximity to the city center. The average distance to the Eugene city center for our sample of parcels outside the UGB is more than twice that for those inside the UGB.

... 

Location relative to the UGB is a relatively coarse filter. High-density residential development is not necessarily permitted on all parcels within the UGB. Thus, we also evaluated the effects of different zoning classes. For the parcels in our sample, the highest density residential zoning category (a maximum of 14 single-family housing units per acre) was low-density residential zoning (R-1). Residential housing development is allowed on parcels zoned rural residential (RR), but at lower densities (in our sample, either 5- or 10-acre minimum lot size). Finally, exclusive farm use (E) and forest lands (F) zoning are very restrictive in terms of housing development.  For example, dwellings may be constructed on EFU land only if they are directly related to the agricultural enterprise.

...

Land with R-1 zoning has the highest average value in 2002, in large part because of its proximity to the city center. This is followed by land with RR zoning, E zoning, and F zoning. This suggests that zoning restrictions have not greatly reduced property values. Land that eventually was zoned R-1 already had the highest average per-acre value in 1965: $1266 per acre, compared to $389 per acre (RR), $504 per acre (E), and $210 per acre (F). Like parcels located inside the UGB, R-1 land tended to have locational advantages such as proximity to the Eugene city center.

We compared the growth in land values for each zoning designation relative to values prior to implementation of land use regulations. For each subsample, we took the 1965–1972 average value as the base and computed the increase in value in each period relative to that base. The highest rates of  appreciation were realized on land with F zoning. By 2002, the value of this land had grown about 200 percent more than land with the least restrictive zoning (R-1). A high growth rate was also seen on land with RR zoning. The lowest growth rate was on the developable lands (R-1 zoning).

...

In Jackson County as expected, parcels with the least restrictions on residential housing construction have the highest average values in 2005. However, the growth in average land values over the 1965–2005 period was greatest for parcels with OSR and WR zoning. The average value of parcels with OSR and WR zoning relative to their 1965 value was 1,160 percent and 1,602 percent, respectively.

For RR and EFU parcels, the 2005 value was about 530 percent of the 1965 value. Thus, properties with OSR and WR zoning appreciated more by 2005 than properties with RR and EFU zoning. A similar result was found in Lane County.

by William K. Jaeger 1, Andrew J. Plantinga 1, and Cyrus Grout 2
1. Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Oregon State University, United States; 213 Ballard Extension Hall, Corvallis, OR 97331, United States. Tel.: +1 541 737 1419.
2. INRA (French National Institute for Agricultural Research), France
Land Use Policy via Elsevier Science Direct www.ScienceDirect.com
Volume 29, Issue 1, January 2012, Pages 62–72
Also see: http://arec.oregonstate.edu/sites/default/files/faculty/plantinga/jaeger_plantinga_grout_2011_land_use_policy.pdf
Keywords: Land use regulations; Property values; Urban growth boundaries; Land use planning